States Cut Community Health Center Funding
Just as demand for services at community health centers has been projected to increase — both because of the recession and the health law’s expansions in access to medical care — state funding for these centers has reached a seven-year low for fiscal year 2012, according to a new report. A survey by the National Association of Community Health […]
CMS: States’ Health Spending Gap Widens
Updated Dec. 8, 2011 at 1:03 p.m. Researchers at the office of the actuary and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services offered the first snapshot of state-by-state health-care spending since the recession Wednesday, as well as a look at where provisions of the 2010 health law could have their greatest effect. The authors of the research […]
Study: Few Healthy Food Choices At Calif. Children’s Hospitals
Fried food, a cookie, ice cream and soda. It’s a dieter’s nightmare. It’s also what many children’s hospitals in California are offering their patients, staff and visitors. Researchers with the UCLA School of Medicine and RAND Corporation visited the state’s 14 major children’s hospitals last year and found many less-than-ideal food options. According to their […]
More States Taking Federal Funds For Insurance Exchanges
Despite widespread opposition to the 2010 health law, a majority of states have now accepted federal funding to establish their own health insurance exchanges. The Department of Health and Human Services today announced nearly $220 million in new grants to 13 states. HHS also pushed back by six months the deadline for applying for level-one […]
That Other Shopping Spree: Medicare Deadline Looms
Updated at 11:40 a.m. on Nov. 23. Black Friday is nearly upon us, and along with holiday gift shopping, there’s plenty of Medicare shopping to do over Thanksgiving weekend. Seniors have only two weeks left to choose a new Medicare Advantage or prescription drug plan, if they want to change from their current ones. Medicare’s […]
In Capitol Hill Speech, Paul Decries ‘Corporate Medicine,’ ‘Government Intervention’
GOP presidential hopeful Ron Paul discussed how, in his view, the federal government has undermined the nation’s health care system.
States Cut Mental Health Budgets As Demand Increases
More than half the states have cut their mental health budgets since the recession hit home, while the economic slump has pushed up demand for such services, according to a new report from the National Alliance on Mental Illness. TABLE.blogtable { PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; WIDTH: 200px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse; PADDING-TOP: 0px; […]
Study Finds Potential, Challenges For Bundled Payments
It’s almost Black Friday, when people across the country will be doing price comparisons to save money on their holiday gifts. And a new study shows that reducing price differences among hospitals could provide the U.S. health care system with a similar gift: lower costs. Researchers reporting in Health Affairs on Monday found that, after adjusting for […]
Doctor-Patient Relationship Has Starring Role In AMA Ad
Keep an eye out during the evening news, or even your favorite show on Lifetime, because the American Medical Association is taking to primetime news and cable to fight Medicare physician payment cuts. Doctors face a 29.5 percent payment cut Jan. 1 if Congress doesn’t intervene. The AMA ran ads explicitly against the cut in […]
Harvard Study Highlights Wide Range Of Medicaid Expansion Estimates
If one thing is certain about the 2010 health law, it’s that almost nothing about it is certain. And according to a newly released report, one of the major unknowns involves the law’s expansion of Medicaid, the federal-state health insurance program for the poor. In a Health Affairs article released Wednesday, researchers at the Harvard […]
Help Wanted: New Research Institute Seeks A Patient Perspective
There’s a deadline this week for everyday people interested in shaping a controversial initiative from the 2010 health law. But whether or not enough people will follow through — or are aware of the timing — is unclear, according to advocates. Patients and other people who might not normally be involved in medical research have […]
Message To Seniors: Stay Active, Stay Well
Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” campaign for children now has a counterpart for the 50-plus set. The National Institute on Aging on Wednesday launched its “Go4Life” campaign, aimed at increasing physical activity among Baby Boomers and their parents. “Physical inactivity cuts across all age ranges, so we felt the need to do something especially for older adults,” […]
Panel: Obama Administration Left Long-Term Care Puzzle Unsolved
On Friday, the Obama administration nixed the CLASS program. Still, speakers at the LeadingAge annual meeting on Monday said the controversial long-term health care program has the potential to succeed. “We’re still reading through the appendices [of the administration’s analysis], waiting to see their ideas” for how to make it work, said Connie Garner, executive […]
Kids’ Emergency Mental Health Needs Add To Safety Net’s Burden
Emergency rooms across the country are crowded with children in need of psychiatric care, and more and more of those kids are underinsured – either on Medicaid or without any insurance at all. According to a new study, underinsured children accounted for 54 percent of emergency room psychiatric visits in 2007, up from 46 percent […]
Clock Starts Ticking Saturday For Medicare Enrollment
Medicare’s open enrollment season begins
Disparities Cloud Health Improvements In Past Decade, Report Finds
Federal officials note that minorities and low-income Americans continue to have less access to health care even as the country makes improvements in life expectancy and lowering death rates related to several conditions.
Living Wills Help Curb Costs Only In High-Spending Areas, Study Finds
Patient’s advance directives, such as living wills, could be a powerful tool for controlling costs in end-of-life care, researchers reported Tuesday, but only in parts of the U.S. where those costs already run relatively high. In those areas, a patient’s treatment for the last six months of life ran more than $39,500, on average, without […]
Report: Americans Give Online Thumbs Down To #healthinsurers
Americans’ dislike for health insurers is a trending topic. Seventy percent of social media comments about major health insurers were negative during the past year, according to a new report released by Amplicate, a social media analytics service. The company analyzed public tweets, Facebook posts and comments on its own website between September 2010 and August 2011. […]
HHS Announces Coordinated Care Initiative
If the Department of Health and Human Services has its way, hundreds of physician practices will follow the money and take up a coordinated model of health care. The Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative, announced Wednesday, will increase Medicare payments to primary care providers who adopt a coordinated care model. A four-year demonstration, overseen by the Centers for […]
HHS Announces $ 103 Million In Community Transformation Grants
The Department of Health and Human Services awarded Tuesday more than $103 million through its Community Transformation Grants program, which was established by the 2010 health law. A total of 61 groups as well as state and local government agencies, spread across 36 states and one territory, will receive funding to promote healthy living and prevention locally […]
