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Wis. board will again cover state workers seeking transgender treatment

In a surprising reversal, a Wisconsin board has voted to again offer insurance coverage to transgender state employees seeking hormone therapy and gender confirmation surgery.

29 Aug 2018

Earwax, of all things, poses unrecognized risk in long-term care

Of all the indignities that come with aging, excessive earwax may be the most insidious.

29 Aug 2018

Study shows that clinical diagnosis is not best predictor of avoidable hospitalization

The care of long-term nursing home patients can be fragmented by hospitalizations and re-hospitalizations, which are especially burdensome for frail older adults.

29 Aug 2018

Humana to establish new center for digital health and analytics

Humana Inc., one of the nation's leading health and well-being companies, announced today a series of moves designed to advance its capabilities in the areas of technology, digital health and analytics in support of its integrated care delivery model and its ongoing work to develop differentiated health care experiences.

28 Aug 2018

Helping young patients gain more access to stroke preventive medications

People who survive a stroke in their 40s, 50s or early 60s may still have decades to live – but only if they take blood thinners, blood pressure drugs and other medications that can reduce their risk of a second stroke.

28 Aug 2018

The doctors want in: Democratic docs talk health care on the campaign trail

Dr. Rob Davidson, an emergency physician from western Michigan, had never considered running for Congress. Then came February 2017. The 46-year-old Democrat found himself at a local town-hall meeting going toe-to-toe with Rep. Bill Huizenga, his Republican congressman of the previous six years.

27 Aug 2018

Medicaid health coverage expansion due to ACA decreases uninsured cardiac-related hospitalizations

States that expanded eligibility for their Medicaid program in 2014 when the Affordable Care Act was implemented, saw fewer uninsured patients among major cardiac-related hospitalizations in the first year compared with states that did not expand the program, according to a study released today in JAMA Network Open.

25 Aug 2018

Study: Air pollution can fuel chronic kidney disease

There is good evidence that polluted air increases the risk of respiratory problems such as asthma -- as well as organ inflammation, worsening of diabetes and other life-threatening conditions.

25 Aug 2018

ACA Medicaid expansion linked to decline in uninsured hospitalizations for cardiovascular events

Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act was associated with a decline in the proportion of uninsured hospitalizations for major cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke and heart failure.

24 Aug 2018

Physical therapy for older adults may lead to fewer fall-related ED revisits

Falls are the leading cause of illness and death among Americans aged 65 and older. In 2014, some 2.8 million older adults visited the emergency department (ED) for a fall-related injury. And over time, the ED visit rate for falls among older adults has grown to 68.8 per 1,000 older adults (as of 2010).

22 Aug 2018

Economic burden of breast cancer can continue long after diagnosis

The financial fallout from breast cancer can last years after diagnosis, particularly for those with lymphedema, a common side effect from treatment, causing cumulative and cascading economic consequences for survivors, their families, and society, a study led by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers suggests.

22 Aug 2018

After-hours telemedicine can lead to fewer hospitalizations and more savings

When doctors could be reached via telemedicine to decide whether a patient in a skilled nursing facility (SNF) should be hospitalized, 29% of the patients evaluated avoided a hospital visit, saving $1.55 million over the course of a year, according to results reported in the current issue of The American Journal of Managed Care.

20 Aug 2018

The man who sold America on vitamin D — and profited in the process

Dr. Michael Holick's enthusiasm for vitamin D can be fairly described as extreme.

20 Aug 2018

Rush's health care IT leaders reach White House

Information technology has changed the world, and now it's changing health care in dramatic and fast-moving ways. Rush is a nationally-recognized leader in using IT to achieve better outcomes, lower costs and improve the patient experience.

17 Aug 2018

Stroke patients appear to receive better care at teaching hospitals with less chance of readmission

Stroke patients appear to receive better care at teaching hospitals with less of a chance of landing back in a hospital during the early stages of recovery, according to new research from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

17 Aug 2018

ACR expresses concerns on step therapy in a recent meeting with HSS Secretary

Yesterday, the American College of Rheumatology met with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar for a productive discussion about the rheumatology community's concerns with a new policy that will allow Medicare Advantage plans to utilize step therapy in Medicare Part B.

17 Aug 2018

Hospitals battle for control over fast-growing heart-valve procedure

When Medicare in 2011 agreed to pay for a revolutionary procedure to replace leaky heart valves by snaking a synthetic replacement up through blood vessels, the goal was to offer relief to the tens of thousands of patients too frail to endure open-heart surgery, the gold standard.

17 Aug 2018

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What the Health?’ See you in court!

A federal district court judge in Texas has set Sept. 10 as the date for oral arguments in a case filed by Republican state attorneys general and governors from 20 states.

17 Aug 2018

Restoring blood flow may be linked to longer survival in patients with critical limb ischemia

Treatments that restore blood flow to the lower limbs of people with a serious circulation condition may be cheaper and associated with longer survival, than amputation according to new research in Journal of the American Heart Association, the Open Access Journal of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

15 Aug 2018

Feds urge states to encourage cheaper plans off the exchanges

For those who make too much money to qualify for health insurance subsidies on the individual market, there may be no Goldilocks moment when shopping for a plan. No choice is just right.

14 Aug 2018