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First Edition: December 17, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about how the health law is viewed by immigrant populations.

17 Dec 2013

HIV self-test screening strategy: an interview with Dr. Nitika Pant Pai, McGill University

Conventional health facility based HIV testing is plagued with poor rates of testing and has been around for the past 15+ years. Further, about 40-60% of individuals tested in facilities are lost to follow up.

17 Dec 2013

New report shows death rates for lung cancer dropping at a faster pace

The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, covering the period 1975, showed death rates for lung cancer, which accounts for more than one in four cancer deaths, dropping at a faster pace than in previous years. The recent larger drop in lung cancer deaths is likely the result of decreased cigarette smoking prevalence over many years, and is now being reflected in mortality trends. The lung cancer death rate decline, as well as declines in colorectal, breast, and prostate cancer death rates, has also helped drive decreases in death rates for all cancers types combined, a trend that began about 20 years ago.

17 Dec 2013

New regulations could improve vets' access to care for some traumatic brain injuries

The Department of Veterans Affairs has approved new regulations to make it easier for veterans to receive health care and compensation for certain illnesses, including Parkinsonism, dementia, and depression, which have been linked to traumatic brain injury

17 Dec 2013

Viewpoints: Health law still facing major challenges; Ky. gov. questions McConnell's assessment of overhaul; Pa.'s Medicaid experiment is a 'sham'

The White House is claiming that the Healthcare.gov website is mostly fixed, that the millions of Americans whose health plans were canceled thanks to government rules may be able to keep them for another year, and that in any event these people will get better plans through ObamaCare exchanges. Whatever the truth of these assertions, those who expect better days ahead for the Affordable Care Act are in for a rude awakening. The shocks - economic and political - will get much worse next year and beyond (Michael J. Boskin, 12/15).

17 Dec 2013

Affordable Care Act may help strengthen trauma systems

Traumatic injuries are the leading cause of death and disability for people under the age of 45 and the fourth-leading cause of death for people of all ages. Much progress has been made over the last 50 years in developing statewide regionalized trauma systems to care for these injuries, but authors of a review appearing in the December issue of Health Affairs, believe more work is needed to ensure the right patient gets to the right place at the right time, and that the Affordable Care Act may offer opportunities to strengthen trauma systems.

17 Dec 2013

Less than 15% of residency programs teach new physicians to practice cost-conscious care

Despite a national consensus among policy makers and educators to train residents to be more conscious of the cost of care, less than 15 percent of internal medicine residency programs have a formal curriculum addressing it, a new research letter published today in JAMA Internal Medicine by a Penn Medicine physician found.

17 Dec 2013

Researchers confirm link between contrast agent and abnormalities on brain MRI

For the first time, researchers have confirmed an association between a common magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent and abnormalities on brain MRI, according to a new study published online in the journal Radiology. The new study raises the possibility that a toxic component of the contrast agent may remain in the body long after administration.

17 Dec 2013

Self-affirmation can improve cognitive function, behavioral outcomes of people in poverty

For people in poverty, remembering better times - such as past success - improves brain functioning by several IQ points and increases their willingness to seek help from crucial aid services, a new study finds.

17 Dec 2013

Researchers identify potential biomarker to predict developmental problems in premature infants

Researchers have identified a potential biomarker for predicting whether a premature infant is at high risk for motor development problems, according to a study published online in the journal Radiology.

17 Dec 2013

State roundup: Virginia's new gov. wants Medicaid expansion; insurance costs more for N.C. rural folks

Gov. Robert F. McDonnell will propose a two-year state budget Monday that calls for boosting K-12 education funding by nearly $600 million and pouring millions more into higher education, mental health services, water-quality improvements and homelessness-prevention programs. ... The [incoming governor, Democrat Terry McAuliffe] hopes to change it profoundly by adding language to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, which state House Republicans say won't get by them (Vozzella, 12/15).

17 Dec 2013

Congressional lawmakers and political opponents stake out health law positions, strategies

Republican primary candidates are caught in an Obamacare fix. Even the slightest hint that a GOP contender might support anything besides all-out repeal of the health care law is drawing attacks from the right. So, increasingly, in races across the country, proposals to fix the existing law or retain any of it are being ruled out by Republicans eager to further burnish their conservative credentials (Hohmann and Cheney, 12/15).

17 Dec 2013

Report: Health law regs were delayed ahead of Obama's reelection

These rules, along with others related to the environment and worker safety, were delayed to avoid introducing contentious issues into the 2012 campaign, The Washington Post reports.

17 Dec 2013

Individuals still getting errors from health website as notifications to insurers lag

The Wall Street Journal looks at some of the inaccurate assignments that many consumers find when they seek insurance on the new marketplaces. Meanwhile, the enrollment records for 15,000 people were not properly transmitted to insurance plans, according to federal officials.

17 Dec 2013

New study aims to better understand brain aging and AD in adults with Down syndrome

To many, Down syndrome is a childhood condition. But improved health care means that individuals with DS now routinely reach age 50 or 60 years of age, sometimes beyond. However, if they live long enough, people with Down syndrome are almost certain to develop Alzheimer's disease.

17 Dec 2013

Two on-the-rise esophagus conditions can be the result of food allergy, say doctors

Researchers at the UNC School of Medicine found that two on-the-rise esophagus conditions are so similar that even a biopsy is not enough to distinguish one disease from the other.

17 Dec 2013

Increased risk of complications to mother, newborn associated with early-term deliveries

Enduring the last few weeks of pregnancy can be physically and emotionally challenging for some women. The aches and pains, the swelling of the limbs and the anxiety of when labor may start are part of the natural gestation process, but they also can seem unbearable.

17 Dec 2013

With one week to go, insurers look for healthy enrollees

Supporters and detractors of the health law are focused on so-called "young invincibles," adults in their 20s and 30s who don't rack up large medical bills. Dec. 23rd is the deadline for signing up for insurance starting Jan. 1.

17 Dec 2013

States race to fix insurance exchange glitches

In Maryland, Vermont and Oregon, state officials are still hammering out technological issues preventing consumers from signing up for coverage. In California, in contrast, the pace of enrollment in December has been nearly three times that of a month earlier as the deadline approaches to sign up for coverage that takes effect Jan. 1.

17 Dec 2013

Secondary conditions can become deadly and affect how long HIV patients stay in hospital

A University of Arkansas researcher and her colleagues have found that secondary conditions and diseases that could become deadly significantly affect how long HIV patients stay in the hospital.

17 Dec 2013

Health Care News and Research

First Edition: December 17, 2013

HIV self-test screening strategy: an interview with Dr. Nitika Pant Pai, McGill University

New report shows death rates for lung cancer dropping at a faster pace

New regulations could improve vets' access to care for some traumatic brain injuries

Viewpoints: Health law still facing major challenges; Ky. gov. questions McConnell's assessment of overhaul; Pa.'s Medicaid experiment is a 'sham'

Affordable Care Act may help strengthen trauma systems

Less than 15% of residency programs teach new physicians to practice cost-conscious care

Researchers confirm link between contrast agent and abnormalities on brain MRI

Self-affirmation can improve cognitive function, behavioral outcomes of people in poverty

Researchers identify potential biomarker to predict developmental problems in premature infants

State roundup: Virginia's new gov. wants Medicaid expansion; insurance costs more for N.C. rural folks

Congressional lawmakers and political opponents stake out health law positions, strategies

Report: Health law regs were delayed ahead of Obama's reelection

Individuals still getting errors from health website as notifications to insurers lag

New study aims to better understand brain aging and AD in adults with Down syndrome

Two on-the-rise esophagus conditions can be the result of food allergy, say doctors

Increased risk of complications to mother, newborn associated with early-term deliveries

With one week to go, insurers look for healthy enrollees

States race to fix insurance exchange glitches

Secondary conditions can become deadly and affect how long HIV patients stay in hospital

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

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