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Nationwide Health Information Network tool to convey public health information

One hundred and sixty-six years after Samuel Morse used dots and dashes to telegraph "What hath God wrought?" opening up a whole new world of communication, Indiana has become the first state in the nation to use a potentially equally revolutionary tool, the Nationwide Health Information Network, to convey public health information to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

22 Sep 2010

CPPR expresses concern over recently passed health care bill's flaws

Coalition to Protect Patients Rights spokesman Donald J. Palmisano, MD, expressed concern this week over the recently passed health care bill's flaws after new survey results indicated that overall health care costs actually will increase following the bill's passage.

22 Sep 2010

First Edition: September 22, 2010

Today's headlines focus on news surrounding tomorrow's six-month anniversary of the new health law and some of the specific provisions that will kick in on that day.

22 Sep 2010

Communication breakdown exists between people with chronic pain, health care providers: Survey

Conversations with health care providers can be challenging at times for all patients, but a new survey commissioned by HealthyWomen and conducted by Synovate Healthcare in July of 2010 reveals a concerning communications breakdown between people with chronic pain and their health care providers. More than one-third of chronic pain sufferers (36%) have simply learned to live with their often debilitating pain and may be reluctant to speak with a health care provider about their condition, according to a survey of women and men with chronic pain released today.

22 Sep 2010

Study finds no benefit from self-management counseling in patients with heart failure

Patients with mild to moderate heart failure who received educational materials and self-management counseling in an attempt to improve adherence to medical advice did not have a reduced rate of death or hospitalization compared to patients who received educational materials alone, according to a study in the September 22/29 issue of JAMA.

22 Sep 2010

Health reform's six month implementation marked with new provisions

The Contra Costa Times: "Six months after passage of the federal health reform law, major provisions will kick in that supporters say will make it easier for Americans to get and keep health insurance. … Among the major changes: Insurance companies will no longer be able to cancel policies because someone becomes sick, set lifetime caps on coverage or deny insurance to children with pre-existing conditions. … In addition to enabling young people to remain on their parents' policies up to age 26, several other major provisions kick in on Thursday.

22 Sep 2010

N.J. Democrats fail to restore funds to family-planning centers; Penn. reports record number eligible for Medicaid; N.Y. report suggests overhauling Medicaid system

Philadelphia Inquirer: Efforts by N.J. Senate Democrats to restore $7.5 million to state family planning health centers ended Monday without any Republican support. In a 23-17 party line vote the Senate failed veto the governor's veto of center funding. Gov. "Christie's budget eliminated state funding to 58 family-planning health centers across the state, which last year provided services to more than 130,000 men and women, most of whom were underinsured.

22 Sep 2010

UT MD Anderson Cancer Center aims to reduce tobacco use among at-risk youths in SE Texas

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is reaching out to southeast Texas via an interactive, arcade-style video game aimed at reducing tobacco use among at-risk teens and adolescents.

22 Sep 2010

ACP releases updated resource guide on health care reform

An updated practical resource guide for internists on the health care reform law adopted last March 23, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), was released today by the American College of Physicians (ACP).

22 Sep 2010

Islamic Relief USA provides $20 million medical aid to Pakistan

Islamic Relief USA (IR USA), a non-profit relief and development organization based in metro-D.C., announced today that it has delivered a $20 million aid shipment of medicine to Pakistan.

22 Sep 2010

Safety net hospitals in Mass. face dire financial crises, seek federal money

WBUR (Boston, Mass.): The two main "safety net" hospitals in Massachusetts are facing the prospect of a financial crisis without federal assistance in the next few days to close their books. "Cambridge Health Alliance will break even if the feds approve a Medicaid waiver amendment worth $86 million this year.

22 Sep 2010

Study examines how much better hospitals and doctors would work if they ran like airlines

The National Science Foundation/U.S. News & World Report ask the question: "Airlines protect themselves from passenger 'no-shows' by overbooking. Could the same approach—overbooking patients—work in a doctor's office or hospital?" As part of a study examining such a question, the Center for Health Organization Transformation is looking at projects around the nation where "systems engineering" — the implementation of systems used in other industries — can reduce health care costs.

22 Sep 2010

Insuring your health: Coordinated care system helps physicians meet more patient needs

In her latest Kaiser Health News consumer column, Michelle Andrews writes: "If you get sick at night or the weekend, all too often the local emergency room is the only medical facility with an open door.

22 Sep 2010

Elder mediation emerges as tool to help families make decisions about aging parents

AARP Bulletin: This article tells the story of the Bayliss family. Four sisters found themselves "at an impasse" regarding how to care for their 83-year-old mother who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and experiencing other physical challenges.

22 Sep 2010

Individual costs of being overweight and obese in the U.S.

The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services' Department of Health Policy today released a report that, for the first time, calculated the startlingly high individual costs of obesity to Americans.

22 Sep 2010

How Medicare changes are playing out for advocates and in the campaign season

News outlets track both concerns about how Medicare will fare as a result of the health law's changes and examine how other changes advanced by reform are being characterized during the election season.

22 Sep 2010

ACT people live longer but may have more mental health issues: Report

Chief Health Officer Charles Guest's report on the health and wellbeing of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) population between July 2006 and June 2008 was presented in the Legislative Assembly. It showed that life expectancy rate at birth in the ACT was 80.3 years for males and 84 for women. This was despite the fact that most are overweight and only a minority eats enough fruit and vegetables.

22 Sep 2010

Specific orofacial characteristics can lead to accurate diagnosis of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) is an umbrella term that describes the range of effects that can occur in a person whose mother drank alcohol while pregnant. Each year, FASD affect an estimated 40,000 infants in the United States—more than spina bifida, Down syndrome, and muscular dystrophy combined.

22 Sep 2010

Blue Cross to refund policyholders nearly $156 million in North Carolina

USA Today: "Health insurance regulators in North Carolina have identified nearly $156 million in refunds owed to Blue Cross policyholders because of changes coming under the nation's new health law. Consumers with policies at other companies across the nation also may deserve refunds, says North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin. ...

22 Sep 2010

Secretary-General opens U.N. summit on MDGS with appeal for world leaders to maintain target commitments

On the first of the three-day U.N. Summit on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday appealed "to the assembled presidents, prime ministers and kings to use their power to meet U.N. goals to help the world's poorest by 2015," the Associated Press reports.

22 Sep 2010

Health Care News and Research

Nationwide Health Information Network tool to convey public health information

CPPR expresses concern over recently passed health care bill's flaws

First Edition: September 22, 2010

Communication breakdown exists between people with chronic pain, health care providers: Survey

Study finds no benefit from self-management counseling in patients with heart failure

Health reform's six month implementation marked with new provisions

N.J. Democrats fail to restore funds to family-planning centers; Penn. reports record number eligible for Medicaid; N.Y. report suggests overhauling Medicaid system

UT MD Anderson Cancer Center aims to reduce tobacco use among at-risk youths in SE Texas

ACP releases updated resource guide on health care reform

Islamic Relief USA provides $20 million medical aid to Pakistan

Safety net hospitals in Mass. face dire financial crises, seek federal money

Study examines how much better hospitals and doctors would work if they ran like airlines

Insuring your health: Coordinated care system helps physicians meet more patient needs

Elder mediation emerges as tool to help families make decisions about aging parents

Individual costs of being overweight and obese in the U.S.

How Medicare changes are playing out for advocates and in the campaign season

ACT people live longer but may have more mental health issues: Report

Specific orofacial characteristics can lead to accurate diagnosis of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders

Blue Cross to refund policyholders nearly $156 million in North Carolina

Secretary-General opens U.N. summit on MDGS with appeal for world leaders to maintain target commitments

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

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