Children's Health News and Research

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Majority of publicly-insured children unable to get doctor's appointment for medical conditions

Sixty-six percent of publicly-insured children were unable to get a doctor's appointment for medical conditions requiring outpatient specialty care including diabetes and seizures, while children with identical symptoms and private insurance were turned away only 11 percent of the time, according to an audit study of 273 specialty physician practices in Cook County, Ill.

16 Jun 2011

Children's Medical Center to open new $21M Specialty Care Center in Southlake

Children's Medical Center will debut its new Specialty Care Center in Southlake on June 18, a $21 million expansion which will serve children in one of the state's fastest-growing cities and the surrounding communities.

16 Jun 2011

Penn State receives NIH grant to improve public health

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded Penn State, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, and Penn State College of Medicine a $27.3 million, five-year grant designed to accelerate the translation of scientific discovery into methods for improving public health.

15 Jun 2011

Two champions of children's health care to receive CHF award at annual benefit

Children's Health Fund (CHF) will honor two champions of children's health care at its annual benefit June 13. Artists Bette Midler and Paul Simon will perform during the event.

13 Jun 2011

Childhood obesity study points to fathers' nutritional ignorance

This Father's Day, dad's choice of where to eat could literally tip the scales on his children's health. A father's use of restaurants and his perceptions of family meals carry more weight, so to speak, than mothers', according to a Texas AgriLife Research study, published recently in The Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.

10 Jun 2011

Health law's independent payment board draws new opposition

Politico reports on the Independent Payment Advisory Board's growing unpopularity and CQ HealthBeat details the complexities that will be involved in the overhaul's expansion of health coverage for children and families. In the background, politics come into play as part of the run up to 2012.

9 Jun 2011

G8 must fulfill pledges to women and children

"Making promises is one thing. Keeping them is another. If the G8 is really to deliver on and monitor the Muskoka Initiative - as it said it would last week - we must see it reported against in the 2012 G8 accountability report, with the gaps in aid information addressed".

4 Jun 2011

Research roundup: More spending can lead to better care; Calif. exchange lessons; high-volume hospitals

Medical Spending And The Health Of The Elderly -- Does more medical spending lead to better health care for people over age 64? To answer that question, "researchers from George Mason University and the Urban Institute used data of 17,438 elderly who entered the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey in the fall of each year from 1991 to 1999, and conducted multiple interviews over three years," according to one description of the study.

4 Jun 2011

Exposure to phthalates can cause children's allergy and asthma

Recent controversy over the discovery of clouding agents containing the banned chemical DEHP in beverages has caused public concerns.

2 Jun 2011

State roundup: Colo. Gov. Vetoes cost sharing bill for children's health plan

Gov. John Hickenlooper issued his first veto Tuesday, nixing a measure that would have required certain parents whose children are enrolled in a state health care plan to pay higher premiums.

2 Jun 2011

Research Roundup: Medicaid co-payments, access to docs causes worse health

Disparities In Child Access To Emergency Care For Acute Oral Injury -- This study looked at the "impact of insurance status on dental practices' willingness to schedule an appointment for a child with a symptomatic fractured permanent front tooth." Six researchers posed as mothers of 10-year-old boys who all had the same injury but different coverage: Medicaid/Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) or private Blue Cross dental insurance.

27 May 2011

Obama, Medvedev reaffirm efforts to eradicate polio ahead of G8 summit

President Barack Obama met with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Deauville, France, ahead of the G8 summit, ABC News' "Political Punch" blog reports. "The two issued a number of joint statements and agreements on counterterrorism, civil aviation security, visa issues, the Bering Strait region, a joint report assessing 21st Century Missile Challenges, innovation, the rule of law, smart grid partnership, eradicating polio, and medical research," according to the blog.

27 May 2011

Switching to a newer electronic health record system reduces prescription errors

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the government is investing billions of dollars to encourage health care providers to use electronic health record systems. Many providers will probably switch from older systems to new systems to qualify for the federal incentives, but whether the upgrade improves patient care and safety has remained an open question.

27 May 2011

State Roundup: States' economic success often beyond their control

State leaders love to make promises about healing a sick economy. Often, though, economic success depends on factors far beyond their influence. ... When It comes to Medicaid, the restrictions largely emanate from the federal budget.

23 May 2011

CHIPRA quality measures will provide an excellent set of metrics to judge quality of children's health care

The Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (CHIPRA) legislation required a core set of recommended health care quality measures to be identified for voluntary use by State Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Programs (CHIP), which together cover almost 40 million American children and adolescents.

21 May 2011

Studies: Unintended pregnancies cost taxpayers $11B a year

Two studies have found that unplanned pregnancies cost taxpayers up to $11 billion per year. The figure is sure to generate discussion on Capitol Hill as lawmakers grapple with funding for Planned Parenthood.

21 May 2011

16 Countries announce new commitments to reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality

Today 16 countries announced new commitments to dramatically reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality, as part of the Global Strategy for Women's and Children's Health.

21 May 2011

Health reform implementation recommends ways to maintain access to affordable insurance: Report

Modifications to current policies could help ensure that health insurance coverage and subsidies provided under the Affordable Care Act remain stable even through major life changes, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report released today.

21 May 2011

16 Countries pledge to reduce maternal, newborn, child mortality

Sixteen countries have announced new commitments aimed at significantly reducing maternal, newborn and child mortality by "focus[ing] on measures proven effective in preventing deaths, such as increased contraceptive use, attended childbirth, improved access to emergency obstetric care, prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, and childhood immunizations," ANI/Sify News reports (5/20).

21 May 2011

Children exposed to maternal smoking in utero have increased DNA methylation in AXL gene

Children whose mothers or grandmothers smoked during pregnancy are at increased risk of asthma in childhood, but the underlying causes of this are not well understood. Now a new study indicates changes in a process called DNA methylation that occurs before birth may be a root cause.

19 May 2011

Children's Health News and Research

Majority of publicly-insured children unable to get doctor's appointment for medical conditions

Children's Medical Center to open new $21M Specialty Care Center in Southlake

Penn State receives NIH grant to improve public health

Two champions of children's health care to receive CHF award at annual benefit

Childhood obesity study points to fathers' nutritional ignorance

Health law's independent payment board draws new opposition

G8 must fulfill pledges to women and children

Research roundup: More spending can lead to better care; Calif. exchange lessons; high-volume hospitals

Exposure to phthalates can cause children's allergy and asthma

State roundup: Colo. Gov. Vetoes cost sharing bill for children's health plan

Research Roundup: Medicaid co-payments, access to docs causes worse health

Obama, Medvedev reaffirm efforts to eradicate polio ahead of G8 summit

Switching to a newer electronic health record system reduces prescription errors

State Roundup: States' economic success often beyond their control

CHIPRA quality measures will provide an excellent set of metrics to judge quality of children's health care

Studies: Unintended pregnancies cost taxpayers $11B a year

16 Countries announce new commitments to reduce maternal, newborn and child mortality

Health reform implementation recommends ways to maintain access to affordable insurance: Report

16 Countries pledge to reduce maternal, newborn, child mortality

Children exposed to maternal smoking in utero have increased DNA methylation in AXL gene

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

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