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Consortium on Aging created at The University of Texas Health Science Center

To meet the escalating patient care, research and healthcare education needs for a rapidly aging population, a university-wide Consortium on Aging has been established at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

18 Aug 2010

U.S.-funded center to improve Haitian garment manufacturing opens in Haiti

The U.S.-funded Haitian Apparel Center, which aims to train about 2,000 workers per year, was opened in the capital of Port-au-Prince on Wednesday, the Associated Press reports. The new center will help Haitian companies evolve from making "simple things, like sheets and T-shirts, to more complex garments," according to U.S. Ambassador Kenneth Merten. "And more complex garments mean higher profit margins and more money coming into the country," he added (Lush, 8/11).

13 Aug 2010

Mobile and free clinics provide low cost medical care to uninsured patients

Reuters, on mobile clinics including the Family Van, a nonprofit clinic affiliated with Harvard University, in Boston: "The van -- which visits six low-income neighborhoods around Boston weekly -- is one of about 2,000 such mobile clinics in the United States. Advocates say the approach can help control the rising cost of health care by helping people with chronic diseases to stay out of the emergency room, often the first recourse for inner-city residents.

13 Aug 2010

A day in the life of a 'mega' free clinic

This Kaiser Health News slideshow details a one-day free clinic held in Washington, D.C., at the city's convention center. "Mega clinics are a last-resort safety net and seek to connect patients with local community resources including other free clinics, Federally Qualified Health Centers and safety-net hospitals" (Marcy, 8/11).

12 Aug 2010

Free clinic in D.C. draws more than 1,000 patients

With a wounded economy and high unemployment, more than 1,000 people came to a one-day free health clinic in the nation's capital Wednesday to get the basic care they can't afford or are otherwise denied because they have no insurance. More than three-quarters of those attending don't have insurance because they are recently unemployed, work for small businesses, earn hourly wages, or must work multiple part-time jobs with no insurance, said the event's medical director Dr. Bobby Kapur.

6 Aug 2010

First Edition: August 5, 2010

Today's health policy headlines examine the solvency of Medicare and Social Security; the momentum of legislation in Congress to provide states with Medicaid assistance; and the impact of Missouri's ballot challenge to health reform.

5 Aug 2010

Mass. towns find savings in municipal-based health insurance plans; Conn. hospitals' earnings improve; Free dental clinic in Virginia

"Fourteen cities and towns that have moved their employees, retirees, and elected officials from their own municipal-based health care insurance plans into the state's much larger, more flexible system collectively saved more than $30 million their first year in the program, according to a new report. … The study relies on self-reported fiscal data on the communities' first year in the Group Insurance Commission, the state health care program, which covers some 300,000 state employees, retirees, and elected officials" (Murphy, 8/3).

4 Aug 2010

First Edition: August 3, 2010

Today's headlines include reports about a federal judge's ruling regarding the Virginia challenge to the health reform law and about the Senate's latest delay in consideration of a state aid package that includes Medicaid assistance.

3 Aug 2010

Free health clinic planned for D.C. area; University of Kansas to study Indian health; Ga. weighs health needs of older prisoners

In the run-up to this week's giant free clinic in the District, Nicole Lamoureux, the lead organizer, could tell that hearts were racing, blood pressure was increasing and tension was rising. Calls from patients scheduling appointments were starting to pour into her office, but there weren't enough volunteer medical workers to see them.

3 Aug 2010

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield launches initiative to educate consumers on how to best access ER alternatives

At a time when health care costs continue to rise and hospitals are advertising emergency room availability, it is becoming more important to educate consumers on how to best access ER alternatives and receive the same care with less out-of-pocket cost. If a primary care physician isn't available, retail health clinics, walk-in doctor offices and urgent care centers can take less time and cost about the same as a regular doctor visit.

22 Jul 2010

Blue Foundation approves grants to help uninsured Floridians access health care

According to a new report released by the Center for Disease Control, Florida ranks second in the United States for its high percentage of uninsured residents. More than 19 percent, or 3.5 million people, lacked insurance last year.

9 Jul 2010

Cartoon moms combat obesity

Two Latina mothers are heroes in the new comic book, Small Changes Big Results from the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University. Their quest is to create a healthier lifestyle for their children and families and combat obesity.

15 Jun 2010

BMS employees across Canada taking part in third annual Community Action Day

More than 300 employees of Bristol-Myers Squibb Canada will get the day off from their regular work today, but they won't be taking it easy. Instead, they will be joining company retirees and members of their own families in helping out at a variety of community and charitable organizations as part of the company's third annual BMS Community Action Day.

11 Jun 2010

Community interventions help American Indian families reduce early childhood weight gain: Study

Community intervention can help American Indian families change behavior related to early childhood weight gain and obesity, according to a new Kaiser Permanente and Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board study.

3 Jun 2010

Allergy sufferers can save out-of-pocket costs by visiting urgent care and retail health clinics instead of ER

In this economy, allergy sufferers are looking for relief from more than sneezing, runny noses, and itchy eyes. And, according to a recent study, they can find relief for both their symptoms and their wallets, saving anywhere from $50 to $400 in out-of-pocket costs per visit if they skip the emergency room and head to urgent care and retail health clinics when they are unable to see their primary physician.

20 May 2010

Urgent care and retail health clinics can reduce treatment costs for allergy sufferers

10 May 2010

Study finds medical homes help lower health care costs, maintain quality

Kaiser Health News: "Some health policy experts and clinicians have long maintained that, in the effort to reduce health care costs and improve patient outcomes, there's no place like (a medical) home. A new study in the May issue of the journal Health Affairs seems to validate that notion. Medical homes — where primary care doctors are held responsible for coordinating care for individual patients - are seen as a model for lowering costs without sacrificing quality.

6 May 2010

Abbott announces opening of Asia-Pacific Nutrition R&D Center

Abbott, the global health care company, today announced the opening of the Abbott Asia-Pacific Nutrition Research & Development Center at Singapore's Biopolis Research Park. The center is Abbott's largest nutrition R&D facility outside of the U.S., and Singapore's first nutrition R&D site creating science-based nutritional products for infants, children and adults.

5 May 2010

NIH awards Hutchinson Center $10.24M for research of breast cancer disparities in Hispanic women

The National Institutes of Health has awarded $10.24 million to Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center to lead a five-year study that aims to understand and prevent breast cancer disparities in Hispanic women.

4 May 2010

Dental clinic reveals need in Los Angeles area while North Carolina County may cut dental care for many Medicaid patients

More than 100 who had waited for care were asked to return next week for services. In all, volunteers saw 1,157 patients, 64 of them minors. Overwhelmed by demand for dental services, organizers of a massive free mobile health clinic asked some patients who had Tuesday appointments to return next week, a hitch in an otherwise smooth first day at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena.

29 Apr 2010