To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require Medicaid coverage of professional medical services of optometrists.
Sponsor: Rep. Eliot Engel [D-NY17]
Cosponsors [as of 2009-07-11] Rep. John Sullivan [R-OK1]
Status:
Introduced Jul 10, 2009
Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce
H.R. 3176: To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require Medicaid coverage of professional... (GovTrack.us)
Saturday, July 11, 2009
H.R. 3176: To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require Medicaid coverage of professional... (GovTrack.us)
H.R. 3172: To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for advanced illness care management... (GovTrack.us)
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for advanced illness care management services for Medicare beneficiaries, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Tammy Baldwin [D-WI2]
Cosponsors [as of 2009-07-11]Rep. John Tanner [D-TN8]
Status:
Introduced Jul 10, 2009
Referred to House Ways & Means Committee
H.R. 3172: To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for advanced illness care management... (GovTrack.us)
Sponsor: Rep. Tammy Baldwin [D-WI2]
Cosponsors [as of 2009-07-11]Rep. John Tanner [D-TN8]
Status:
Introduced Jul 10, 2009
Referred to House Ways & Means Committee
H.R. 3172: To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for advanced illness care management... (GovTrack.us)
Needed: Reform in Long-Term Care Financing | bloglongtermcare.com
"Most American adults are uninsured for long-term care and supportive services, such as home care or an assisted living community. This means many of us cannot afford the cost of a longer life or long-term disabilities. For these reasons, long-term care services and supports must be a part of any meaningful health care reform.
In public policy, payment and perception, we’ve mistakenly segregated acute care and chronic care. For example, if someone over 65 suffers a stroke, Medicare jumps in with procedures and payments attempting to save the person. But upon release from the hospital, Medicare ignores that person’s less expensive, longer-duration need for supportive services. Nor does it pay for such things as Alzheimer’s care or other intensive long-term care that a young adult with a disability may need."
. . .
"Maintaining the status quo means many will continue impoverishing themselves and turning to Medicaid–a government program and de facto long-term care provider. Primarily paying for institutional care, its payments already fall far short of meeting true costs. Without financing reform, we’re simply cost shifting and avoiding the main issue–finance reform for longevity and chronic care.
The CLASS Act (Community Living Assistance Services & Supports) introduced by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions is that opportunity. In the opt-out insurance plan, people would pay a premium of approximately $65 per month in return for a minimum daily benefit of $50 that they can self-direct. It would make private wrap-around insurance policies appealing because consumers would easily understand what their dollars buy and they’d know such a product could guarantee quality of life and fiscal security. It also could gain a state good housekeeping seal from state or federal governments, further enhancing consumer confidence in such a product.
The Congressional Budget Office’s evaluation of the CLASS Act shows no cost to the government over the next 10 years, a positive savings of $2.5 billion in Medicaid in the first 10 years alone, and long-term sustainability. This would transform financing of long-term services and supports, assist America’s workers and future retirees, enhance intergenerational financial security, and promote choice and independence. Without a long-term care financing solution, America doesn’t have true health care reform."
Needed: Reform in Long-Term Care Financing | bloglongtermcare.com
In public policy, payment and perception, we’ve mistakenly segregated acute care and chronic care. For example, if someone over 65 suffers a stroke, Medicare jumps in with procedures and payments attempting to save the person. But upon release from the hospital, Medicare ignores that person’s less expensive, longer-duration need for supportive services. Nor does it pay for such things as Alzheimer’s care or other intensive long-term care that a young adult with a disability may need."
. . .
"Maintaining the status quo means many will continue impoverishing themselves and turning to Medicaid–a government program and de facto long-term care provider. Primarily paying for institutional care, its payments already fall far short of meeting true costs. Without financing reform, we’re simply cost shifting and avoiding the main issue–finance reform for longevity and chronic care.
The CLASS Act (Community Living Assistance Services & Supports) introduced by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions is that opportunity. In the opt-out insurance plan, people would pay a premium of approximately $65 per month in return for a minimum daily benefit of $50 that they can self-direct. It would make private wrap-around insurance policies appealing because consumers would easily understand what their dollars buy and they’d know such a product could guarantee quality of life and fiscal security. It also could gain a state good housekeeping seal from state or federal governments, further enhancing consumer confidence in such a product.
The Congressional Budget Office’s evaluation of the CLASS Act shows no cost to the government over the next 10 years, a positive savings of $2.5 billion in Medicaid in the first 10 years alone, and long-term sustainability. This would transform financing of long-term services and supports, assist America’s workers and future retirees, enhance intergenerational financial security, and promote choice and independence. Without a long-term care financing solution, America doesn’t have true health care reform."
Needed: Reform in Long-Term Care Financing | bloglongtermcare.com
Friday, July 10, 2009
The Health Care Blog: Has Harry Reid Torpedoed Reform?
Health care reform ran into new BIG trouble this week with a series of comments from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
On Tuesday, Reid leapt into the middle of reform negotiations, telling Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus that Democratic leaders had major concerns about the draft Senate Finance bill’s proposed taxation of some health benefits and the exclusion of a strong public plan.
The immediate result was the effective suspension of bipartisan negotiations on the Senate Finance draft, with Republican Senators Chuck Grassley and Orrin Hatch both saying that bill markup would have to be delayed indefinitely until the conflict was resolved.
The Health Care Blog: Has Harry Reid Torpedoed Reform?
On Tuesday, Reid leapt into the middle of reform negotiations, telling Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus that Democratic leaders had major concerns about the draft Senate Finance bill’s proposed taxation of some health benefits and the exclusion of a strong public plan.
The immediate result was the effective suspension of bipartisan negotiations on the Senate Finance draft, with Republican Senators Chuck Grassley and Orrin Hatch both saying that bill markup would have to be delayed indefinitely until the conflict was resolved.
The Health Care Blog: Has Harry Reid Torpedoed Reform?
Authorized Number of Beds for Veterans Administration State Homes
Grants to States for Construction or Acquisition of State Home
Facilities--Update of Authorized Beds
This proposed rule updates the number of authorized beds for Veterans Administration State Homes grant program. There is a 30 day comment period.
Congress has authorized VA to provide grants to States for the construction or acquisition of State home facilities for the provision of care to veterans. The term ``State home'' means ``a home established by a State (other than a possession) for veterans disabled by age, disease, or otherwise who by reason of such disability are incapable of earning a living'' and ``includes such a home which furnishes nursing home care for veterans.''
Section 8134(a)(2) of title 38, U.S.C., mandates that VA prescribe for each State the number of nursing home and domiciliary beds for which grants may be furnished, which the proposed note to 38 CFR 59.40(a) would refer to as a State's ``unmet need'' number. To compute this number, VA estimates for each State the maximum number of nursing home and domiciliary beds needed by veterans in that State (which is the maximum number of such beds designated for each State, as shown on the chart in proposed Sec. 59.40(a)), and then subtracts the number of existing State home beds plus the number of those beds under construction or that would be constructed in accordance with the State's grant applications.
Click the link below to see each state's authorized number of beds.
FR Doc E9-16341
Facilities--Update of Authorized Beds
This proposed rule updates the number of authorized beds for Veterans Administration State Homes grant program. There is a 30 day comment period.
Congress has authorized VA to provide grants to States for the construction or acquisition of State home facilities for the provision of care to veterans. The term ``State home'' means ``a home established by a State (other than a possession) for veterans disabled by age, disease, or otherwise who by reason of such disability are incapable of earning a living'' and ``includes such a home which furnishes nursing home care for veterans.''
Section 8134(a)(2) of title 38, U.S.C., mandates that VA prescribe for each State the number of nursing home and domiciliary beds for which grants may be furnished, which the proposed note to 38 CFR 59.40(a) would refer to as a State's ``unmet need'' number. To compute this number, VA estimates for each State the maximum number of nursing home and domiciliary beds needed by veterans in that State (which is the maximum number of such beds designated for each State, as shown on the chart in proposed Sec. 59.40(a)), and then subtracts the number of existing State home beds plus the number of those beds under construction or that would be constructed in accordance with the State's grant applications.
Click the link below to see each state's authorized number of beds.
FR Doc E9-16341
H.R. 3155: To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide certain caregivers of veterans with training,... (GovTrack.us)
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide certain caregivers of veterans with training, support, and medical care, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Michael Michaud [D-ME2]
Cosponsors [as of 2009-07-10]
Rep. Joe Donnelly [D-IN2]
Rep. Deborah Halvorson [D-IL11]
Rep. Ciro Rodriguez [D-TX23]
Rep. Harry Teague [D-NM2]
Text: The text of this legislation is not yet available on GovTrack. It may not have been made available by the Government Printing Office yet.
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Committee on Veterans Affairs
H.R. 3155: To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide certain caregivers of veterans with training,... (GovTrack.us)
Sponsor: Rep. Michael Michaud [D-ME2]
Cosponsors [as of 2009-07-10]
Rep. Joe Donnelly [D-IN2]
Rep. Deborah Halvorson [D-IL11]
Rep. Ciro Rodriguez [D-TX23]
Rep. Harry Teague [D-NM2]
Text: The text of this legislation is not yet available on GovTrack. It may not have been made available by the Government Printing Office yet.
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Committee on Veterans Affairs
H.R. 3155: To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide certain caregivers of veterans with training,... (GovTrack.us)
H.R. 3152: To amend titles XVIII of the Social Security Act to ensure that low-income beneficiaries have... (GovTrack.us)
To amend titles XVIII of the Social Security Act to ensure that low-income beneficiaries have improved access to prescription drugs under the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
Sponsor: Rep. Rush Holt [D-NJ12]
Cosponsors [as of 2009-07-10]
Rep. Lloyd Doggett [D-TX25]
Text: The text of this legislation is not yet available on GovTrack. It may not have been made available by the Government Printing Office yet.
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Ways & Means Committee
H.R. 3152: To amend titles XVIII of the Social Security Act to ensure that low-income beneficiaries have... (GovTrack.us)
Shared via AddThis
Sponsor: Rep. Rush Holt [D-NJ12]
Cosponsors [as of 2009-07-10]
Rep. Lloyd Doggett [D-TX25]
Text: The text of this legislation is not yet available on GovTrack. It may not have been made available by the Government Printing Office yet.
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Ways & Means Committee
H.R. 3152: To amend titles XVIII of the Social Security Act to ensure that low-income beneficiaries have... (GovTrack.us)
Shared via AddThis
H. Res. 621: Ensuring access to affordable and quality health care without increasing the Federal budget or... (GovTrack.us)
Sponsor: Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers [R-WA5](no cosponsors)
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Judiciary Committee
H. Res. 621: Ensuring access to affordable and quality health care without increasing the Federal budget or... (GovTrack.us)
Shared via AddThis
H.R. 3148: To amend the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 respecting the scoring of preventive health savings (GovTrack.us)
Overview
Sponsor: Del. Donna Christensen [D-VI]
Cosponsors (42) - Click link below to see cosponsors
The text of this legislation is not yet available on GovTrack. It may not have been made available by the Government Printing Office yet.
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Budget Committee
H.R. 3148: To amend the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 respecting the scoring of preventive health savings (GovTrack.us)
Shared via AddThis
Sponsor: Del. Donna Christensen [D-VI]
Cosponsors (42) - Click link below to see cosponsors
The text of this legislation is not yet available on GovTrack. It may not have been made available by the Government Printing Office yet.
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Budget Committee
H.R. 3148: To amend the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 respecting the scoring of preventive health savings (GovTrack.us)
Shared via AddThis
H.R. 3138: To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to provide for transparency in the relationship... (GovTrack.us)
To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to provide for transparency in the relationship between physicians and manufacturers of drugs, devices, biologicals, or medical supplies for which payment is made under Medicare, Medicaid, or SCHIP.
Sponsor: Rep. Baron Hill [D-IN9](no cosponsors)
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Ways and Means Committee
H.R. 3138: To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to provide for transparency in the relationship... (GovTrack.us)
Shared via AddThis
Sponsor: Rep. Baron Hill [D-IN9](no cosponsors)
Status:
Introduced Jul 9, 2009
Referred to House Ways and Means Committee
H.R. 3138: To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to provide for transparency in the relationship... (GovTrack.us)
Shared via AddThis
TIME GOES BY | Health Care Reform Noise
TIME GOES BY | Health Care Reform Noise:
"You can be forgiven if this week's noise on health care reform in Washington has left you confused, confounded and befuddled. It's gotten messy and little is getting done."
......... (Ms Bennett provides a good summary of the issues and options. Click the link above to read entire post).........
"You can be forgiven if this week's noise on health care reform in Washington has left you confused, confounded and befuddled. It's gotten messy and little is getting done."
......... (Ms Bennett provides a good summary of the issues and options. Click the link above to read entire post).........
"But this is our only chance for meaningful health care reform. If it fails now, it will be another 15 years, as it has been since the Clinton health care initiative, before it comes up again. In our current, dismal economic circumstance, which will not end soon, that would be a disaster for additional millions of people piled on top of the already-uninsured 47 million. There is no overstating how crucial this legislation is.
So it is up to each of us individually to speak out, to flood Washington with the people's point of view. Write and phone your senators and representative. But don't stop there. Contact the majority and minority leaders in each house of Congress. The committee chairs and members. And don't stop. Keep doing it. Again and again. Here's the link to reach all of them."
Grassley Takes Closer Aim at Nonprofit Hospitals - Health Blog - WSJ
Grassley Takes Closer Aim at Nonprofit Hospitals - Health Blog - WSJ: "By Shirley S. Wang
Sen. Chuck Grassley has a record of hammering nonprofit hospitals about whether they’re restricting care based on patients’ ability to pay and about how much care they provide for the uninsured in relation to the tax exemptions they enjoy.
Now Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, and Chairman Max Baucus are trying to force change. They are considering provisions as part of the health-care overhaul that would target nonprofits’ tax breaks, which were designed to help those hospitals provide charity care, according to the WSJ."
Sen. Chuck Grassley has a record of hammering nonprofit hospitals about whether they’re restricting care based on patients’ ability to pay and about how much care they provide for the uninsured in relation to the tax exemptions they enjoy.
Now Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, and Chairman Max Baucus are trying to force change. They are considering provisions as part of the health-care overhaul that would target nonprofits’ tax breaks, which were designed to help those hospitals provide charity care, according to the WSJ."
Permanent diet may equal longer life - Los Angeles Times
Permanent diet may equal longer life - Los Angeles Times: "By Karen Kaplan - 8:23 PM PDT, July 9, 2009
For a country in which roughly 200 million people are overweight or obese, scientists today have discouraging news: Even those who maintain a healthy weight probably should be eating less."
For a country in which roughly 200 million people are overweight or obese, scientists today have discouraging news: Even those who maintain a healthy weight probably should be eating less."
Fork in the Road: Alternative Paths to a High Performance U.S. Health System - The Commonwealth Fund
Fork in the Road: Alternative Paths to a High Performance U.S. Health System - The Commonwealth Fund:
"Overview
A controversial part of the health reform debate is whether a new public insurance plan choice should be offered to the under-65 population. This report analyzes alternative paths to reform and presents estimates of impacts on health spending. The approaches include: 1) a public health plan paying providers at Medicare rates, offered alongside private plans in a national health insurance exchange; 2) a public plan paying providers at rates set midway between Medicare and private plan rates, offered alongside private plans in an insurance exchange; and 3) no public plan, with only private plans offered to employers and individuals through an insurance exchange. All three approaches, if combined with Medicare payment and system reform, would produce substantial savings over time, but option 1 would yield the most—$3.0 trillion in cumulative health system savings over 2010 to 2020, compared with $2.0 trillion (option 2) and $1.2 trillion (option 3)."
click link above for more
"Overview
A controversial part of the health reform debate is whether a new public insurance plan choice should be offered to the under-65 population. This report analyzes alternative paths to reform and presents estimates of impacts on health spending. The approaches include: 1) a public health plan paying providers at Medicare rates, offered alongside private plans in a national health insurance exchange; 2) a public plan paying providers at rates set midway between Medicare and private plan rates, offered alongside private plans in an insurance exchange; and 3) no public plan, with only private plans offered to employers and individuals through an insurance exchange. All three approaches, if combined with Medicare payment and system reform, would produce substantial savings over time, but option 1 would yield the most—$3.0 trillion in cumulative health system savings over 2010 to 2020, compared with $2.0 trillion (option 2) and $1.2 trillion (option 3)."
click link above for more
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Severe COPD Linked to Mental Decline - Forbes.com
Severe COPD Linked to Mental Decline - Forbes.com:
"(HealthDay News) -- Severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease appears linked to lower cognitive function in older adults, making it more difficult for them to remember and perform daily tasks, a new study finds.
Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City analyzed national data on 4,150 Americans aged 50 and older, including 492 with COPD. Of those, 153 had severe COPD. On a 35-point cognition scale, scores among all COPD patients declined an average of one-point between 1996 and 2002. Further analysis showed that patients with severe COPD had significantly lower scores than those without COPD."
"(HealthDay News) -- Severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease appears linked to lower cognitive function in older adults, making it more difficult for them to remember and perform daily tasks, a new study finds.
Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City analyzed national data on 4,150 Americans aged 50 and older, including 492 with COPD. Of those, 153 had severe COPD. On a 35-point cognition scale, scores among all COPD patients declined an average of one-point between 1996 and 2002. Further analysis showed that patients with severe COPD had significantly lower scores than those without COPD."
Does Court-Ordered Treatment for Mental Health Work? - Health Blog - WSJ
Does Court-Ordered Treatment for Mental Health Work? - Health Blog - WSJ: "By Shirley S. Wang
"Researchers from Duke University Medical Center found that those who were mandated to get outpatient treatment were substantially less likely to be subsequently hospitalized. Those studied were also more likely to receive intensive outpatient case management and more likely to be getting medication appropriate to their diagnosis, according to Jeffrey Swanson, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Duke and one of the authors of the report.
The report examined data from hospital admission records, case manager reports and evaluations for 6,919 individuals covered by AOT orders since 1999. Researchers compared individuals before and after they were mandated to receive treatment. Some people voluntarily receiving services known as assertive community treatment also were compared with those receiving these services under court order. "
"Researchers from Duke University Medical Center found that those who were mandated to get outpatient treatment were substantially less likely to be subsequently hospitalized. Those studied were also more likely to receive intensive outpatient case management and more likely to be getting medication appropriate to their diagnosis, according to Jeffrey Swanson, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Duke and one of the authors of the report.
The report examined data from hospital admission records, case manager reports and evaluations for 6,919 individuals covered by AOT orders since 1999. Researchers compared individuals before and after they were mandated to receive treatment. Some people voluntarily receiving services known as assertive community treatment also were compared with those receiving these services under court order. "
GovTrack: H.R. 3134: Text of Legislation, Introduced in House
GovTrack: H.R. 3134: Text of Legislation, Introduced in House:
"HEALTHCARE INNOVATION ZONE DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment- Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish a Healthcare Innovation Zone pilot program to increase healthcare provider integration and align healthcare provider incentives to improve health and to reduce healthcare costs.
(b) Features of Program- The HIZ pilot program established under subsection (a) shall consist of the following:
(1) An HIZ planning grant program, as described in section 3.
(2) An HIZ demonstration project, as described in section 4."
"HEALTHCARE INNOVATION ZONE DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment- Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish a Healthcare Innovation Zone pilot program to increase healthcare provider integration and align healthcare provider incentives to improve health and to reduce healthcare costs.
(b) Features of Program- The HIZ pilot program established under subsection (a) shall consist of the following:
(1) An HIZ planning grant program, as described in section 3.
(2) An HIZ demonstration project, as described in section 4."
Overview
Sponsor: | Rep. Allyson Schwartz [D-PA13](no cosponsors) | ||||||||||||||||||
Text: | Full Text | ||||||||||||||||||
Status: |
This bill is in the first step in the legislative process. Introduced bills and resolutions first go to committees that deliberate, investigate, and revise them before they go to general debate. The majority of bills and resolutions never make it out of committee. [Last Updated: Jul 9, 2009 12:22PM] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Jul 8, 2009: Referred to House Ways and Means |
Lighter Meals May Bring Longer Life - Forbes.com
Lighter Meals May Bring Longer Life - Forbes.com: "THURSDAY, July 9 (HealthDay News) --
A new study that found that a lower-calorie diet slowed the aging process in monkeys could be the best proof yet that restricted diets might do the same for humans.
'The big question in aging research is, 'Will caloric restriction in species closely related to humans slow aging?'' said Richard Weindruch, senior author of a paper appearing in the July 10 issue of Science. 'This is the first clear demonstration that, in a primate species, we're inducing a slowdown of the aging process -- showing increased survival, resistance to disease, less brain atrophy and less muscle loss."
A new study that found that a lower-calorie diet slowed the aging process in monkeys could be the best proof yet that restricted diets might do the same for humans.
'The big question in aging research is, 'Will caloric restriction in species closely related to humans slow aging?'' said Richard Weindruch, senior author of a paper appearing in the July 10 issue of Science. 'This is the first clear demonstration that, in a primate species, we're inducing a slowdown of the aging process -- showing increased survival, resistance to disease, less brain atrophy and less muscle loss."
Technology Takes a Step Toward Treating Paralysis - Forbes.com
Technology Takes a Step Toward Treating Paralysis - Forbes.com: "THURSDAY, July 9 (HealthDay News) --
Microelectrodes that sit on, instead of in, the brain may one day help paralyzed people move their limbs -- whether they are real or bionic appendages, according to researchers who have developed such a device.
The University of Utah research team, whose work is explored in the July 1 online edition of Neurosurgical Focus, hope their microelectrocorticography, or microECoG, devices also eventually allow people who have lost the power of speech to speak again via computer."
Microelectrodes that sit on, instead of in, the brain may one day help paralyzed people move their limbs -- whether they are real or bionic appendages, according to researchers who have developed such a device.
The University of Utah research team, whose work is explored in the July 1 online edition of Neurosurgical Focus, hope their microelectrocorticography, or microECoG, devices also eventually allow people who have lost the power of speech to speak again via computer."
For Kids, Two Languages Can Be as Easy as One - Forbes.com
For Kids, Two Languages Can Be as Easy as One - Forbes.com:
"Earlier research has often confirmed the benefits of learning more than one language. In a 2004 Canadian study, for example, researchers found that bilingual speakers were more proficient at dealing with distractions than those who spoke only a single language. That ability was even more pronounced for older people, suggesting that multilingualism might help elderly speakers avoid age-related cognitive problems."
Click the link above for full article
"Earlier research has often confirmed the benefits of learning more than one language. In a 2004 Canadian study, for example, researchers found that bilingual speakers were more proficient at dealing with distractions than those who spoke only a single language. That ability was even more pronounced for older people, suggesting that multilingualism might help elderly speakers avoid age-related cognitive problems."
Click the link above for full article
Pedestrian Forum Newsletter - FHWA Safety Program
Pedestrian Forum Newsletter - FHWA Safety Program:
"Safe Pedestrians and a Walkable America
Current Issue: VOL. 47, Summer 2009 (pdf version) | Archive Issues
The goal of the FHWA is to continually improve highway safety by reducing highway fatalities and injuries by 20 percent in ten years. Ensuring safe travel on highways is the guiding principle throughout the FHWA. Pedestrian fatalities account for about 12 percent of all traffic fatalities and are one of the focus areas of the Safety Office. FHWA has taken the position that walking and bicycling are legitimate modes of transportation.
There is no question that conditions for bicycling and walking need to be improved in every community in the United States; it is no longer acceptable that over 5,000 pedestrians and bicyclists are killed in traffic every year, that people with disabilities cannot travel without encountering barriers, and that two desirable and efficient modes of travel have been made difficult and uncomfortable. Every transportation agency has the responsibility and the opportunity to make a difference in the bicycle-friendliness and walkability of our communities. The design information to accommodate bicyclists and pedestrians is available, as is the funding. The United States Department of Transportation is committed to doing all it can to improve conditions for bicycling and walking and to make them safer ways to travel."
"Safe Pedestrians and a Walkable America
Current Issue: VOL. 47, Summer 2009 (pdf version) | Archive Issues
The goal of the FHWA is to continually improve highway safety by reducing highway fatalities and injuries by 20 percent in ten years. Ensuring safe travel on highways is the guiding principle throughout the FHWA. Pedestrian fatalities account for about 12 percent of all traffic fatalities and are one of the focus areas of the Safety Office. FHWA has taken the position that walking and bicycling are legitimate modes of transportation.
There is no question that conditions for bicycling and walking need to be improved in every community in the United States; it is no longer acceptable that over 5,000 pedestrians and bicyclists are killed in traffic every year, that people with disabilities cannot travel without encountering barriers, and that two desirable and efficient modes of travel have been made difficult and uncomfortable. Every transportation agency has the responsibility and the opportunity to make a difference in the bicycle-friendliness and walkability of our communities. The design information to accommodate bicyclists and pedestrians is available, as is the funding. The United States Department of Transportation is committed to doing all it can to improve conditions for bicycling and walking and to make them safer ways to travel."
Rides_Change_Lives.pdf (application/pdf Object)
“Rides Change Lives: Innovations in Senior Transportation.”
This 12-page booklet describes the innovative approaches of the National Center on Senior Transportation's premier group of Demonstration Grantees.
Rides_Change_Lives.pdf (application/pdf Object)
This 12-page booklet describes the innovative approaches of the National Center on Senior Transportation's premier group of Demonstration Grantees.
Rides_Change_Lives.pdf (application/pdf Object)
National Center on Senior Transportation: Projects & Funding
National Center on Senior Transportation: Projects & Funding: "NCST Community & State Projects
Working with communities throughout the United States, the NCST identifies effective and creative approaches for addressing the challenges that impact transportation services for older Americans. Whether from a rural, suburban or urban setting, the NCST strives to bring together the aging, human service, and transportation providers to create solutions. Our work supports the full “family” of older adult transportation services, including programs using volunteers both to driver and to accompany older adults to their destinations, travel training and orientation promoting increased use of public transit, older driver safety, education for caregivers, coordinated planning efforts and much, much more.
The Center has a strong commitment to promoting innovations at the community level and has provided funding and technical assistance to support a number of specific projects across the U.S. These include:
Working with communities throughout the United States, the NCST identifies effective and creative approaches for addressing the challenges that impact transportation services for older Americans. Whether from a rural, suburban or urban setting, the NCST strives to bring together the aging, human service, and transportation providers to create solutions. Our work supports the full “family” of older adult transportation services, including programs using volunteers both to driver and to accompany older adults to their destinations, travel training and orientation promoting increased use of public transit, older driver safety, education for caregivers, coordinated planning efforts and much, much more.
The Center has a strong commitment to promoting innovations at the community level and has provided funding and technical assistance to support a number of specific projects across the U.S. These include:
- NCST-SURTC Business Plan Development Training (2008-2009),
- providing technical assistance to 5 aging coalition-building sites (2007-2008),
- funding 8 senior transportation demonstration projects (2008-2009),
- funding 11 targeted technical assistance projects (2008),
- supporting 6 state older-driver safety coalitions (2008-2009); and
- funding 5 student research projects.
Greater Language Skills in 20s May Guard Against Alzheimer's - Forbes.com
Greater Language Skills in 20s May Guard Against Alzheimer's - Forbes.com:
"July 8 (HealthDay News) -- Women with greater language abilities in early adulthood were less likely to have Alzheimer's disease later in life, even when autopsies revealed the clear brain changes that are hallmarks of the disease.
Also, the brains of women without symptoms of Alzheimer's housed bigger neurons, according to a study appearing in the July 9 online edition of Neurology."
"July 8 (HealthDay News) -- Women with greater language abilities in early adulthood were less likely to have Alzheimer's disease later in life, even when autopsies revealed the clear brain changes that are hallmarks of the disease.
Also, the brains of women without symptoms of Alzheimer's housed bigger neurons, according to a study appearing in the July 9 online edition of Neurology."
Baucus and Grassley team up on bipartisan healthcare compromises - Los Angeles Times
Baucus and Grassley team up on bipartisan healthcare compromises - Los Angeles Times:
"Often outsiders in their own parties, the Montana Democrat and Iowa Republican believe that together they can find a middle ground on the divisive issue.
In the face of strident criticism from colleagues in both parties, Baucus (chairman of the Senate Finance Committee) and Grassley (the panel's senior Republican) are laboring to fashion a series of compromises on healthcare that might win the support of a bipartisan majority on Capitol Hill.
Their effort got a nod Wednesday from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who at a meeting with Grassley encouraged the quest despite complaints from more-partisan Democrats. "
"Often outsiders in their own parties, the Montana Democrat and Iowa Republican believe that together they can find a middle ground on the divisive issue.
In the face of strident criticism from colleagues in both parties, Baucus (chairman of the Senate Finance Committee) and Grassley (the panel's senior Republican) are laboring to fashion a series of compromises on healthcare that might win the support of a bipartisan majority on Capitol Hill.
Their effort got a nod Wednesday from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who at a meeting with Grassley encouraged the quest despite complaints from more-partisan Democrats. "
TIME GOES BY | Dr. Butler and the Longevity Revolution
TIME GOES BY | Dr. Butler and the Longevity Revolution:
"By “longevity revolution,” Dr. Butler means the profound effects that an aging population (elders will grow from the current 12 percent of the population to 20 percent by 2050) will have on just about everything."
"By “longevity revolution,” Dr. Butler means the profound effects that an aging population (elders will grow from the current 12 percent of the population to 20 percent by 2050) will have on just about everything."
Robert N. Butler: The Longevity Revolution Commonwealth Club
NEJM -- A Strategy for Health Care Reform -- Toward a Value-Based System
NEJM -- A Strategy for Health Care Reform -- Toward a Value-Based System:
"Despite many waves of debate and piecemeal reforms, the U.S. health care system remains largely the same as it was decades ago. We have seen no convincing approach to changing the unsustainable trajectory of the system, much less to offsetting the rising costs of an aging population and new medical advances.
Today there is a new openness to changing a system that all agree is broken. What we need now is a clear national strategy that sets forth a comprehensive vision for the kind of health care system we want to achieve and a path for getting there. The central focus must be on increasing value for patients — the health outcomes achieved per dollar spent.1 Good outcomes that are achieved efficiently are the goal, not the false 'savings' from cost shifting and restricted services. Indeed, the only way to truly contain costs in health care is to improve outcomes: in a value-based system, achieving and maintaining good health is inherently less costly than dealing with poor health."
"Despite many waves of debate and piecemeal reforms, the U.S. health care system remains largely the same as it was decades ago. We have seen no convincing approach to changing the unsustainable trajectory of the system, much less to offsetting the rising costs of an aging population and new medical advances.
Today there is a new openness to changing a system that all agree is broken. What we need now is a clear national strategy that sets forth a comprehensive vision for the kind of health care system we want to achieve and a path for getting there. The central focus must be on increasing value for patients — the health outcomes achieved per dollar spent.1 Good outcomes that are achieved efficiently are the goal, not the false 'savings' from cost shifting and restricted services. Indeed, the only way to truly contain costs in health care is to improve outcomes: in a value-based system, achieving and maintaining good health is inherently less costly than dealing with poor health."
JFActivist: ADAPT Outraged by Exclusion from Health Reform
JFActivist: ADAPT Outraged by Exclusion from Health Reform:
"The nation’s largest grassroots disability rights organization, ADAPT, expressed outrage today at the Obama administration’s selective endorsement of one piece of proposed long term care legislation while refusing to support a companion measure aimed at eliminating the institutional bias in Medicaid for aging or disabled lower income people that Obama, with strong support from over 80 national disability and aging organizations, co-sponsored as a Senator.
ADAPT and a multitude of other national disability and aging organizations in Washington have gone on record in support of Sen. Kennedy’s CLASS Act only if it is paired with a “fix” for Medicaid addressing lower income and non-working people, similar to provisions contained in the Community Choice Act (CCA). CCA inserts the concept of “personal choice” into the law, adding language that mandates states to pay for help in a person’s own home the same way the law mandates them to pay for nursing homes. Current law can force people with disabilities and who are aging into nursing homes in order to receive services that can just as easily be delivered in the community. Research has demonstrated that community-based assistance is almost always less expensive."
"The nation’s largest grassroots disability rights organization, ADAPT, expressed outrage today at the Obama administration’s selective endorsement of one piece of proposed long term care legislation while refusing to support a companion measure aimed at eliminating the institutional bias in Medicaid for aging or disabled lower income people that Obama, with strong support from over 80 national disability and aging organizations, co-sponsored as a Senator.
ADAPT and a multitude of other national disability and aging organizations in Washington have gone on record in support of Sen. Kennedy’s CLASS Act only if it is paired with a “fix” for Medicaid addressing lower income and non-working people, similar to provisions contained in the Community Choice Act (CCA). CCA inserts the concept of “personal choice” into the law, adding language that mandates states to pay for help in a person’s own home the same way the law mandates them to pay for nursing homes. Current law can force people with disabilities and who are aging into nursing homes in order to receive services that can just as easily be delivered in the community. Research has demonstrated that community-based assistance is almost always less expensive."
JFActivist: CLASS Act Amended, Long Term Services and Supports in Health Care Reform
JFActivist: CLASS Act Amended, Long Term Services and Supports in Health Care Reform:
"The Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act (CLASS) Act was marked up July 7, 2009 by the U.S. Senate Health Employment Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. There was only one amendment to the bill proposed, debated and ultimately accecpted.
Originally, the bill called for a monthly premium cap of $65 for participants in the first ten years, with a mandate for the Secretary of Health and Human Services (who would over see the program) to maintain cost neutrality by adjusting premiums and benefits after that. Within these confines the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report forecast a $57.8 billion savings for the federal government over the first 20 years.
"The Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act (CLASS) Act was marked up July 7, 2009 by the U.S. Senate Health Employment Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. There was only one amendment to the bill proposed, debated and ultimately accecpted.
Originally, the bill called for a monthly premium cap of $65 for participants in the first ten years, with a mandate for the Secretary of Health and Human Services (who would over see the program) to maintain cost neutrality by adjusting premiums and benefits after that. Within these confines the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report forecast a $57.8 billion savings for the federal government over the first 20 years.
Democrats on the Committee, lead by Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) insisted that the program, as written, would be self-sustaining. Republicans on the committee argued the program was not solvent because if the premiums were not raised costs could skyrocket to $2 trillion within 75 years. They also argued that one could not tell the true cost of the bill because it was only projected out twenty years and not for seventy-five years like other entitlement programs.
Senator Judd Greg (R-NH) offered an amendment that the bill's solvency would have to follow the 75 year guidelines and the Secretary of HHS would be responsible for setting premiums and benefits to maintain that solvency from implementation. There is no companion bill on the House side yet."
JFActivist: Accessible Technology Bill Introduced
JFActivist: Accessible Technology Bill Introduced:
"On Friday afternoon, June 26, 2009 Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced comprehensive legislation to ensure that people with disabilities have access to Internet-based telecommunications and video programming technologies. The bill, the Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2009 (H.R. 3101), would
"On Friday afternoon, June 26, 2009 Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced comprehensive legislation to ensure that people with disabilities have access to Internet-based telecommunications and video programming technologies. The bill, the Twenty-first Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2009 (H.R. 3101), would
- require that mobile and other Internet-based telecommunications devices and equipment be fully hearing aid compatible, have accessible user interfaces, and offer people with disabilities use of a full range of text messaging and other popular services that are currently largely inaccessible;
- provide people who are deaf-blind with vital but costly technologies they need to communicate electronically;
- establish a process and time table for the provision of real-time text capability;
- clarify existing relay-to-relay, Lifeline and Linkup service requirements to ensure their relevance to the real world communications needs of people with disabilities;
- restore the Federal Communications Commission's modest video description rules and unambiguously establish the FCC's current and ongoing authority to expand such regulations;
- require emergency announcements and similar information to be accessible to people with disabilities through audible presentation of on-screen alerts;
- ensure that video programming offered via the Internet will be both captioned and described;
- call for all devices that receive and playback video programming to employ accessible user interfaces and allow ready access to captioning and description;
- strengthen consumers' ability to enforce their rights to communications and video accessibility through the establishment of a clearinghouse of information about service and equipment accessibility and usability, a meaningful FCC complaint process that holds industry accountable for their accessibility obligations, and judicial review of FCC action to ensure FCC accountability.
Compassionate Allowances for Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias
FR Doc E9-16277:
The Social Security Administration is considering ways to quickly identify diseases and other serious medical conditions that obviously meet the definition of disability under the Social Security Act (Act) and can be identified with minimal objective medical information. We are calling this method ``Compassionate Allowances.''
A hearing will be held on July 29, 2009, to obtain information about possible methods of identifying adults with Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease and related dementias and the advisability of implementing compassionate allowances for people with these diseases.
DATES: This hearing will be held on July 29, 2009, between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., Central Daylight Time (CDT), in Chicago, IL. The hearing will be held at the Drake Hotel, 140 East Walton Place, Chicago, IL 60611. While the public is welcome to attend the hearing, only invited witnesses will present testimony. You may also watch the proceedings live via Webcast beginning at 9 a.m. CDT. You may access the Webcast line for the hearing on the Social Security Administration Web site at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/ compassionate_allowances/hearings0709.htm."
The Social Security Administration is considering ways to quickly identify diseases and other serious medical conditions that obviously meet the definition of disability under the Social Security Act (Act) and can be identified with minimal objective medical information. We are calling this method ``Compassionate Allowances.''
A hearing will be held on July 29, 2009, to obtain information about possible methods of identifying adults with Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease and related dementias and the advisability of implementing compassionate allowances for people with these diseases.
DATES: This hearing will be held on July 29, 2009, between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., Central Daylight Time (CDT), in Chicago, IL. The hearing will be held at the Drake Hotel, 140 East Walton Place, Chicago, IL 60611. While the public is welcome to attend the hearing, only invited witnesses will present testimony. You may also watch the proceedings live via Webcast beginning at 9 a.m. CDT. You may access the Webcast line for the hearing on the Social Security Administration Web site at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/ compassionate_allowances/hearings0709.htm."
Medical News: Lower Blood Pressure Targets Offer No Benefits - in Nephrology, Hypertension from MedPage Today
Medical News: Lower Blood Pressure Targets Offer No Benefits - in Nephrology, Hypertension from MedPage Today:
"Lower is not always better for blood pressure targets, according to a Cochrane review that revealed no reduction in morbidity and mortality below the standard 140/90 mm Hg.
Treating patients to reach lower targets did drop blood pressure by a modest average of 3.9 mmHg systolic and 3.4 mm Hg diastolic more than conventional goals (P<0.001), according to Jose Agustin Arguedas, of the University of Costa Rica in San Pedro de Montes de Oca, and colleagues.
However, the lower goals were not associated with significant reductions in any important outcome, including:
* Total mortality (relative risk 0.92, 95% confidence interval 0.86 to 1.15)
* MI (RR 0.90, 95% CI 0.74 to 1.09)
* Stroke (RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.79 to 1.25)
* Congestive heart failure (RR 0.88, 95% CI 0.59 to 1.32)
* Major cardiovascular events (RR 0.94, 95% CI 0.83 to 1.07)
* End-stage renal disease (RR 1.01, 95% CI 0.81 to 1.27)"
"Lower is not always better for blood pressure targets, according to a Cochrane review that revealed no reduction in morbidity and mortality below the standard 140/90 mm Hg.
Treating patients to reach lower targets did drop blood pressure by a modest average of 3.9 mmHg systolic and 3.4 mm Hg diastolic more than conventional goals (P<0.001), according to Jose Agustin Arguedas, of the University of Costa Rica in San Pedro de Montes de Oca, and colleagues.
However, the lower goals were not associated with significant reductions in any important outcome, including:
* Total mortality (relative risk 0.92, 95% confidence interval 0.86 to 1.15)
* MI (RR 0.90, 95% CI 0.74 to 1.09)
* Stroke (RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.79 to 1.25)
* Congestive heart failure (RR 0.88, 95% CI 0.59 to 1.32)
* Major cardiovascular events (RR 0.94, 95% CI 0.83 to 1.07)
* End-stage renal disease (RR 1.01, 95% CI 0.81 to 1.27)"
Medical News: Glutamic Acid May Lower Blood Pressure - in Primary Care, Diet & Nutrition from MedPage Today
Medical News: Glutamic Acid May Lower Blood Pressure - in Primary Care, Diet & Nutrition from MedPage Today:
"Dietary glutamic acid -- the amino acid abundant in vegetables -- may have blood pressure-lowering effects, researchers have found.
The amino acid had a consistent inverse relationship with blood pressure across several models, Jeremiah Stamler, MD, of Northwestern University, and colleagues reported in Circulation, Journal of the American Heart Association.
When glutamic acid intake comprised almost 5% of total dietary protein, systolic blood pressure averaged 1.5 to 3.0 mm Hg lower than then readings in people who consumed less glutamic acid.For diastolic, the reductions ranged from 1.0 to 1.6 mmHg. "
"Dietary glutamic acid -- the amino acid abundant in vegetables -- may have blood pressure-lowering effects, researchers have found.
The amino acid had a consistent inverse relationship with blood pressure across several models, Jeremiah Stamler, MD, of Northwestern University, and colleagues reported in Circulation, Journal of the American Heart Association.
When glutamic acid intake comprised almost 5% of total dietary protein, systolic blood pressure averaged 1.5 to 3.0 mm Hg lower than then readings in people who consumed less glutamic acid.For diastolic, the reductions ranged from 1.0 to 1.6 mmHg. "
TheHill.com - Republicans soothed by Reid
TheHill.com - Republicans soothed by Reid:
"By Jeffrey Young Posted: 07/08/09 08:53 PM [ET]
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Wednesday met with a group of Republican senators amid escalating speculation that Democrats in the upper chamber are poised to abandon their hopes of crafting a bipartisan healthcare reform bill.
Reid’s decision to call the meeting with Republicans comes as Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus has repeatedly postponed releasing his bill while liberals grow anxious that the Montana Democrat’s legislation will be too GOP-friendly."
"By Jeffrey Young Posted: 07/08/09 08:53 PM [ET]
Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Wednesday met with a group of Republican senators amid escalating speculation that Democrats in the upper chamber are poised to abandon their hopes of crafting a bipartisan healthcare reform bill.
Reid’s decision to call the meeting with Republicans comes as Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus has repeatedly postponed releasing his bill while liberals grow anxious that the Montana Democrat’s legislation will be too GOP-friendly."
Antibiotic Delayed Aging in Mice - NYTimes.com
Antibiotic Delayed Aging in Mice - NYTimes.com:
By NICHOLAS WADE - Published: July 8, 2009
A new star has appeared in the field of drugs that delay aging in laboratory animals, and are therefore candidates for doing the same in people.
The drug is an antibiotic, rapamycin, already in use for suppressing the immune system in transplant patients and for treating certain cancers.
Full Article
By NICHOLAS WADE - Published: July 8, 2009
A new star has appeared in the field of drugs that delay aging in laboratory animals, and are therefore candidates for doing the same in people.
The drug is an antibiotic, rapamycin, already in use for suppressing the immune system in transplant patients and for treating certain cancers.
Full Article
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
ACCURACY OF PART D PLANS’ DRUG PRICES
The Department of Health and Human Services' Office of the Inspector General conducted a study to determine whether selected Part D plans’ drug prices displayed on the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder (Plan Finder) accurately reflect actual drug costs on Part D claims.
To review the study's findings and recommendations, click the link below.
oei-03-07-00600.pdf (application/pdf Object)
To review the study's findings and recommendations, click the link below.
oei-03-07-00600.pdf (application/pdf Object)
H.R. 3117: To provide enhanced voucher rental assistance for residents of certain federally assisted... (GovTrack.us)
H.R. 3117: To provide enhanced voucher rental assistance for residents of certain federally assisted... (GovTrack.us): "To provide enhanced voucher rental assistance for residents of certain federally assisted low-income housing, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Stephen Lynch [D-MA9](no cosponsors)
Status:
Introduced Jul 7, 2009
Referred to Committee
This bill is in the first step in the legislative process. Introduced bills and resolutions first go to committees that deliberate, investigate, and revise them before they go to general debate. The majority of bills and resolutions never make it out of committee. [Last Updated: Jul 8, 2009 12:05PM]
Last Action:
Jul 7, 2009: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
Sponsor: Rep. Stephen Lynch [D-MA9](no cosponsors)
Status:
Introduced Jul 7, 2009
Referred to Committee
This bill is in the first step in the legislative process. Introduced bills and resolutions first go to committees that deliberate, investigate, and revise them before they go to general debate. The majority of bills and resolutions never make it out of committee. [Last Updated: Jul 8, 2009 12:05PM]
Last Action:
Jul 7, 2009: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
Info Long-Term Care: Crane Library Web Pick of the Week: Best Practices Toolkit
Info Long-Term Care: Crane Library Web Pick of the Week: Best Practices Toolkit: "The Best Practices Toolkit is compiled by the Long-Term Care Best Practices Initiative Team, an initiative led by the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario, which had its origins in a three- year pilot from the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.
The goal of the 'Long-Term Care Best Practices Initiative' is to support long-term care homes in adopting evidence-based practices that will support systematic and consistent approaches to providing quality care for residents. The Toolkit is intended to be used by LTC home staff to support their efforts in best practice implementation. It is a dynamic resource, and is being updated and revised on a regular basis by the LTC Best Practices Initiative team."
The goal of the 'Long-Term Care Best Practices Initiative' is to support long-term care homes in adopting evidence-based practices that will support systematic and consistent approaches to providing quality care for residents. The Toolkit is intended to be used by LTC home staff to support their efforts in best practice implementation. It is a dynamic resource, and is being updated and revised on a regular basis by the LTC Best Practices Initiative team."
Cancer Gap Between Whites, Blacks May Be Biological in Part - Forbes.com
Cancer Gap Between Whites, Blacks May Be Biological in Part - Forbes.com: "(HealthDay News) -- Even when they get identical medical treatment, black Americans with breast, ovarian and prostate cancer tend to die earlier than patients of other races, a finding that suggests biological or genetic factors may play an important role.
For many years, the disparity in racial survival was attributed to the fact that black cancer patients have less access to quality care, are diagnosed when their cancer is in later stages, and don't receive the same standard of care as white patients.
But this analysis of almost 20,000 patient records from the Southwest Oncology Group's database of 35 clinical trials found no statistical difference in survival based on race for several other cancers -- lung, colon, lymphoma, leukemia and multiple myeloma."
For many years, the disparity in racial survival was attributed to the fact that black cancer patients have less access to quality care, are diagnosed when their cancer is in later stages, and don't receive the same standard of care as white patients.
But this analysis of almost 20,000 patient records from the Southwest Oncology Group's database of 35 clinical trials found no statistical difference in survival based on race for several other cancers -- lung, colon, lymphoma, leukemia and multiple myeloma."
Delaying Generic Drugs Costs Patients & Taxpayers, EU Says - Health Blog - WSJ
Delaying Generic Drugs Costs Patients & Taxpayers, EU Says - Health Blog - WSJ: "By Shirley S. Wang
EUA European Union probe to investigate delays to market entry of generic drugs started with a big bang last year with surprise raids on offices of a number of major pharmaceutical companies, like GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi-Aventis and AstraZeneca, as well as many smaller ones.
Today, the EU’s competition commissioner, in issuing a final report from the investigation, called for closer scrutiny and stricter regulation of the the pharmaceutical industry, particularly the practice known as “pay for delay“, where generic makers strike a deal with branded companies to delay entry of generic competition into the marketplace.
The report emphasizes that drug makers, difficulties in innovation and other factors like how the industry is regulated all contribute to generic delays. It calls for a single patent and litigation system across the EU as one way to improve the situation."
Click the link above for complete post
EUA European Union probe to investigate delays to market entry of generic drugs started with a big bang last year with surprise raids on offices of a number of major pharmaceutical companies, like GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi-Aventis and AstraZeneca, as well as many smaller ones.
Today, the EU’s competition commissioner, in issuing a final report from the investigation, called for closer scrutiny and stricter regulation of the the pharmaceutical industry, particularly the practice known as “pay for delay“, where generic makers strike a deal with branded companies to delay entry of generic competition into the marketplace.
The report emphasizes that drug makers, difficulties in innovation and other factors like how the industry is regulated all contribute to generic delays. It calls for a single patent and litigation system across the EU as one way to improve the situation."
Click the link above for complete post
Investing Climate Revenues in Subsidized Housing Energy Efficiency Would Cut Emissions and Lower Federal Costs — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Investing Climate Revenues in Subsidized Housing Energy Efficiency Would Cut Emissions and Lower Federal Costs — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: "The federal government spends more than $3 billion per year on utility costs in public housing and privately owned subsidized housing. Investments that increase energy efficiency in subsidized developments can lower those expenditures and generate long-term federal savings that would offset much of the up-front cost. Those same investments would also cut greenhouse gas emissions significantly and benefit the vulnerable families, senior citizens, and people with disabilities who live in subsidized housing. For these reasons, subsidized developments should receive a high priority in the allocation of federal energy efficiency resources.
The climate change legislation that the House of Representatives passed on June 26 (H.R. 2454) requires states to use revenues from auctioning some emission allowances to improve energy efficiency in subsidized housing. This requirement, which was added on the House floor, is an important positive step. It would meet just a fraction of the need for efficiency investments in subsidized housing, however, because it sets aside only a very small share of emission allowances: 0.05 percent (five one-hundredths of 1 percent) in the first four years the bill is in effect and even lower percentages in subsequent years."
The climate change legislation that the House of Representatives passed on June 26 (H.R. 2454) requires states to use revenues from auctioning some emission allowances to improve energy efficiency in subsidized housing. This requirement, which was added on the House floor, is an important positive step. It would meet just a fraction of the need for efficiency investments in subsidized housing, however, because it sets aside only a very small share of emission allowances: 0.05 percent (five one-hundredths of 1 percent) in the first four years the bill is in effect and even lower percentages in subsequent years."
Adding Funding to the House Climate Bill for Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Would Help Poor Families Facing Particularly Large Increases in Energy Costs — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
On June 26, 2009, the House of Representatives approved the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (H.R. 2454). This legislation, which would place a cap on emissions of greenhouse gases to combat global warming, includes important provisions to ensure it does not make large numbers of low-income families worse off. These provisions would fully offset the loss of purchasing power that low-income households as a group would face. [1]
These provisions are important and well designed. Nevertheless, the legislation could take additional steps to protect those low-income households, such as people living in older, very poorly insulated homes, whose energy costs will increase by significantly more than the amount of the relief they would receive. That could be accomplished by dedicating a small share of revenue the legislation could raise — such as 1 percent of the permit value — to increase the funding for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP is a federal program that provides financial assistance to help low-income households heat and/or cool their homes. A portion of LIHEAP funding also can be used to weatherize low-income households’ residences.
Adding Funding to the House Climate Bill for Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Would Help Poor Families Facing Particularly Large Increases in Energy Costs — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Shared via AddThis
These provisions are important and well designed. Nevertheless, the legislation could take additional steps to protect those low-income households, such as people living in older, very poorly insulated homes, whose energy costs will increase by significantly more than the amount of the relief they would receive. That could be accomplished by dedicating a small share of revenue the legislation could raise — such as 1 percent of the permit value — to increase the funding for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP is a federal program that provides financial assistance to help low-income households heat and/or cool their homes. A portion of LIHEAP funding also can be used to weatherize low-income households’ residences.
Adding Funding to the House Climate Bill for Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Would Help Poor Families Facing Particularly Large Increases in Energy Costs — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Shared via AddThis
DoL Access Points Evaluation
This information collection is intended to collect data
with which to evaluate the ETA's Access Point Initiative.
Access Points are employment information centers and
satellites to DOL-funded One Stop Career Centers.
While One Stop Centers provide employment-related services
to a large number and wide array of job seekers, some of the
individuals on the margins of the labor market, such as high
school dropouts, ex-offenders, and persons with low occupational
skill levels in high-poverty neighborhoods, have still
not been reached by the One Stop system. To reach them
and to provide them with employment services in a cost-effective
manner, the Department of Labor started the Access Point
initiative, providing funds for training in how to establish
Access Points. Access Points are set up and run by local
Faith-Based and Community Organizations (FBCOs)
as a volunteer effort. They are located in areas that
include a relatively large number of unemployed individuals
with few of the resources needed to find stable employment.
Access Points provide job seekers from their neighborhoods
with job-search information, some services, and referrals
to One Stops and other service providers.
FR Doc E9-16047
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Vitamin D Levels in Elders
Vitamin D Levels in Elders:
"Most older people had low serum levels, and at least 25% of elders had frank vitamin D deficiency.
Two studies in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism focus on vitamin D in older populations."
"Most older people had low serum levels, and at least 25% of elders had frank vitamin D deficiency.
Two studies in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism focus on vitamin D in older populations."
We All Need a Little More D. A New Report on The Sunshine Vitamin
We All Need a Little More D. A New Report on The Sunshine Vitamin
Click above for a video presentation
Click above for a video presentation
Age Page: Hyperthermia: Too Hot for Your Health
Irene is retired, she loves to work in her garden. Because she has always spent hours outside, she thinks the heat and humidity of Midwestern summers don’t bother her. Then last year an unusual heat wave hit her area. Every day the temperature was over 100° F, and the humidity was at least 90%. Five days into the heat wave, her daughter Kim came over because Irene sounded confused on the phone. Kim found her mom passed out on the kitchen floor. The ambulance came quickly when called, but Irene almost died. She had heat stroke, the most serious form of hyperthermia.
Almost every summer there is a deadly heat wave in some part of the country. Too much heat is not safe for anyone. It is even riskier if you are older or if you have health problems. It is important to get relief from the heat quickly. If not, you might begin to feel confused or faint. Your heart could become stressed, and maybe stop beating.
Your body is always working to keep a balance between how much heat it makes and how much it loses. Your brain is the thermostat. It sends and receives signals to and from parts of your body that affect temperature, such as the spinal cord, muscles, blood vessels, skin, and glands that make substances known as hormones. Too much heat causes sweating. When the sweat dries from your skin, the surface of your body cools and your temperature goes down.
Being hot for too long can cause many illnesses, all grouped under the name hyperthermia (hy-per-ther-mee-uh):
- Heat cramps are the painful tightening of muscles in your stomach area, arms, or legs. Cramps can result from hard work or exercise. While your body temperature and pulse usually stay normal during heat cramps, your skin may feel moist and cool. Take these cramps as a sign that you are too hot — find a way to cool your body down. Be sure to drink plenty of fluids, but not those containing alcohol or caffeine.
- Heat edema is a swelling in your ankles and feet when you get hot. Putting your legs up should help. If that doesn’t work fairly quickly, check with your doctor.
- Heat syncope is a sudden dizziness that may come on when you are active in the heat. If you take a form of heart medication known as a beta blocker or are not used to hot weather, you are even more likely to feel faint when in the heat. Putting your legs up and resting in a cool place should make the dizzy feeling go away.
- Heat exhaustion is a warning that your body can no longer keep itself cool. You might feel thirsty, dizzy, weak, uncoordinated, nauseated, and sweat a lot. Your body temperature stays normal, skin feels cold and clammy. Your pulse can be normal or raised. Resting in a cool place, drinking plenty of fluids, and getting medical care should help you feel better soon. If not, this condition can progress to heat stroke.
- Heat stroke is an emergency — it can be life threatening! You need to get medical help right away. Getting to a cool place is very important, but so is treatment by a doctor. Many people die of heat stroke each year. Older people living in homes or apartments without air conditioning or good airflow are at most risk. So are people who don’t drink enough water or those with chronic diseases or alcoholism.
| The Signs of Heat Stroke
|
Who Is at Risk?
Hundresds of people die from hyperthermia each year during very hot weather. Most are over 50 years old. The temperature outside or inside does not have to hit 100° F for you to be at risk for a heat-related illness. Health problems that put you at risk include:
- Heart or blood vessel problems, poorly working sweat glands, or changes in your skin caused by normal aging.
- Heart, lung, or kidney disease, as well as any illness that makes you feel weak all over or causes a fever.
- High blood pressure or other conditions that make it necessary for you to change some of the foods you eat. For example, if you are supposed to avoid salt in your food, your risk of heat-related illness may be higher. Check with your doctor.
- Conditions treated by drugs such as diuretics, sedatives, tranquilizers, and some heart and blood pressure medicines. These may make it harder for your body to cool itself by perspiring.
- Taking several drugs for a variety of health problems. Keep taking your prescriptions, but ask your doctor what to do if the drugs you are taking make you more likely to become overheated.
- Being quite a bit overweight or underweight.
- Drinking alcoholic beverages.
How Can I Lower My Risk?
Things you can do to lower your risk of heat-related illness:
- Drink plenty of liquids — water or fruit and vegetable juices. Every day you should drink at least eight glasses to keep your body working properly. Heat tends to make you lose fluids so it is very important to drink at least that much, if not more, when it is hot. Avoid drinks containing caffeine or alcohol. They make you lose more fluids. If your doctor has told you to limit your liquids, ask him or her what you should do when it is very hot.
- If you live in a home or apartment without fans or air conditioning, be sure to follow these steps to lower your chance of heat problems:
- open windows at night;
- create cross-ventilation by opening windows on two sides of the building;
- cover windows when they are in direct sunlight;
- keep curtains, shades or blinds drawn during the hottest part of the day;
- try to spend at least 2 hours a day (if possible during the hottest part of the day) some place air-conditioned — for example, the shopping mall, the movies, the library, a senior center, or a friend’s house if you don’t have air conditioning.
- Check with your local area agency on aging to see if there is a program that provides
window air conditioners to seniors who qualify. - If you think you can’t afford to run your air conditioner in the summer, contact your
local area agency on aging. Or, ask at your local senior center. They may know if there are any programs in your community to aid people who need help paying their cooling bills. The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) is one possible source. - Ask a friend or relative to drive you to a cool place on very hot days if you don’t have
a car or no longer drive. Many towns or counties, area agencies, religious groups, and senior citizen centers provide such services. If necessary, take a taxi. Don’t stand outside waiting for a bus. - Pay attention to the weather reports. You are more at risk as the temperature or humidity rise or when there is an air pollution alert in effect.
- Dress for the weather. Some people find natural fabrics such as cotton to be cooler than synthetic fibers. Light-colored clothes reflect the sun and heat better than dark colors. If you are unsure about what to wear, ask a friend or family member to help you select clothing that will help you stay cool.
- Don’t try to exercise or do a lot of activities when it is hot.
- Avoid crowded places when it’s hot outside. Plan trips during non-rush hour times.
What Should I Remember?
Headache, confusion, dizziness, or nausea when you’re in a hot place or during hot weathercould be a sign of a heat-related illness. Go to the doctor or an emergency room to find out if you need tgreatment. To keep heat-related illnesses from becoming a dangerous heat stroke, remember to:
- Get out of the sun and into a cool place — air-conditioning is best.
- Offer fluids, but avoid alcohol and caffeine. Water and fruit and vegetable juices are best.
- Shower or bathe, or at least sponge off with cool water.
- Lie down and rest, if possible in a cool place.
- Visit your doctor or an emergency room if you don’t cool down quickly.
News in Health, July 2009 - National Institutes of Health (NIH)
You may wonder if you’ve been drinking enough water, especially when it’s hot out. There’s a lot of confusing advice out there about how much you really need. The truth is that most healthy bodies are very good at regulating water. Elderly people, young children and some special cases—like people taking certain medications—need to be a little more careful. Here’s what you need to know.
“Water is involved in all body processes,” says Dr. Jack M. Guralnik of NIH’s National Institute on Aging. “You need the proper amount for all those processes to work correctly.”
The body regulates how much water it keeps so it can maintain levels of the various minerals it needs to work properly. But every time you breathe out, sweat, urinate or have a bowel movement, you lose some fluid. When you lose fluid, your blood can become more concentrated. Healthy people compensate by releasing stores of water, mostly from muscles. And, of course, you get thirsty. That’s your body’s way of telling you it needs more water.
At a certain point, however, if you lose enough water, your body can’t compensate. Eventually, you can become dehydrated, meaning that your body doesn’t have enough fluid to work properly. “Basically, you’re drying out,” Guralnik says.
Any healthy person can become dehydrated on hot days, when you’ve been exercising hard or when you have a disease or condition like diarrhea, in which you can lose a lot of fluid very quickly. But dehydration is generally more of a problem in the elderly, who can have a decreased sensitivity to thirst, and very young children who can’t yet tell their parents when they’re thirsty.
How much water does your body need? Guralnik says you have to consider the circumstances. “If you’re active on a hot day, you need more water than if you’re sitting in an air-conditioned office,” he explains. An average person on an average day needs about 3 quarts of water a day. But if you’re out in the hot sun, you’ll need a lot more than that.
Signs of dehydration in adults are being thirsty, urinating less often than usual, having dark-colored urine, having dry skin, feeling tired or dizziness and fainting. Signs of dehydration in babies and young children include a dry mouth and tongue, crying without tears, no wet diapers for 3 hours or more, a high fever and being unusually sleepy or drowsy.
If you suspect dehydration, drink small amounts of water over a period of time. Taking too much all at once can overload your stomach and make you throw up. For people exercising in the heat and losing a lot of minerals in sweat, sports drinks can be helpful. But avoid any drinks that have caffeine.
Remember: the best way to deal with dehydration is to prevent it. Make sure to drink enough water in situations where you might become dehydrated. For those caring for small children or older people with conditions that can lead to dehydration, Guralnik advises, “You need to prompt the person to drink fluids and remind them often. It’s not just a one-time problem.”
News in Health, July 2009 - National Institutes of Health (NIH)
National Long-Term Care Insurance: How Much Would It Cost?
The Urban Institute released a new publication by Howard Gleckman examining long-term care insurance within the context of healthcare reform.
Abstract
Abstract
About two-thirds of those over 65 will need some long-term care before they die. Howard Gleckman looks at a key question at the heart of the debate over long-term care insurance: how much will premiums cost?
LinkDelaying Generic Drugs
The heat is closing in on the drug indsutry’s practice of paying generic manufacturers to delay competition for branded drugs.
Companies say the practice is legal. But the U.S. Department of Justice took a skeptical view when it weighed in Monday on a pending case brought by CVS and Rite Aid. The drug stores (which make higher margins on generics) challenged a deal in which Bayer paid Barr to delay producing a generic version of the antibiotic Cipro. Here’s more on the case from Dow Jones Newswires.
Hong Kong researchers implicate silent infarcts in glaucoma
TUESDAY, July 7 (HealthDay News) -- A study of people who suffer the mini-strokes called silent cerebral infarcts could help explain the medical mystery of normal-tension glaucoma, Hong Kong ophthalmologists report.
Full Article
Full Article
Census Bureau Annual Social & Economic Supplement
The Census Bureau plans to request clearance for the collection of
data concerning the Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) to be
conducted in conjunction with the February, March, and April Current
Population Survey (CPS). The Census Bureau has conducted this
supplement annually for over 50 years. The Census Bureau, the Bureau of
Labor Statistics, and the Department of Health and Human Services
sponsor this supplement.
In the ASEC, the Census Bureau collects information on work experience,
personal income, noncash benefits, health insurance coverage, and migration.
The work experience items in the ASEC provide a unique measure of the
dynamic nature of the labor force as viewed over a one-year period.
These items produce statistics that show movements in and out of the
labor force by measuring the number of periods of unemployment
experienced by people, the number of different employers worked for
during the year, the principal reasons for unemployment, and part-/
full-time attachment to the labor force. We can make indirect
measurements of discouraged workers and others with a casual attachment
to the labor market.
The income data from the ASEC are used by social planners,
economists, government officials, and market researchers to gauge the
economic well-being of the country as a whole and selected population
groups of interest. Government planners and researchers use these data
to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of various assistance
programs. Market researchers use these data to identify and isolate
potential customers. Social planners use these data to forecast
economic conditions and to identify special groups that seem to be
especially sensitive to economic fluctuations. Economists use ASEC
data to determine the effects of various economic forces, such
as inflation, recession, recovery, and so on, and their differential
effects on various population groups.
A prime statistic of interest is the classification of people in
poverty and how this measurement has changed over time for various
groups. Researchers evaluate ASEC income data not only to determine
poverty levels but also to determine whether government programs are
reaching eligible households.
New questions are proposed for the ASEC, beginning in 2010. The
questions are related to:
(1) Medical expenditures;
(2) presence and cost of a mortgage on property;
(3) child support payments; and
(4) amount of child care assistance received.
These questions will enable analysts and policymakers to obtain
better estimates of family and household income, and to gauge
poverty status more precisely. To offset respondent burden,
some questions will be removed from the ASEC. Those removed
include questions on transportation assistance, child care
services, and questions on receipt of government assistance
related to welfare reform.
Full Announcement
Funding Opportunity: Careers in the Arts for Individuals with Disabilities
The Arts Endowment’s support of this project may start on or after January 1, 2010. An initial award period of up to two years is allowed. This project is designed to advance education and career opportunities in the arts for individuals with disabilities.
Link to full Announcement
Link to full Announcement
Funding Opportunity: Links between Psychosocial Stress, Aging, the Brain and the Body
This FOA encourages multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research to elucidate the mechanistic links between psychosocial stress and health in aging, as well as how the aging process and age-related diseases affect the responses to psychosocial stressors. Generally, research should be focused on (1) aging and how neural mechanisms respond to psychosocial stress and affect other body systems, (2) characterizing the behavioral, psychological and social mechanisms and pathways involved in transducing psychosocial stressors into health outcomes, (3) how stressors modulate physiological process underlying life-span, immune mechanisms, and metabolism, and (4) how psychosocial stress contributes to the development or progression of geriatric syndromes, chronic medical conditions, and disabilities in later life. Research is strongly encouraged that aims to identify appropriate targets for intervention, at any level of analysis, from societal to molecular. Research spanning multiple levels of analysis is particularly encouraged.
Link to Full Announcement
Link to Full Announcement
No Improvement In Survival with Inhospital CPR
No Improvement In Survival with Inhospital CPR
Among elderly patients, survival after inhospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) hasn't improved over a 15-year period, researchers say.
The proportion of hospital deaths among patients who had undergone inhospital CPR has actually increased, while the proportion of survivors discharged home after having the procedure has decreased, William J. Ehlenbach, MD, of the University of Washington, and colleagues, reported in the July 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
The finding is concerning because it comes "during a time of more education and awareness about the limits of CPR in patients with advanced chronic illness and life-threatening acute disease," the researchers said.
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Among elderly patients, survival after inhospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) hasn't improved over a 15-year period, researchers say.
The proportion of hospital deaths among patients who had undergone inhospital CPR has actually increased, while the proportion of survivors discharged home after having the procedure has decreased, William J. Ehlenbach, MD, of the University of Washington, and colleagues, reported in the July 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
The finding is concerning because it comes "during a time of more education and awareness about the limits of CPR in patients with advanced chronic illness and life-threatening acute disease," the researchers said.
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Monday, July 6, 2009
Hospital system tries letting patients read physicians' notes
Pamela Lewis Dolan in AMnews -
Tom Delbanco, MD, conducted an experiment in the 1970s in which he asked patients to take their own notes during clinical visits and compare them to their physicians' notes.
The experiment didn't last long, he said, because when patients asked other physicians for notes, "doctors thought the patients were crazy," he said. "They literally said, 'I am calling a psychiatrist.' "
Now, more than 30 years later, Dr. Delbanco, an internist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and professor of general medicine and primary care at Harvard Medical School, is trying again. He is one of the leaders of an experiment at Beth Israel that allows patients unfettered access to their doctors' notes made in relation to their visits. The idea is to see how granting real-time access to clinical notes will change the dynamic between physicians and patients.
Read Full ArticleHealth Care Reform Gets Personal
Ronni Bennett in Time Goes By blog -
Having misplaced the link and having no luck with Google, I must ask you to trust me: somewhere a week or two ago, there was a news story about elders being the biggest threat to a single-payer system or public option in whatever health care reform bill emerges from Congress.
Having misplaced the link and having no luck with Google, I must ask you to trust me: somewhere a week or two ago, there was a news story about elders being the biggest threat to a single-payer system or public option in whatever health care reform bill emerges from Congress.
The thinking of the writer was that since elders have their own single-payer system, Medicare, they don't give a damn about the rest of the country and therefore won't support reform for everyone.
And this morning in The New York Times, a Maine small-business owner echoed that sentiment. People on public programs like Medicaid and Medicare
"...are less likely to speak up [about health care reform]," he said. "'It does not affect them the way it affects us.'"
What hogwash. Elders have children, grandchildren and in some cases great grandchildren and they are acutely aware of their progeny's struggle to pay for health care with and without coverage. Many elders are helping out their families every way they can. Of course (depending on party affiliation and political ideology), they would support affordable health care for their children.
Read her complete postSafety Net Effective at Fighting Poverty But Has Weakened for the Very Poorest — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
As mounting job losses threaten to push more Americans into poverty and make poor families still poorer, a new examination of the public benefits system finds that it is more effective in reducing poverty than previously known but has become less effective over the past decade in protecting Americans from deep poverty.
Safety Net Effective at Fighting Poverty But Has Weakened for the Very Poorest — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
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Safety Net Effective at Fighting Poverty But Has Weakened for the Very Poorest — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
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2010 National Mental Health Services Survey
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's
(SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) will conduct the 2010
N-MHSS. This national survey will update the previous biennial mental
health facility survey conducted in 2008--the National Survey of Mental
Health Treatment Facilities (NSMHTF) under OMB No. 0930-0119. Similar
in design to the 2008 NSMHTF, the 2010 N-MHSS will survey all mental
health service locations, instead of surveying each mental health
organization as a whole. These separate mental health service locations
(facilities) are in contrast to mental health organizations which may
include multiple facilities (service locations). This survey will be
(a) A 100-percent enumeration of all known facilities nationwide that
specialize in mental health treatment services, (b) more consumer-
oriented in describing services available at each facility location,
and (c) patterned after SAMHSA's Office of Applied Studies National
Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (OMB No. 0930-0106).
The 2010 N-MHSS will utilize one questionnaire for all mental
health facility types including hospitals, residential treatment
centers, outpatient clinics, and multi-setting facilities. The
information collected will include: intake telephone numbers for
services, types of services offered, sources of payment for services,
facility caseload characteristics, and facility bed counts, if
applicable. This survey will use a multi-mode approach to data
collection--mail and Web with telephone follow-up.
The resulting database will be used to provide both State and
national estimates of facility types and their patient caseloads.
Information from the 2010 survey will also be used to update SAMHSA's
online Mental Health Facility Locator for use by consumers. In
addition, data derived from the survey will be published by CMHS in
SAMHSA publications such as Mental Health, United States and in
professional journals such as Psychiatric Services and the American
Journal of Psychiatry. The publication, Mental Health, United States,
is used by the general public, State governments, the U.S. Congress,
university researchers, mental health service providers, and mental
health care professionals.
Full Notice
Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans
The Council will study the following issues:
(1) Approaches for Retirement Security in the United States,
(2) Stable Value Funds and Retirement Security in the Current Economic
Conditions, and
(3) Promoting Retirement Literacy and Security by Streamlining Disclosures
to Participants and Beneficiaries.
The schedule for testimony and discussion of these issues generally will be
one issue per day in the order noted above. Descriptions of these
topics are available on the Advisory Council page of the EBSA Web site, at
http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/aboutebsa/erisa_advisory_council.html.
The EBSA update is scheduled for the afternoon of July 23, subject to change.
Organizations or members of the public wishing to submit a written
statement may do so by submitting 30 copies on or before July 14, 2009
to Larry Good, Executive Secretary, ERISA Advisory Council, U.S.
Department of Labor, Suite N-5623, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW.,
Washington, DC 20210. Statements may also be submitted electronically
to good.larry@dol.gov. Relevant statements received on or before July
14, 2009 will be included in the record of the meeting. Individuals or
representatives of organizations wishing to address the Advisory
Council should forward their requests to the Executive Secretary or
telephone (202) 693-8668. Oral presentations will be limited to ten
minutes, time permitting, but an extended statement may be submitted
for the record. Individuals with disabilities who need special
accommodations should contact Larry Good by July 14 at the address
indicated.
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