Beetroot Juice May Boost Stamina - Forbes.com

Study findings could apply to athletes, elderly, researchers say (HealthDay News) -- Beetroot juice can boost physical stamina and increase exercise endurance by up to 16 percent, a new British study shows. Read More

More Research Links Cardiovascular Health to Alzheimer’s - Health Blog - WSJ

By Jacob Goldstein More data this week suggesting that common risk factors for heart disease may also raise the risk of developing Alzheimer’s: A study of nearly 10,000 people found that having high cholesterol during midlife increased the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease in old age. The finding was based on cholesterol measurements taken in the 1960s and early 70s, when the patients were in their early 40s, and on Alzheimer’s Disease diagnoses that came decades later. Read More

Stanford Experiments with Drive-Through Emergency Room - Health Blog - WSJ

By Shirley S. Wang Having people with contagious conditions like, say, swine flu siting in a crowded ER waiting room is not an ideal public health situation. So Stanford Hospital is testing a drive-through ER, where patients get treated in their cars. Read More

Health Reform: A Quick World Tour - Health Blog - WSJ

By Shirley S. Wang As the U.S. pushes to increase the number of Americans with health insurance, this morning’s WSJ looks at France, which offers universal coverage — and where the national health plan is running large deficits. That’s led France to begin implementing some U.S.-style efforts to control costs, such as co-pays to reduce prescription-drug costs, notes the WSJ. Here’s a quick look at what’s been happening in a few other countries around the world, as everybody tries to figure out how to provide health care without going broke: Read More

Increasing Health Insurance Coverage for High-Cost Older Adullts

An AARP Research Report by Linda J. Blumberg and Timothy A. Waidmann of The Urban Institute Because a small fraction of individuals account for a large share of total health expenditures, insurers gain more by excluding high-cost people from coverage than by efficiently managing the care of enrollees. The incentives for insurers to avoid high-cost and high-risk enrollees affect not only the likelihood of health insurance coverage for the high-risk population, but also the cost and accessibility of coverage overall in the smallgroup and nongroup private health insurance markets. This paper identifies public policies that might address these problems in private health insurance markets more effectively and delineates the advantages and disadvantages of each. Read More

The Health Care Blog: The Case for Taxing “Cadillac” Healthcare Coverage

By CLAYTON MCWHORTER With President Obama’s plan for healthcare reform recently being dealt a tough blow by the Congressional Budget Office over soaring federal deficit projections, I am beginning to wonder if it is time for the President to modify his stance against taxing “Cadillac” healthcare coverage offered by employers. It’s no secret what Senator Max Baucus, the Democratic Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and one of the most powerful people in the healthcare reform debate, thinks President Obama should do. Senator Baucus has been a vocal advocate of taxing healthcare benefits. He recently told reporters that taxing employer-sponsored benefits is “the best way to raise money for an overhaul of the healthcare system.” He has also been somewhat critical of President Obama’s decision to not tax healthcare benefits by saying, “Basically, the president is not helping us.” Read More

The Health Care Blog: Are “Cadillac” health plans the problem?

By BILL KRAMER The debate over proposals to tax health insurance plans is confusing and frustrating. The proposals are usually described as a tax on “gold plated” or “Cadillac” health coverage. According to the media and many spokespeople on the Hill, these health plans with “overly generous benefits” supposedly encourage overuse of medical services and drive up the overall costs of health care. People express outrage that Wall Street executives have expensive tax-subsidized health benefits that include coverage for cosmetic surgery. Is this really a problem? If we fix this, will it raise lots of revenue and bend the cost curve? I don’t think so. The problem is not “Cadillac” coverage, whatever that is. Read More

An Excise Tax on Insurers Offering High-Cost Plans Can Help Pay for Health Reform — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

By Paul N. Van de Water The federal government provides substantial tax subsidies for health insurance, especially for high-cost insurance plans for people with high incomes. The Senate Finance Committee is considering placing an excise tax on insurance companies that offer very high-cost health insurance plans. This proposal would help achieve two important objectives: * It would provide a significant source of funding for subsidies to enable families of modest means to afford health insurance, thereby making the overall system of federal subsidies for health insurance more equitable. * It would contribute to slowing the rate of growth of health insurance and health care costs. As a result, the proposal merits serious consideration. Read More

HCBS / More Info:Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS): Examining the Evidence Base for State Policymakers - Symposium

Summary More than 130 policymakers, health services researchers, practitioners, and policy experts discussed the measures and evidence to examine whether the expansion of home and community-based services has produced desired outcomes (quality, choice, cost, satisfaction and safety) in the long term for older adults and persons with disabilities. The day was divided into four sessions: (quality, consumer-direction, targeting candidates, determining cost-effectiveness). View the agenda and presentations. Author Reinhard, Susan; Arden, Gale; Leutz, Walter; Ditto, William; Brown, Randall; Raphael, Carol; Hendrickson, Leslie; Leitch, Kathy; Kaye, H. Stephen; Grabowski, David; Arno, Peter Available Files * Symposium Proceedings & Presentations

HCBS / More Info:Health Characteristics of Adults Aged 55 Years and over: United States–2007

Summary A new CDC report evaluates the quality of life of older Americans. Using data from the 2004 through 2007 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), this report highlights selected health characteristics of four age groups of older adults—55–64 years, 65–74 years, 75–84 years, and 85 years and over. The data are presented for each of these age groups by sex, race, including Hispanic origin, and by poverty, health insurance, and marital status. Author Schoenborn, Charlotte; Heyman, Kathleen Available Files * Data PDF (437K, 32 pages)

HCBS / More Info:Emergency Preparedness Best Practices – Louisiana

Summary Review guides that help people be prepared for, respond to, and recover from emergencies. There are separate guides for service providers, case managers, and people with disabilities. Each of the guides covers the steps of: 1) Being prepared for emergencies; 2) Responding at the time of an emergency, and; 3) Recovering after an emergency. Available Files * Best Practice Guide Support Coordinator PDF (272K, 10 pages) * Best Practices Providers PDF (770K, 43 pages) * Take and Go Book PDF (116K, 10 pages) * Special Needs: Get a Game Plan PDF (84K, 3 pages) * Link to Publications

HCBS / More Info:Long-Term Care in Health Care Reform: Policy Options to Improve Both

Summary This policy brief presents four options that merit serious consideration in the current health care reform discussions. The first two options would improve long-term care for people with low incomes and limited financial resources. Review ideas on expanding Medicaid support for home and community-based services and improve coordination of medical and long-term care for Medicare-Medicaid “Dual Eligibles”. Poll results also gauge interest in reform if long-term services and supports were included. Author Komisar, Harriet; Tumlinson, Anne; Feder, Judy; Burke, Sheila Available Files * Policy Brief PDF (1,115K, 33 pages) * Poll Fact Sheet PDF (112K, 1 page) * Media Report PDF (160K, 6 pages) Read More

Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau Seeks To Refresh the Record on Petition To Mandate Captioned Telephone Relay Service

SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission, via the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau (Bureau), seeks to refresh the record on a petition filed by various consumer groups requesting that the Commission initiate a rulemaking to make Captioned Telephone Relay Service (CTS) a mandatory form of telecommunications relay service (TRS). This issue has been raised again in a recently filed supplement to the petition, and comment is sought on the supplement as well. DATES: Comments are due on or before July 27, 2009. Reply comments are due on or before August 10, 2009. Read More

IP-Enabled Services

SUMMARY: This document amends the Federal Communications Commission’s rules so that providers of interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service will be required to comply with the same discontinuance rules as domestic non-dominant telecommunications carriers. These rules protect consumers of interconnected VoIP service from the abrupt discontinuance, reduction or impairment of their service by requiring prior notice to customers and the filing of an application with the Commission. DATES: Effective September 8, 2009 E9-18716.pdf (application/pdf Object)>Read More

42 CFR Part 412 Medicare Program; Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility Prospective Payment System for Federal Fiscal Year 2010; Final Rule

This final rule updates the payment rates for inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2010 (for discharges occurring on or after October 1, 2009 and on or before September 30,2010) as required under section 1886(j)(3)(C) of the Social Security Act (the Act). Section 1886(j)(5) of the Act requires the Secretary to publish in the Federal Register on or before the August 1 that precedes the start of each fiscal year, the classification and weighting factors for the IRF prospective payment system’s (PPS) case-mix groups and a description of the methodology and data used in computing the prospective payment rates for that fiscal year. Read More

Medical News: X-ray Machines Spread Bugs in ICUs - in Critical Care, General Critical Care from MedPage Today

By Michael Smith, North American Correspondent, MedPage Today Multidrug-resistant bacteria can be spread in the intensive care unit by portable X-ray machines and their operators, Israeli researchers found. The surfaces of the machines yielded samples that contained resistant Gram-negative bacteria about 40% of the time, according to a single-institution intervention study reported in the August issue of CHEST. Read More

Medical News: Prolonged Grief Disorder Validated for Diagnosis - in Psychiatry, General Psychiatry from MedPage Today

By Todd Neale, Staff Writer, MedPage Today Prolonged grief disorder should be considered for recognition as a distinct mental disorder, researchers said. A set of criteria that includes yearning to be reunited with a loved one and a handful of other grief-related symptoms accurately identified widowed individuals who were at risk for functional impairment, according to Holly Prigerson, PhD, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and colleagues. Read More

Medical News: Stroke Linked to Greater Risk of Hip, Femur Fracture - in Cardiovascular, Strokes from MedPage Today

By Todd Neale, Staff Writer, MedPage Today Stroke is associated with double the risk of hip and femur fracture, according to a large Dutch registry study. The risk is particularly increased during the first three months after the stroke for patients younger than 71 and for women, according to Sander Pouwels, PharmD, of Utrecht University, and colleagues. Read More

Beyond Co-Pay: Surprise Bills at the Doctor’s - WSJ.com

Insured patients typically expect to make a small co-payment when they see a doctor, and later get billed for anything else they owe. But physicians no longer want to wait for their money. Medical practices and clinics increasingly are asking people to fork over their entire out-of-pocket charge as they’re walking out after a visit. That could include paying amounts a patient owes toward their health plan’s deductible and a percentage of the cost of care under a co-insurance requirement. Patients who are uninsured also are being asked for money upfront, or at least signed up for a payment plan. And physician practices have started demanding patients pay in advance for outpatient surgeries and expensive imaging scans, a practice that certain hospitals have long enforced. Read More

Doctors Know That Rationing Medical Care Is Standard Practice - washingtonpost.com

excerpts: "The unspoken truth among doctors is that we objectively or subjectively ration care, and often don't tell patients or their families." . . . "In its broad definition, rationing is the allocation and prioritization of scarce resources. It is one of the strategies for cost containment. The paradox of rationing is that it seems fair, just and equitable, and it makes sense when applied to a population. But when it applies to my patient or my mother, it makes me uncomfortable. That said, rationing is necessary and inevitable." . . . "To put it more neutrally, we allocate health care based on patient need and the available resources. The supply of organs is limited by the number of donors, but the supply of drugs, beds and doctors depends on the choices we make as a society about how much we want to spend on each person." . . . "A deeper question for health care in America is how to best allocate limited financial resources. This requires us to be cost-effective and to be clear about who decides what is allocated." Read More

What's so great about private health insurance? - Los Angeles Times

The bloody battle in Congress over a 'public option' ignores the insurers' role in creating the nation's healthcare crisis and their efforts to throttle reform. Read More

AMNews: Aug. 3, 2009. Chaotic working conditions wear down primary care physicians ... American Medical News

By Susan J. Landers, AMNews staff. Posted Aug. 3, 2009. A chaotic work environment -- with insufficient time for proper patient care and lack of control over work -- takes a toll on primary care physicians. More than half of these physicians feel time pressure during office visits, while 48% said their work pace is chaotic and 78% said they have little control over their work. The analysis of 422 family physicians and general internists in 119 clinics was reported in the July 7 Annals of Internal Medicine (www.annals.org/cgi/content/abstract/151/1/28). Read More

AMNews: Aug. 3, 2009. Guidelines on EHR meaningful use moving forward ... American Medical News

The recommendations, which will help determine who receives federal stimulus funding, have been revised from an initial draft. Read More

AMNews: Aug. 3, 2009. The White House's HIT man: An interview with David Blumenthal, MD ... American Medical News

The nation's health information technology coordinator is trying to help get physicians up and running with electronic health records systems. Read More

AMNews: Aug. 3, 2009. Some states still prohibit hospitals from hiring doctors; physicians want to keep it that way ... American Medical News

Medical associations in California and Texas have been battling legislation that would allow rural hospitals to directly hire doctors -- a move some physicians say threatens to undermine their independent medical judgment and hinder patient care. Most states allow for direct hospital employment of physicians -- a growing trend in recent years as doctors increasingly seek more financial stability. California and Texas, however, are among only a handful of states that generally prohibit hospitals from employing doctors, under long-standing laws aimed at preventing corporate interference with the practice of medicine. Read More

AMNews: Aug. 3, 2009. Landmark Massachusetts health reforms showing cracks in access, coverage ... American Medical News

Lawsuit charges that the state weakened its safety net to pay for reform. Meanwhile, lawmakers propose closing a budget deficit by rolling back some coverage. Read More

Are You Old Enough?

Bernice Madigan - Supercentenarian