Archive for the ‘Healthcare’ Category
Thursday, September 2nd, 2010
Now that the H1N1 swine flu pandemic has officially come to an end, the federal government is planning to change the way it works with companies to counteract new disease threats. Proposed actions include reforming the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and creating centers that will make vaccines available more quickly than was possible previously. According to a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) report, the nation’s ability to respond to pandemics is too slow and that changes must be made. The report also contains a plan to help researchers and biotech firms bring new drugs and vaccines to the market in record time.
“At a moment when the greatest danger we face may be a virus we have never seen before…we don’t have the flexibility to adapt,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. The report promotes clearer guidance to industry regarding the kinds of tests need to achieve regulatory approval of new drugs and vaccines, something the pharmaceutical industry has requested. The FDA plans to establish teams to expedite this process. Additionally, HHS and the Department of Defense plan to establish the Centers for Innovation in Advanced Development and Manufacturing, according to the report.
“These centers will provide assistance to industry and government by advancing state-of-the-art, disposable, modular manufacturing process technologies,” the report says. “Finally, in public health emergencies, these centers may augment existing United States manufacturing surge capacity against emerging infectious diseases or unknown threats, including pandemic influenza.”
Dr. Harold Varmus, who wrote a separate report from the Presidential Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, said “Accelerated delivery of vaccines by even a few weeks can mean saving tens of thousands of lives. Sebelius noted that the government has not invested adequately in “regulatory science” – studying the optimal means to test new products. “Because of this under-investment, we are often testing and producing cutting-edge products using science that is decades old. We are also going to reach out to product developers earlier in the process so they know what to expect,” Sebelius said.
Tags: Department of Defense, Department of Health and Human Services, FDA, Flu shots, H1N1, Influenza, Kathleen Sebelius, pandemic, Presidential Council of Advisors, public health
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Wednesday, September 1st, 2010
Access to healthcare isn’t always convenient for Americans who live in remote rural areas. To fill the void, high-speed internet connections are being put into place to bring top-quality healthcare to patients via computer. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has pledged $400 million a year to connect approximately 10,000 rural healthcare providers under its National Broadband Plan.
A case in point is Redway, CA - a town of 1,200 located 200 miles north of San Francisco - whose Redwoods Rural Health Center and Dr. Wendi Joiner serve 4,000 patients, many of whom do not live within easy driving distance of the clinic. According to Dr. Joiner, “It’s a special challenge. I love it, but sometimes I feel like there should be two or three of me. It happens a lot where we’re asked to do things that we’re not specialists in.”
The FCC’s rural telemedicine plan will make it easier for rural people to access healthcare, according to chairman, Julius Genachowski. “If you have rural connectivity for healthcare, then patients don’t have to drive two or three or four hours for their treatments - instead, (they) can stay back where they live, consult with a medical professional remotely.” The FCC’s pilot program has been successful and expanded the reach of the University of California, Davis Medical Center’s telemedicine clinic.
According to Dr. Tom Nesbitt, who heads the UC Davis rural program, his hospital serves 3,000 patients annually who live in remote locations. “The demand would even be greater if the remote locations had equipment, bandwidth and training.” The money to make this possible is already available through the Universal Service Fund, which brings telephone service to rural areas. Genachowski is transferring the money to broadband to improve the availability of healthcare in remote locations. “One of the greatest forms of savings will come from healthcare spending that we don’t have to make because we catch problems earlier. We can treat and diagnose remotely,” he said.
Tags: Healthcare, rural areas, Rural telemedicine, technology
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Tuesday, August 31st, 2010
During difficult economic times, Americans are less likely to seek out healthcare than people who live in countries with government-funded systems. A research team from Dartmouth College, Princeton and Harvard found that Americans cut back on everyday healthcare by 26.5 percent because they had been laid off or lost money on investments. This represents a far larger percentage than seen with Canadian, British, German and French citizens.
Citizens in Great Britain and Canada went to the doctor less often by 5.6 percent and 7.6 percent. The French and Germans cut their doctor visits by 12 percent and 10.3 percent. According to the researchers, “We find strong evidence that the economic crisis - manifested in job and wealth losses - has led to reductions in the use of routine medical care.”
Tags: Dartmouth College, Harvard, job market, medical care, Princeton, wealth loss
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Monday, August 30th, 2010
The state of Illinois has created the Illinois Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan (IPXP) for individuals with pre-existing conditions who lack medical insurance. Enrollment will be on a first-come, first-served basis and is funded by premiums and the federal government, which is giving the state $196 million to operate the program until 2014. The funding is expected to cover between 4,000 and 6,000 people - nowhere near the 1.7 million Illinoisans who currently lack healthcare insurance.
“This program is not a silver bullet that will solve all health insurance problems in Illinois,” said Michael McRaith, director of the Illinois Department of Insurance. Illinois is one of approximately 30 states establishing similar “high-risk pools” under the healthcare reform legislation passed in the spring. Congress has set aside $5 billion to fund the pools, although this is not enough money to cover existing needs. As many as 400,000 people nationally are expected to enroll in their state programs.
To qualify for IPXP, a person must be uninsured for six months, have a pre-existing condition, be a United States citizen or a legal resident, and be unable to get insurance from another source. There is a $2,000 deductible and dependents are not covered. Premiums will vary, but a Chicagoan who is 25 and doesn’t smoke will pay $149 a month. The older the patient, the higher will be the premium.
Tags: Congress, healthcare reform, high-risk pools, Illinois, Michael McRaith
Posted in Economics, General, Healthcare, Hospital Systems | No Comments »
Thursday, August 26th, 2010
Doctors’ salaries fell slightly in 2009, according to the 17th annual Physician Compensation Survey compiled by Modern Healthcare magazine.
The most recent survey tracked 23 specialties and determined that only five had average pay increases higher than the 2.7 percent inflation rate calculated by the Consumer Price Index. These were dermatology, which rose 5.3 percent; pediatrics, which rose 4.5 percent; neurology and pathology, which rose 3.3 percent; and hospital medicine, which rose 2.8 percent. Orthopedic surgeons topped out the compensation list with their average pay climbing 1.9 percent to $485,297.
Eight specialties saw slight decreases. Plastic surgery was down 3.3 percent to $376,849; gastroenterology was down 2.8 percent to $409,628; intensive medicine was down 1.7 percent to $257,797; radiation oncology was down 1.7 percent to $420,661; urology was down 1.4 percent to $391,406; emergency medicine was down 1.1 percent to $266,826; invasive cardiology was down 0.9 percent to $450,016; and noninvasive cardiology was down 0.9 percent to $393,181.
According to William Jessee, M.D., president and CEO of the Medical Group Management Association, “Clearly, there had to be some impact from the economy. Actually, I was pleased the numbers were as good as they were given the recession. Certainly, it showed a comeback in the second half of 2009.” A pediatrician, Jessee, added that primary-care physicians saw their pay rise by 2.8 percent last year, which he views as part of an effort to attract more medical school graduates to that specialty. He warns against over-reacting to the data. “Keep in mind the increase is not anything to write home about - 2.8 percent is not a windfall,” Jessee said.
Tags: compensation, Consumer Price Index, emergency medicine, gastroenterology, intensive care, pay raise, pediatricians, Physician Compensation Survey, physicians, plastic surgery, primary-care physicians, psychiatry, radiation oncology, urology
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Wednesday, August 25th, 2010
With little fanfare, the Obama administration has released $250 million to establish “new access points,” locations designed specifically to house primary-care services in underserved neighborhoods. The facilities are intended to mirror community health centers. Created by the new healthcare reform law, the grants will be awarded by the Health Resources and Services Administration.
Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, said “These funds reflect the administration’s steadfast commitment to improving and expanding access to vital primary healthcare services. From our cities to our smallest towns, each health center has an important role to play, ensuring access to services in its community.”
Organizations eligible for the funding include public and non-profit groups, including tribal and faith-based community organizations. All must meet health center funding requirements.
Tags: community health centers, Department of Health and Human Services, faith-based organizations, Health Resources, healthcare reform, Kathleen Sebelius, Obama administration, primary healthcare, tribal organizations
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Tuesday, August 24th, 2010
Twenty percent of Americans visited a hospital emergency room in 2007, the most recent year for which the National Center for Health Statistics has data. That includes approximately 7.4 percent of the uninsured who visited the ER multiple times, as did 5.1 percent of people with private insurance. The most frequent ER visitors were Medicaid patients, with 15.3 percent reporting two or more visits in 2007. A total of 116.8 million ER visits were made that year.
One third of adults in fair or poor health visited the ER at least once during the year and are the patients most likely to use that facility. Patients over 65 reported more ER visits and described it as their customary source of healthcare. Approximately 25 percent of individuals aged 75 and older visited the ER at least once in 2007.
The big surprise? Contrary to conventional wisdom, the uninsured were not more likely to make non-emergency visits to the ER than other groups. Approximately 10 percent fall into the non-emergency category whether the patient had private insurance, Medicaid coverage or no insurance. Determining who visits the ER, the frequency and for what reasons requires examining complicated interactions among multiple factors - socioeconomic level, overall health, age, health insurance, access to healthcare and others.
“Our job is to provide the best numbers to inform policy and practice,” said Amy B. Bernstein of the National Center for Health Statistics. “If people are concerned about the use of emergency rooms and how to make their use more efficient or effective, they should have accurate information about who is actually using them - and not who they think is using them.”
Tags: emergency rooms, Medicaid, National Center for Health Statistics, private insurance, uninsured
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Monday, August 23rd, 2010
Private detectives retained by Medicare required an average of six months to refer fraud cases to law enforcement officials, according to congressional investigators. The average lag time was 178 days - and by then, many cases are so cold that catching the perpetrators is virtually impossible, as is recovering taxpayer dollars. Recently, an inspector general report had questions about the contractors who play a leading role in Medicare’s efforts to rein in fraud. In 2007, private contractors identified $835 million in problematic Medicare payments. The government was able to recover only about $55 million or seven percent of the total, according to the report.
Medicare overpayments - which typically range from a billing error to a brazen swindle - totaled more than $36 billion in 2009, according to the Obama administration. That’s why President Obama has placed a high priority on fighting fraud and waste in the hope that the savings will help fund the new healthcare law. The opposition - in the form of Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) - questions whether taxpayers are getting a good deal from Medicare’s private eyes. His office is reviewing Medicare data from the last four years to determine why it took so long to refer fraud cases to law enforcement officials. According to Grassley, “Medicare is already a pay-and-chase system when it comes to fraud, waste and abuse. Providers are paid first; then questioned if there’s a problem. Add to that mix contractors who sit on cases of ongoing fraud when they should be referring them to law enforcement, and you have a recipe for disaster.”
Medicare retains seven private companies - collectively known as “Program Safeguard Contractors” - at work to find fraud, a program that was started in the late 1990s. These contractors, who oversee specific areas, investigate accusations of misconduct and work with the government’s criminal investigators.
Tags: Congress, Medicare, Obama administration, Republicans, taxpayers
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Thursday, August 19th, 2010
The Department of Health and Human Services has made available an application that employers must fill out so claims incurred by members of early retiree healthcare plans can receive reimbursement. The Early Retiree Reinsurance Program lets the government pay employers for part of healthcare claims made by retirees who are 55 or over but not yet covered by Medicare. The plan covers eligible dependents, no matter their age. Once a participant in an early retiree plan has $15,000 in healthcare claims for one year, the government will pay plan sponsors for 80 percent of the claims or $90,000.
Congress appropriated $5 billion for the program as part of the healthcare reform law. It is seen as a way to encourage employers to continue their early retiree healthcare plans until 2014 when many key provisions of the new law take effect. In the future, part of the coverage will be provided by state pools where lower-income individuals can use federal health insurance premium subsidies to buy coverage.
“Until Americans have access to affordable insurance plans through health insurance exchanges in 2014, this program will make it easier for retirees and their families to maintain employment-based coverage,” according to Kathleen Sebelius, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary.
Tags: Congress, Department of Health and Human Services, healthcare reform, Kathleen Sebelius
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Wednesday, August 18th, 2010
The H1N1 flu pandemic is officially at an end, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The announcement came months after many nations canceled vaccine orders and shut down telephone hotlines as the illness disappeared from the headlines. Margaret Chan, the WHO’s director, said that the pandemic had “largely run its course” and that the phase six alert - the highest influenza level - is officially at an end. “I fully agree with the committee’s advice,” Chan said. At present, the virus is in the “post-pandemic” phase, meaning disease activity has returned to levels normally seen for seasonal flu bugs.
Chan cautioned against complacency, noting that “It is likely that the virus will continue to cause serious disease in younger age groups”, she said and urged high-risk individuals such as pregnant women to be vaccinated against the disease. A total of 18,449 people have died across the globe since the H1N1 flu first appeared in April of 2009. Chan defended her decision to declare swine flu a pandemic, saying it was based on the globally agreed rules that were in place at the time. “We have been aided by pure good luck,” she said, noting that if the virus had mutated, the death rate would have soared. Angus Nicoll, flu program coordinator with the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, said the declaration that the pandemic had ended was consistent with the Stockholm-based organization’s views.
An interesting point is that while reports of flu in the northern hemisphere are at seasonal lows, nations in the southern hemisphere (where it is currently winter) show few people are seriously ill with swine flu, Nicoll said. Still, healthcare workers should get ready for a new seasonal flu that will combine elements of the pandemic H1N1 strain, the older H3N2 strain and additional lesser strains, according to Nicoll, who said “It looks sort of middle of the road at the moment.”
“Lurking in the background we still have H5N1,” Chan said in a reference to the bird flu that has sickened 503 people over seven years and killed 299 of them. Chan’s advice for the future is for people to get their usual seasonal flu shot this fall to protect against the disease.
Tags: Angus Nicoll, Flu shots, H1N1, H1N1 flu, H5N1, Margaret Chan, pandemic, swine flu, WHO, World Health Organization
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