Current News

NASHP's State Health Policy News for May 23
June 5, 2008
Two New Reports Discuss Coverage of Children, Adolescents
NASHP published two papers this week:

Covering All Children: Issues and Experience in State Policy Development

Download this paper

This paper briefly describes strategies states are using to achieve universal children's coverage, including expanding public programs and creating other opportunities for families with uninsured children, such as through buy-in programs and premium assistance programs. It also examines some common policy issues that have arisen in eight states that have been among those in the vanguard in pursuing coverage of all children and youth.

SCHIP and Adolescents: An Overview and Opportunities for States

Download this paper

This paper provides an overview of adolescents' distinct health care needs and offers guidance on how to tailor state SCHIP programs to better target the health care needs of low-income adolescents. Outreach, benefits, service delivery, and quality measurement and improvement are all SCHIP program elements that can be examined and tailored to meet the needs of adolescents.

AgrAbility Feature Story
May 20, 2008
Below is a feature story from AgrAbility for Pennsylvanians regarding our recently sponsored Penny War campaign and the recipient of the proceeds. I believe that you and your readers will enjoy this story about a young man's accomplishments in spite of coping with cerebral palsy, and the students who reached out to help him.

As always, thank you for your assistance in helping others learn of the valuable resource that is AgrAbility for Pennsylvanians.

Click here to view the story

Grant Opportunities
May 20, 2008
Grant opportunities from Pennsylvania’s state agencies can be found at the eMarketplace Portal-a one-stop shop for bidding and contract information. From that homepage, click on the Solicitations button on the left. On the new screen, in the drop down box titled Solicitation Type, choose RFA or RFP (can only choose one at a time), and then click Search. A list of all RFA/RFPs currently posted will appear at the bottom of the screen and clicking on an individual Solicitation Number will bring up the information. Searches may also be narrowed down by Agency and County. Please note that the site hosts all opportunities available from agencies and will include ones for facilities and supplies as well as for programs, initiatives and projects.

Patient Safety and Clinical Pharmacy Services Collaborative  (PSPC)
May 20, 2008
The Health Resources and Services Administration is pleased to invite community-based teams of health care providers to join a quality improvement breakthrough effort called the Patient Safety and Clinical Pharmacy Services Collaborative (PSPC). The mission of this Collaborative, which is modeled after the Institute for Healthcare Improvement's Learning Collaboratives, is to advance the delivery of world class care by spreading the integration of clinical pharmacy services and patient safety principles to improve health outcomes in safety-net populations.

HRSA invites you to form a team with other health care organizations in your community to take part in this exciting and unprecedented opportunity. The PSPC offers an 18-month rapid learning process that brings together inter-professional teams from multiple organization types within communities to make rapid and sustainable improvement in how care is delivered to patients. The first Learning Session will be held August 14-15, 2008.

The overall goal of the Collaborative is to put in place, across multiple health care partners, a service delivery system for high-risk patients that will produce three results:

1) Integration of clinical pharmacy services v2) Improved patient safety

3) Improved patient health outcomes.

This Collaborative will achieve its goal by spreading the leading practices of high performing safety-net providers who have achieved outstanding safety and health outcomes for their patients. These organizations have accomplished these results by employing innovative, transferable delivery system practices.

The "PSPC Overview and Participation Information," is available at www.hrsa.gov/patientsafety/. Your request to participate in the Collaborative must be received by July 1, 2008.

Two national teleconferences will be held regarding this exciting opportunity:

· May 28th: 12pm to 1pm EST, to provide an overview of the participation package and answer questions.

· June 4th: 12pm to 1pm EST, to discuss the PSPC learning process and pre-work that teams will begin on July 15, 2008. vBoth calls can be accessed by calling 1-866-843-0890, access code 5541910. Email questions to patientsafety@hrsa.gov.

HRSA looks forward to your participation in this transformational effort that will greatly improve the quality of health care provided to patients served by the nation's healthcare safety-net providers.

Rural Health Research Gateway Update
May 20, 2008
2005 Physician Supply and Distribution in Rural Areas of the United States ( Project Summary and Full Report)

This study describes the 2005 supply and distribution of physicians (including osteopathic physicians and international medical graduates) with particular emphasis on generalists in rural areas. Results indicate variability in the rural-urban distribution of physicians, with wide variation shown among rural locations.

Author contact information:
Meredith Fordyce, PhD
meredith_fordyce@fammed.washington.edu
206.543.6548

HRSA Announcement: Radiation Exposure Screening and Education Program (RESEP) Launching National Outreach Campaign
May 20, 2008
The Health Resources and Services Administration's (HRSA) Radiation Exposure Screening and Education Program (RESEP) is launching a "National Outreach Campaign" to spread the word about resources for people who were exposed to radiation through nuclear arms testing or the uranium mining industry between 1942 and 1971.

The RESEP program supports screening programs, medical referrals, and the preparation of medical documentation related to radiogenic illnesses. RESEP also refers individuals diagnosed with radiogenic cancers and chronic diseases to the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) Program, administered by the Department of Justice, which provides payments in the amounts of $50,000 to $100,000.

We have developed a brochure that explains who is eligible, what RESEP offers, and how to receive benefits. You can obtain printed copies of the brochure free of charge from the HRSA Information Center by calling 1-888-ASK-HRSA, or you can download the booklet from the HRSA Web site at: http://ruralhealth.hrsa.gov/radiationexposure/.

For more information on RESEP (including eligibility and program offerings), see: http://ruralhealth.hrsa.gov/radiationexposure/.

New From the RUPRI Center: Prevalence of Evidence-Based Safe Medication Practices in Small Rural Hospitals
May 20, 2008
A new issue brief is available from the RUPRI Center: Prevalence of Evidence-Based Safe Medication Practices in Small Rural Hospitals.

This issue brief presents the findings of a national survey whose purpose was to describe the prevalence of evidence-based safe medication practices, including the use of voluntary medication error reporting, in the nation’s smallest hospitals. A key finding is that hospitals with an average daily census of six or more patients were more likely to report having adopted safe medication practices than were hospitals with an average daily census of five or fewer patients. Findings from this research reveal considerable opportunity for improvement in hospitals with 49 or fewer beds to achieve evidence-based standards of medication safety.

Please click on the following link to download this brief: http://www.unmc.edu/ruprihealth/Pubs/IssueBrief2008-1.pdf

CHCS Launches Online ROI Forecasting Calculator for Quality Initiatives in Medicaid
April 24, 2008
The Return on Investment Forecasting Calculator for Quality Initiatives is a new web-based tool designed to help Medicaid stakeholders identify programs with the potential to both improve health care quality and control costs. The Center for Health Care Strategies developed this practical tool with support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).

The ROI Calculator, available at www.chcsroi.org , is designed to help Medicaid stakeholders generate realistic return on investment (ROI) estimates for quality improvement initiatives. States and health plans can use this online tool for an array of purposes throughout the course of program development and implementation. In particular, the ROI Calculator can be used to support resource allocation, program design, program funding, and monitoring and evaluation of quality improvement initiatives.

CHCS will host a WebExchange on May 8 from 2-3:30 ET to provide a live demonstration on the ROI Calculator. This call will also share experiences in using the tool from three states that participated in the Return on Investment Purchasing Institute, a national learning collaborative funded by The Commonwealth Fund and the RWJF.

Hospital- Acquired Infections in Pennsylvania 2006
April 24, 2008
Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council

The Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4) today released its second hospital-specific report on hospital-acquired infections. Hospitals reported that 30,237 patients hospitalized during 2006 contracted an infection during their hospitalization, a rate of 19.2 per 1,000 cases.

Hospital-acquired Infections in Pennsylvania includes information on approximately 1.6 million patients treated in 165 general acute care hospitals. Because not all hospitals treat the same types of patients, they were categorized by "peer groups" so that hospitals that offer similar types and complexity of services and treat a similar number of patients are displayed together. In addition to the number of cases and infection rate per 1,000 cases, information on mortality, mean and median length of stay, and mean and median charges are presented for each hospital.

To view and/or download the report, visit us on the web by clicking the following link:

Hospital-Acquired Infections in Pennsylvania 2006

Update from the New York Center for Health Workforce Studies
April 24, 2008
Residency Training Outcomes in New York, 2007
This report describes findings from the Center’s annual survey of physicians completing residency or fellowship training in New York. The survey inquires about residents’ demographic characteristics, practice plans, experiences in searching for a job, and impressions of the physician job market. New York retained about half of all new physicians in the state, although there were substantial differences by specialty. Unlike previous years, demand for primary care physicians (generalists) was comparable to demand for non-primary care physicians (specialists). Respondents planning to practice outside of New York were asked their reasons for leaving the state. The most commonly cited reasons were proximity to family (26 percent) and inadequate salary (21 percent). Thirteen percent (13 percent) of respondents indicated that they never intended to practice in New York. To view the full report go to: http://chws.albany.edu/index.php?nys_exit.

Podiatric Medicine Workforce Study
With support from the American Podiatric Medicine Association, the Center recently completed a study that estimated future supply of and demand for podiatric physicians in the U.S. The study found that the production of new podiatrists would have to expand dramatically to meet increasing demand for foot-related services created by the aging of the population and expected increases in the prevalence of obesity and diabetes. To view the report of this study, visit the Surveys page of the APMA Web site at: http://www.apma.org. Enumeration of the Public Health Workforce in New York
The Center, in collaboration with the NYS Department of Health and the NYS Association of County Health Officials, recently completed a study of local public health workers in an effort to gain a better understanding of this workforce’s size, composition, and responsibilities. The study found that the local public health workforce was older than average and not as diverse as the population it serves. Also, a large number of workers age 55 and older reported retirement plans in the next five years and about 20% of workers younger than age 35 reported plans to leave the field of public health. Download the report: http://chws.albany.edu/download.php?id=446561,343,2.

Health Careers Web Site
The Center continues to expand its Health Careers Web site, with extensive information on nearly 50 health careers in New York, including general descriptions of health occupations and specific education and licensure requirements; listings of and electronic links to all educational programs in the state; the current number of individuals in the health occupation in New York; and forecasts from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics on future job growth. The Web site is designed to be a guide for students, guidance counselors, health workers, or anyone interested in a career in health care. To visit the health careers Web site, go to: http://www.healthcareersinfo.net.

CLARIFICATION

In an April 1 press release expressing gratitude to Governor Paterson and legislative leaders for including the Doctors Across New York initiative in the health budget for FY 2008-09, the Medical Society of the State of New York stated that according to data from the Center for Health Workforce Studies released in December 2006, there was a continuing downward spiral in New York in the number of practicing physicians in certain specialties, including Obstetrics/Gynecology, General Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Neurosurgery, Family Medicine, Thoracic Surgery, and Psychiatry.

A further analysis of these data comparing the supply of these specialties in 2001 to supply in 2005 reveals wide regional variation, with steep declines in some regions, offset by growth in supply in other regions. The most up-to-date information on physician supply and distribution in New York can be found in the 2007 edition of the Annual New York Physician Workforce Profile posted on the Center’s Web site at: http://chws.albany.edu/index.php?nyphysicians.

WORKS IN PROGRESS

New York RN Forecasting Study
The Center is currently conducting a study to forecast future registered nursing supply and demand gaps in New York. The RN forecasting model, developed by the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, has been adapted and applied to counties and county groups within New York, using 2005 as a base year and projecting through 2020. The goal of the study is to quantify RN supply and demand gaps in New York by locality over the 15-year period. A report of findings from this research will be released next month.

OTHER NEWS

Jean Moore, director of the Center, participated in an orientation seminar sponsored by the Pan American Health Organization in Bridgetown, Barbados last winter. The seminar was targeted to data research teams conducting health workforce studies in territories and countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. Ms. Moore’s presentation, "Monitoring the Health Workforce: Definitions, Sources, and Methods," focused on approaches to data collection, measures of supply and demand, and dissemination strategies.

AgrAbility Press Release
April 24, 2008
Below is a press release from AgrAbility for Pennsylvanians. AgrAbility staff members rely on a team of professionals in order to fully serve our farm family clients. Part of that team is an Occupational Therapist, and the important work they do helping to recognize ways in which modifications might assist clients through everyday tasks. April is recognized as OT Month; AgrAbility joins many others in saluting this worthwhile occupation.

Thank you for your support of farm families throughout PA through the publication of AgrAbility press releases. Best wishes.

AgrAbility Press Release

Measuring the Quality of Pennsylvania's Commercial HMOs
April 24, 2008
The third year of the Rural Hospital Replacement Facility Study, prepared by Stroudwater Associates and RED CAPITAL GROUP, identified measurable changes in the experiences of Critical Access Hospitals (CAH) engaged in the process of facility replacement. Notably, respondents reported improvement in tangible measures of hospital performance, such as faster patient discharge growth and improved operational efficiency. Respondents also reported greater success in physician and staff recruitment and improved customer and employee satisfaction. Other intangible benefits enjoyed by participating hospitals included community economic development, improved work culture and better quality of care.

CAH Replacement Study
CAH Replacement Study Exec Summary

Measuring the Quality of Pennsylvania's Commercial HMOs
April 24, 2008
The Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4) is pleased to announce the release of its latest report – Measuring the Quality of Pennsylvania's Commercial HMOs.

This report includes data from Calendar Year 2006 and combines clinical results, preventive measures and member satisfaction information to give purchasers, policymakers and consumers a more complete picture of how well HMOs serve their members.

To view and/or download the report, visit us on the web by clicking the following link:

Measuring the Quality of Pennsylvania's Commercial HMOs

Copies of the report can also be ordered by calling PHC4 at (717) 232-6787.

SHIP Bulletin
April 24, 2008
SHIP Student Research Paper Competition
Submission deadline: May 30, 2008
Initiated in 2000, the SHIP Student Research Paper Competition recognizes graduate-level student research on community health improvement topics. The goals of the Competition are to promote student research in community health and to promote the awareness of SHIP in Pennsylvania. This is a statewide competition for graduate level students in health related fields including, but not limited to, public health, epidemiology, medicine, dentistry, nursing, sociology, social work, behavioral health and health administration. The paper must incorporate the concepts of State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP). Interdisciplinary student teams, as well as individual students, are encouraged to apply. First Place $1,000; Second Place $500; Third Place $250.

2006 Birth Data Tables
A large volume of all the latest available and historical annual and three or five-year state, county, and municipality data by age, sex, race/ethnicity, birth weight, trimester of entry into care, method of delivery, marital status, etc.

Hands Only CPR
When an adult has a sudden cardiac arrest, his or her survival depends greatly on immediately getting CPR from someone nearby. Unfortunately, less than 1/3 of those people who experience a cardiac arrest at home, work or in a public location get that help. Most bystanders are worried that they might do something wrong or make things worse. That’s why the AHA has simplified things.
 
Asian American Health Disparities
Going beyond national studies that often treat Asian Americans as a homogenous and relatively healthy group, a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum finds that certain subgroups of the nation’s Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander populations are doing much worse than other subgroups in terms of health insurance coverage and access to health care.
 
Demands on Nurses Grow as Hospital Quality Improvement Efforts Increase
Hospitals face growing tensions and trade-offs when allocating  nurses between the competing priorities of direct patient care  and quality improvement efforts, a new study from the Center for  Studying Health System Change finds.
 
Reported Health &Health-influencing Behaviors among Urban American Indians & Alaska Natives: The Urban Indian Health Institute
While data are difficult to gather, studies have found that urban AIAN suffer from significant health disparities compared with the general population. These disparities include higher rates of tobacco use, infant mortality, late prenatal care, interpersonal violence, attempted suicide, and deaths due to diabetes, accidents and chronic liver disease.3,4,5,6 Work currently taking place by the Urban Indian Health Institute and others is attempting to better understand health risks and strengths of this diffuse population.

Update from the American Heart Association
April 24, 2008
Hands-Only (Compression Only) Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation: A Call to Action for Bystander Response to Adults Who Experience Out of Hospital Sudden Cardiac Arrest

When you see an adult suddenly collapse, use Hands-Only CPR: that's CPR without mouth-to-mouth breaths. And it can help save lives.

Hands-Only CPR is CPR without mouth-to-mouth breaths. It is recommended for use by bystanders who see an adult suddenly collapse in the "out-of-hospital" setting. It consists of two steps:

1. Call 911 (or send someone to do that).
2. Begin providing high-quality chest compressions by pushing hard and fast in the center of the chest with minimal interruptions

The American Heart Association recommends conventional CPR (that is, CPR with a combination of breaths and compressions) for all infants and children, for adult victims who are found already unconscious and not breathing normally, and for any victims of drowning or collapse due to breathing problems.

Read the full Hands-Only CPR Advisory statement.

To learn more about Hands-Only CPR visit: www.americanheart.org/handsonlycpr

PA Gov Signs EO Creating HIE - PAeHI Named Advisory Partner
April 24, 2008
From HIMSS News

Governor Rendell Signs Executive Order Creating Pennsylvania HIE

Governor Edward G. Rendell signed an executive order creating the Pennsylvania Health Information Exchange (PHIX) on March 27th. The HIE is a framework that will give healthcare providers improved access to clinical data and lead to safer and more efficient patient-centered care. The initiative is part of the Governor's Prescription for Pennsylvania healthcare reform plan.

"This is consistent in what we are seeing in terms of a positive momentum that is occurring and the domino effect of state involvement in embracing the health information exchange (HIE) concept," said Mark Jacobs, [PAeHI Vice Chair and] chair of HIMSS HIE Steering Committee. "Still, more work is needed to translate the value and benefits of these HIEs and what they mean to the different verticals since everyone may not be interested in every aspect of what a HIE brings and potential global benefits can be undervalued if we look at HIEs from ten-thousand feet. Still, more work is also needed around the area of "alignment" as well as the largest category of electronic health record adoption, universal definitions and investment in terms of incentives to expand demand and use."

PHIX will provide the information technology architecture to support statewide interoperable electronic health records and electronic prescribing by sharing data that is captured at the point of care in a physician office or hospital. Most doctor's offices, hospitals, laboratories, and pharmacies now have their own separate information systems. With an information exchange, those entities will be able to share information with various healthcare providers and other authorized parties for treatment purposes. HIEs will help to provide clinicians with important medical details about the patients they treat.

The Governor's executive order also establishes an advisory council and provides for advisory organizations. The advisory council is made up of representatives from state agencies, legislators, insurers, physicians, hospital executives, pharmaceutical organizations and nurses who will advise on IT strategies and issues. The advisory organizations may provide research, analysis and recommendations relative to the unique needs of the state. The Pennsylvania eHealth Initiative (PAeHI) is recognized as an advisory organization to PHIX.

"We applaud Governor Rendell's [statewide HIE initiative] - clinical information-sharing will help [reduce medical errors,] increase the quality and lower the cost of healthcare for all Pennsylvanians," said Mark Stevens, a member of the Delaware Valley HIMSS Board of Directors and executive director of PAeHI. "PAeHI is also pleased to have been named a collaborator in this historic effort."

"By offering healthcare providers the ability to electronically share patient information, we will be able to improve patient care and safety and reduce healthcare costs that are a result of today's independent information technology systems," Governor Rendell said. "Giving clinicians access to data about their patients' care by other providers will result in fewer medical errors and better continuity of care. Less time will be wasted waiting for patient's charts and for processing referrals. And, reporting of vital statistics and diseases will be more efficient and complete."

The executive order, as well as more information on Governor Rendell's Prescription for Pennsylvania, can be found at http://www.rxforpa.com.

Health Industry Issues of the Coming Year
March 20, 2008
PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute’s predictions for the top eight health industry issues of the coming year:

Hospital coffers will feel the impact of a new Medicare reimbursement system that’s designed to better recognize the severity of patient illnesses. Specialty hospitals and others that see less acutely ill patients could see their revenues decline, while urban hospitals that treat sicker patients could benefit.

Increased oversight and authority by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration may boost the public’s trust in drug safety, but also could add to the regulatory burdens on pharmaceutical companies. The FDA now may require drug companies to conduct additional clinical trials to assess risks associated with a drug after it has been released to the public.

A surge in the number of retail health clinics, such as those in drug stores, will force states, payers and policymakers to think about the best ways to deliver primary care. Hospitals could benefit from retail clinics if they draw uninsured patients, while pharmaceutical companies may need to market more to the nurse practitioners who run the clinics.

The market for individual health insurance could get much broader if other states and the federal government follow the lead of Massachusetts, which requires that all residents have coverage. Individual coverage also could get a boost from Republican proposals for tax incentives to help consumers buy individual policies.

Retirees are playing a greater role in funding their health-care coverage, whether they like it or not. As the population ages and health-care costs increase, employers are shifting more responsibility for retiree coverage to the retirees. In a PricewatehouseCoopers survey of multinational company executives, 73 percent said they needed to reduce contributions to retiree health coverage and cap benefits.

Big pharmaceutical companies, groaning under the high price of drug development, will keep buying and collaborating with life-science companies to stock their product pipelines. But biogenerics ­ generic copies of biological drugs ­ could crimp drug company revenues.

New IRS rules will mandate that nonprofit hospitals uniformly disclose more details about the community benefits they provide, such as charity care. Hospitals also will have to be more forthcoming about executive salaries and benefits, because of pressure to justify their tax-exempt status.

Asia is poised to become the world’s largest pharmaceutical consumer and producer. American drug companies have increased their marketing and clinical trials in Asia because of the market’s size, increasing wealth and growing awareness of health-related issues. On the production side, much of Asia provides high-quality, inexpensive labor. But watch out: Several Asian drug companies aim to become worldwide pharmaceutical powerhouses, not just contract manufacturers.

Survey compares rural and urban/suburban physicians
March 20, 2008
The nation's current doctor shortage is most acute in rural America, and an aging U.S. population combined with an increased interest in "quality of life" issues will likely make the situation worse before it gets better, according to representatives from LocumTenens.com. The physician recruitment firm recently surveyed doctors to better understand their perceptions of practicing medicine in rural America versus practicing in areas with populations of 50,000 or more.
read on...

Use of Preventive Services Among Hispanic Sub-Groups: Does One Size Fit All?
March 20, 2008
The South Carolina Rural Health Research Center at the Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina is pleased to announce the release of a new report. The publication, entitled "Use of Preventive Services Among Hispanic Sub-Groups: Does One Size Fit All?", is authored by Myriam E. Torres, PhD, MSPH; Jessica D. Bellinger, MPH; Janice C. Probst, PhD; Nusrat Harun, MSPH; and Andrew O. Johnson, PhD.

The Fact Sheet is can be accessed here.

The full report is available through our Online Report Request System at http://rhr.sph.sc.edu .

Organ Transplant Review
March 20, 2008
Patients living in small towns and rural areas stand a lower chance of getting an organ transplant if they need one, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Based on a review of almost 175,000 patients who were on waiting lists for heart, kidney or liver transplants from 1999 to 2004, the study found that depending on the organ needed, residents of rural areas were 10 to 20 percent less likely to get a transplant, reported the New York Times. About 14 percent of the population lives outside major urban areas, and that very distance from cities, where transplant centers tend to be located, may explain why they end up with fewer organs, the Times added.
New York Times, January 15, 2008
Read on...

HRET Disparities Toolkit - Now Available Free of Charge
March 20, 2008
The updated HRET Disparities Toolkit gives hospitals, health systems, clinics, and health plans the information and resources needed for collecting race, ethnicity, and primary language data from patients. In order to make this invaluable Toolkit more accessible to all health care providers, the Toolkit is now available free of charge.

Disparities in processes and outcomes of patient care are well-documented. Collecting accurate data on patients race, ethnicity, and primary language is needed to track the prevalence and nature of disparities in care and to help focus efforts to eliminate disparities and improve quality of care.

HRET's Disparities Toolkit helps clinicians and administrators at all levels learn the why and how of collecting race, ethnicity, and primary language data from patients. The Toolkit is useful for educating and informing hospital staff about the importance of data collection, how to implement a framework to collect the data, and how to use these data to improve quality of care for all populations.

Go to www.hretdisparities.org to access the new Toolkit.

State Updates on Medicare Advantage Enrollment
March 20, 2008
These state-by-state reports compare MA enrollment in December 2005 to that in September 2007, including information on overall and rural enrollment in all MA plans. The reports also show the growth in enrollment in private fee-for-service plans over this period and discuss the policy implications of these enrollment changes.

Click here for reports

Tracking the Presidential Candidates on Health Care
March 20, 2008
With the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary completed and a string of primaries across the country coming up, health care remains a top domestic issue that the public wants to hear the presidential candidates talk about, second to Iraq for Democrats, Republicans, and Independents, according to Kaiser's latest poll on health and the campaign.

The Kaiser Family Foundation's health08.org website, http://www.health08.org, offers resources for following health care developments during campaign season. The website serves as a hub of information about health and the election, including original content produced by Kaiser and easy access to health-related resources from the campaigns, other organizations and news outlets.

Visit www.health08.org for:
An interactive tool for side-by-side comparisons of the candidates' health care proposals allowing users to compare up to four candidates' positions on health care coverage, cost containment, quality of care, and financing.

Regular Kaiser polls examining the public's views on health issues and perceptions of the presidential candidates on health care, as well as links to the latest polls by other organizations.

Syntheses of news coverage about health and the campaign, updated frequently.

Videos and podcasts from the campaign trail, including one-hour long presidential forums on health care, candidate speeches, interviews, and health-related highlights from forums and debates.

A calendar of events taking place around the country and links to studies and resources from other organizations.

Economic & Workforce Brief Reports Available
March 20, 2008
The Brief is a free one-page summary of the worth of 100 jobs in an industry in terms of total jobs created, compensation generated, and property taxes paid in a county or group of Pennsylvania counties.

You may order a Brief by completing a form linked to http://PSUBrief.notlong.com. Subscribers to this listserv have ordered a number of the Brief reports that are listed in the below document.

Click here for the brief

Updated Fact Sheets on Women’s Health Insurance Coverage
February 20, 2008
Health insurance is a key element in ensuring access to health care for women, as women with coverage are more likely to obtain preventive, primary, and specialty care services. However, many women face barriers to obtaining coverage because they have limited access to private insurance or do not qualify for public programs. Kaiser has released two updated fact sheets that provide the most current information and data on health insurance coverage for women ages 18-64. The fact sheet, Women’s Health Insurance Coverage, provides new statistics on health coverage and describes the major sources of health insurance for non-elderly adult women, including employer-sponsored coverage, Medicaid, individually purchased insurance, and Medicare. It also summarizes the major policy challenges facing women in obtaining health coverage, and provides data on the more than 17 million women who are uninsured. The second fact sheet, Health Insurance Coverage of Women by State, provides state-by-state data on the uninsured rate, as well as rates of private insurance and Medicaid coverage.

Update from Statehealthfacts.org
February 20, 2008
Statehealthfacts.org, from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, provides free, up-to-date, and easy-to-use health and health policy data on all 50 states. Statehealthfacts.org has data on more than 500 health topics including Medicaid and SCHIP, Medicare, health coverage and the uninsured, health costs and budgets, providers and service use, minority health, womens health, and HIV/AIDS

Statehealthfacts.org has recently added new and updated data on Medicaid, Health Status, Providers and Service Use, and HIV/AIDS. You can also view a list of all recent updates at http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.C.C.VyrW.

Medicaid & SCHIP
Updated data on home and community based services (HCBS) waivers been added and include 2004 HCBS expenditure, participant, and waiting list data for all states and the nation. Based on analysis of The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services's (CMS) Form 372 conducted by the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (KCMU) and the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF), this update also includes information on home health and personal care services expenditures and participants.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.D.C.Q1gz3

Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP)
The Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP), the rate at which the federal government matches each states Medicaid and SCHIP spending, is now available for FY 2009 for all states.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.F.C.Tvcl9

Deaths
Updated data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on infant death rates by race/ethnicity for 2004 are now available for all states and the nation. Also available are data on deaths caused by heart disease and cerebrovascular disease for 2004.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.G.C.V386x

Adult Overweight/Obesity Rate
Updated data from the CDC on the rate of obesity among adults for 2006 are now available by state.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.H.C.77kPh

Adult Smoking Rate
Data from the CDC on smoking rates among adults for 2006 are also available for all states and the nation.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.J.C.hcKFf

Federally Qualified Health Centers
Information from the National Association of Community Health Centers on the number of Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), total patients served by FQHCs, and total FQHC visits is now available for 2006 for all states and the nation.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.K.C.ccPDC

Health Care Employment
Updated data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics on the population employed in the health care field are now available for 2006 for all states and the nation.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.L.C.5V5thhttp://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.L.C.5V5th

Medical Malpractice
Data on medical malpractice claims and payments have been updated for 2007 using data from the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB). The total number of paid claims, total dollars in paid claims, and average claims payments are available for all states and the nation.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.M.C.3cBBq

HIV Death Rate
Updated data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the number of deaths caused by HIV disease and the age-adjusted death rate for 2004 are now available for all states and the nation.
http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.N.C.Zc33X

CDC Health Advisory on the potential health effects associated with the Satellite Re-entry
February 20, 2008
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is collaborating with federal partners to address potential health and safety threats associated with the reentry of an uncontrolled U.S. government satellite into the earths atmosphere within the next few weeks. Because the satellites fuel contains the toxic chemical hydrazine, it is possible that the reentry of the satellite could pose a public health threat if pieces of it fall into populated areas. The risk of health effects related to the satellite is considered to be low. However, CDC is encouraging health officials and clinicians to review information about the health effects related to hydrazine to prepare in case their communities are affected by satellite debris.

Hydrazine is a clear, colorless liquid with an ammonia-like odor. Hydrazine is highly reactive and easily catches fire. It can easily evaporate to the air and can dissolve in water. In soil, hydrazine may stick to particles. In each of these forms hydrazine breaks down quickly into less harmful compounds.

People can be exposed to hydrazine by breathing contaminated air, dermal contact, or ingestion. Breathing hydrazine may cause coughing and irritation of the throat and lungs, convulsions, tremors, or seizures. Dermal contact may cause redness, pain, and burns. Eating or drinking small amounts of hydrazine may cause nausea, vomiting, uncontrolled shaking, inflammation of the nerves, drowsiness, or coma.

Additional information about hydrazine can be found at http://emergency.cdc.gov/agent/hydrazine.

New Government Grant, Contract and Loan Website Debuts
February 20, 2008
The Office of Management and Budget has launched a new Web site that provides information on all major federal grants, loans and contracts. The new site, USASpending.gov, fulfills one of the key requirements of the 2006 Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act, which requires full disclosure on a Web site maintained by OMB of all organizations receiving more than $25,000 in federal funds. The new website will eventually provide a full searchable database of all federal grants, contracts, earmarks and loans.

http://www.usaspending.gov

Jefferson Medical College update
February 20, 2008

Jefferson Medical College is expanding its Physician Shortage Area Program (PSAP), which helps place medical school graduates in rural settings in need of doctors, into the state of Delaware. The expansion is being funded by a three-year, $450,000 grant that Thomas Jefferson University's department of family and community medicine secured from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, while the grant will also be used to expand the Center City medical school's family medicine curriculum in areas such as oral health, health literacy and domestic violence, reported the Business Journal. Launched in 1974, PSAP is geared toward medical school applicants who are committed to practicing family medicine in a rural area, and it includes an extensive mentorship component along with rural clinical educational experiences, the Business Journal added. The expansion of the PSAP into Delaware will focus on identifying and educating students to provide primary care in Sussex and Kent counties in the southern part of the state.
Philadelphia Business Journal, February 4, 2008
Read on...

New Research & Policy Brief from Maine Rural Health Research Ctr
January 28, 2008
Rural Inpatient Psychiatric Units Improve Access to Community-Based Mental Health Services, but Medicare Payment Policy a Barrier

Authors: Stephenie Loux, David Hartley & David Lambert

Inpatient Psychiatric Units (IPUs) may not only be an important source of care for rural residents, but may also assist in the development of community-based services and the recruitment of mental health professionals. This study investigates the typical characteristics and admission processes of IPUs in rural hospitals with less than 50 beds, as well as the community-based services available to them when discharging patients. Reasons for developing these IPUs as well as the barriers to opening and operating a rural IPU and factors that have led some to close are also explored.

To view or download this Research & Policy Brief, click on the link below:

http://muskie.usm.maine.edu/Publications/rural/pb36/IPU.pdf

This Research & Policy Brief is based on a longer study, which is being submitted for journal publication. For more information on this study, please contact Stephenie Loux at sloux@usm.maine.edu or 207-780-5774.

Reminder: Sign-up for the New Listserv of the Rural Health Research Gateway
January 28, 2008
Rural health research findings from eight national research centers, supported by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP), are now featured at one convenient location, the Rural Health Research Gateway Listserv. This initiative is designed to help move the most up-to-date findings of the Rural Health Research Centers to policy makers, health care providers and others as quickly and efficiently as possible.

New information is launched on the listserv and its corresponding web site ( www.ruralhealthresearch.org) to provide easy and timely access to projects, research, and findings of these national research centers. The web site has abstracts of both current and completed research projects addressing issues such as rural health quality and behavioral health, related publications, and information about the researchers and research centers.

If you would like to continue to receive the Rural Health Research Gateway postings, please sign-up at http://www.ruralhealthresearch.org/listserv.

Below is an example of a listserv posting.

Policy Brief Released

Spontaneous Evacuation Following a Dirty Bomb or Pandemic Influenza: Highlights from a National Survey of Urban Residents' Intended Behavior

This policy brief reports results of a national survey to assess the evacuation intentions of urban citizens following emergency scenarios. It includes information on how likely it would be for evacuees to go to a rural or urban area and discusses the potential impact of an urban evacuation on rural areas.

New Alliance Toolkit: Health Information Technology
January 28, 2008
The Alliance for Health Reform's latest toolkit will help understand how health information technology (IT) is slowly changing health care, and how analysts disagree about the value of some technologies. We offer an introduction to issues such as protecting patient privacy and the cost of new technologies. This resource also offers story ideas for reporters, selected experts with contact information, selected websites of interest and a glossary. Supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

To download, click here. For a version suitable for viewing on a Blackberry or other handheld device, click here. This is the table of contents:

Key Facts

• Background
• Overview: Health IT
• Electronic Medical Records/Electronic Health Records
• Computerized Physician Order Entry
• Personal Health Records
• Health Information Exchange
• Health IT and Costs
• Health IT and Patient Privacy
• The Future of Health IT
• Story Ideas for Reporters
• Selected Experts
• Selected Websites
• Glossary on Health IT

The Alliance has compiled four other toolkits recently, also with the support of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Each is also available in a version suitable for viewing on a Blackberry or other handheld device. To download any of them, click here. Topics are:

• the uninsured
• Medicaid
• child health coverage
• health care costs

Of special interest in the uninsured toolkit: links to websites tracking presidential candidates health plans and updates on state-level health reforms.

New from the RUPRI Center: Rural Hospital Charges Due to Ambulatory Care Sensitive
January 5, 2008
Two new policy briefs are available from the RUPRI Center:

(1) National Rural Hospital Charges Due to Ambulatory Care Sensitive
Conditions
(2) Regional Variation in Rural Hospital Charges Due to Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions

These policy briefs estimate and document the national and regional
magnitude of charges associated with hospitalizations due to ambulatory care sensitive conditions in rural hospitals. Findings from this research suggest that the potential national saving in rural hospital inpatient expenditure could be up to $9.5 billion if rural patients receive timely and effective primary health care and if charges closely mirror actual costs.

The findings also show that resource utilization for rural preventable hospitalizations varies by geographic region and ranges from about 14% of hospital charges for rural hospitals in the West region to more than 20% of hospital charges for rural hospitals in the South region, a pattern that reflects patients’ socioeconomic status and the supply of primary care physicians.

Please click on the following links to download these documents:

http://www.unmc.edu/ruprihealth/Pubs/PB2007-4_National_ACSC.pdf

http://www.unmc.edu/ruprihealth/Pubs/PB2007-5_Regional_ACSC.pdf

Federally Qualified Health Centers
January 5, 2008
Information from the National Association of Community Health Centers on the number of Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), total patients served by FQHCs, and total FQHC visits is now available for 2006 for all states and the nation. http://cme.kff.org/Key=13630.Wm.K.C.ccPDC