The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that Hispanic adults reported a higher prevalence of symptoms of depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. Estimates of self-reported suicidal thoughts/ideation among Hispanic persons (22.9%) were four times those among non-Hispanic Black (Black) persons (5.2%) and White persons (5.3%) and approximately twice those of multiracial and non-Hispanic persons of other races/ethnicities (8.9%).
Final Recommendation Statement: Screening for Asymptomatic Carotid Artery Stenosis
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released a final recommendation statement on screening for asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis. The Task Force continues to recommend against screening in adults. View the recommendation, the evidence on which it is based, and a summary for clinicians, here.
Why Do Women Physicians Leave Practice?
Research shows that almost 40 percent of women physicians go part-time or leave medicine altogether within six years of completing their residencies. This is of particular concern in primary care, which has a higher percentage of female physicians. How can you address this problem? This article from the American Association of Medical Colleges looks at what is behind the early exodus and what pioneering institutions are doing to address it.
Study Finds 40% of U.S. COVID-19 Deaths Could Have Been Prevented
A new study by the Lancet Commission on Public Policy and Health in the Trump Era concludes that about 40 percent of the nation’s coronavirus deaths could have been prevented if the average death rate in the U.S. matched other industrialized nations. While the report faulted former President Trump’s “inept and insufficient” response to COVID-19, it said the roots of the nation’s poor health outcomes are much deeper. Read more.
Report: 10 Western States See Some Drug Overdoses Deaths Increase by Nearly 100%
By Liz Carey
The Covid-19 pandemic-related stress, isolation, and a wave of drugs contaminated with extremely potent synthetic opioid, fentanyl, are factors in a severe rise of deadly overdoses.
Read more
New Research on the Intersection of Pregnancy-Associated Deaths and Intimate Partner Violence
New research examines the three leading causes of pregnancy-associated deaths, describes evidence-based approaches and strategies for prevention and intervention, and makes recommendations for further research.
The research is published in the February 2021 Journal of Women’s Health Special Issue: Maternal Morbidity and Mortality.
The special issue provide a comprehensive review of relevant literature, including biological and physiological risk factors, external risk factors, social determinants of health, and proven and potential interventions.
Sabrina Matoff-Stepp, Ph.D., in HRSA’s Office of Planning, Analysis, and Evaluation and colleagues from NIH, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Virginia collaborated on the research.
Read the article published in the Special Issue.
Cost-Effectiveness of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program
This month, HRSA published a pair of manuscripts demonstrating the cost-effectiveness of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP) in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (JAIDS).
These two papers present findings from the first formal evaluation of the RWHAP’s cost-effectiveness at a national level. The first paper presents a new and innovative mathematical model that can be used as a tool for estimating the cost-effectiveness of the RWHAP under a variety of policy scenarios and assumptions. The second paper compares estimated health care costs and outcomes over a 50-year period in the presence of the RWHAP relative to those expected if the comprehensive and integrated system of medical and support services funded by the RWHAP were not available.
Read the first paper.
Read the second paper.
Report: To Fix Rural Problems We Have to Overhaul Existing Rural Programs
By Anya Slepyan
Researchers found that the federal development programs aimed at partnering with rural communities are ineffective in the rural environment of today.
Read more
Women Fly to Record High and then Crash to 33-Year Low
Women in the U.S. hit a milestone in February 2020 when, for the first time in history, they held the majority of non-farm payroll jobs, outnumbering men in the workforce, Axios reports. One year later, women’s labor force participation is at a 33-year low. According to experts, helping mothers get back to work is vital to the health of the U.S. economy. There will be long tail effects that hurt working women and mothers long after the pandemic is over. Read more.
47% of Uninsured Americans Did Not Explore ACA or Medicaid Options
Nearly half of uninsured Americans did not consider Medicaid or plans on the Health Insurance Marketplace assuming they were ineligible or would not qualify for subsidies according to a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Urban Institute study. Read more.