Health Aide Shortage Impacting At-Home Care
NPR reports on low numbers of health aides and how this impedes seniors and people with disabilities from getting medical care at home. Charities paying-off of medical debt, housing aid for foster youths from insurers, plus corporate health system expansions, and other industry stories are also in the news.
NPR:
A Shortage Of Health Aides Is Forcing Out Those Who Wish To Get Care At Home
More seniors and people with disabilities are choosing to stay in their homes — and with the number of adults aged 60 and older in the U.S. expected to increase 30 percent by 2050, home health aides are predicted to be one of the fastest growing professions nationwide in the next decade. The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the number of openings for home health and personal care aides will increase nearly 37 percent by 2028. (Krebs, 5/5)
Grow:
RIP Medical Debt Sends Surprise Letters Clearing People's Medical Debt
Americans owed at least $195 billion of medical debt. That’s despite the fact that more than 90% of the population has health insurance coverage, according to March research by the Kaiser Family Foundation. RIP Medical Debt is trying to relieve Americans of that burden. The nonprofit organization pays off medical bills for individuals who need it most. The charity looks for households whose incomes are less than two times the federal poverty level guideline, which is $13,590 for 2022, or who have medical debt representing at least 5% of their gross income. RIP Medical Debt uses “precise data analytics to pinpoint the medical debt of those most in need of relief,” according to the charity’s website. Once it has paid off their debts, the organization then sends out a surprise letter in the mail letting individuals know that their medical debt has been wiped away. (Pitt, 5/4)
Modern Healthcare:
Insurers Offer Housing Aid To Foster Youths To Improve Health Outcomes
Foster children and young people transitioning out of the child welfare system frequently encounter obstacles to adequate housing, which some healthcare providers and health insurance companies are trying to address with novel programs. This interest in foster youths stems from the increased focus on social determinants of health, including housing, over the past decade. In addition to the potential societal good, these organizations see opportunities to keep children connected to the healthcare system, which could lead to adverse health outcomes and higher spending. (Devereaux, 5/4)
In corporate updates —
St. Louis Public Radio:
Affinia Healthcare To Open Ferguson Health Center In 2023
Affinia Healthcare will start construction soon on a 15,000-square-foot health center in Ferguson, thanks in part to a $2 million federal grant. The center will be located on Pershall Road, adjacent to the Emerson YMCA. The comprehensive health center will include family medical, obstetric, pediatric, dental care and behavioral health services. It will provide more health care options for an area that has lacked sufficient access to health care services, said Dr. Alan O. Freeman, president and CEO of Affinia Healthcare. “We realized very quickly in Ferguson and in that area around the YMCA, there were particular opportunities to serve people in need and to provide greater access to care,” Freeman said Wednesday. (Davis, 5/4)
The Boston Globe:
State Approves Pared Down Expansion At MGH, Growth At Brigham Faulkner
State regulators approved a pared down expansion at Massachusetts General Hospital and growth at Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital on Wednesday, giving final state sign-off on approximately $2 billion in projects. The Public Health Council approvals fell in line with staff recommendations from the Department of Public Health, which had recommended the addition of 78 inpatient beds at Brigham and Women’s Faulkner and supported the construction of two connected clinical towers at Massachusetts General Hospital. (Bartlett, 5/4)
Modern Healthcare:
Mass General Brigham Scores Approval For Slimmer Expansion
The Massachusetts Public Health Council approved a pared-down version of Mass General Brigham's $2 billion expansion amid opposition from state watchdogs. The council on Wednesday green-lit a 482-bed inpatient tower at Massachusetts General Hospital and a 78-bed addition to Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital. It denied Mass General Brigham's request for 94 new licensed inpatient beds and a PET/MR scanner at Mass General Hospital. (Kacik, 5/4)
Cincinnati Enquirer:
Lindner Center Of Hope Announces $30 Million Expansion In Mason
The Lindner Center of Hope announced plans to renovate and expand its Mason facility as part of a $30 million campaign that includes new wellness and diagnostic assessment centers. The center's leaders joined members of the business community to announce the launch of the campaign Wednesday at a news conference atop the Lytle Park hotel downtown. The campaign has begun with pledges of more than $6 million, with $2.5 million coming from Corporex chairman William P. Butler, his wife Sue and the Covington-based development firm his family owns. The announcement also comes as part of Mental Health Awareness Month and at the waning of a COVID-19 pandemic that has brought mental health issues to the foreground, especially among children. (Sutherland, 5/4)
In research news —
Stat:
Researchers Describe The Human Element In Making Medicines
Veteran vaccine developer Jacqueline Miller joined Moderna in May 2020, at the height of the race to develop a Covid shot. “The culture shock for the first four months was breathtaking,” she told an audience at a STAT event in Boston on Tuesday. Miller, who previously was a top vaccine executive at GlaxoSmithKline, said that she had been used to a certain kind of tempo in vaccine development: Researchers would conduct a study, sit and reflect, conduct another study, and reflect on that. (Herper, 5/4)
Stat:
Race Is Often Overlooked In Key Clinical Trial Data In Europe
Just two-thirds of the pivotal clinical trials that were used to win prescription drug approvals in Europe reported any data on the race of the study participants, and less than one-third contained information about their ethnicity, a new analysis found. Meanwhile, the percentage of Black participants decreased significantly in studies run between 2007 and 2019, while the percentage of Asian participants increased. In general, races other than white were underrepresented at least twice as often in pivotal trials during that time, according to the analysis by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development. (Silverman, 5/4)
