Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Study Links More Nursing Homes, Doctors To Fewer Readmissions
Axios: More Nursing Homes, Physicians Leads To Lower Hospital Readmission Rates
Medicare patients were readmitted to hospitals less frequently in communities with more nursing home beds and primary care physicians, a new Health Affairs study shows. (Dreher, 7/6)
Modern Healthcare: To Report Or Not To Report? CMS COVID Quality Plan Prompts Questions
Even as the COVID-19 pandemic battered Sanford Health, the health system rededicated itself to quality efforts, racing to address concerns and change processes in real time and to report patient safety data. "We believe that quality needs to be maintained, regardless of conditions and the situation," said Dr. Jeremy Cauwels, the Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based health system's chief physician. "It's been a constant area of focus." At other health systems, the pandemic derailed safety and quality programs as hospitals were beset by resource and staffing shortages, waves of high acuity patients, and overtaxed intensive care units. (Devereaux, 7/5)
Modern Healthcare: Price Transparency Rule Leads To Insurer Confusion
The regulation is vague and underwent changes late in the process, which makes it difficult for insurers to understand just what it means to be in compliance, said Dan Kuperstein, a senior vice president of compliance at consultancy Corporate Synergies and an attorney who specializes in employee benefits law. That’s even more true for smaller carriers, employers and third-party administrators, he said. (Tepper, 7/5)
Modern Healthcare: Oncologists Turn To Telehealth For An Extra Layer Of Patient Care
Telehealth experienced explosive, unprecedented growth early in the pandemic. More than two years in, much of that uptick has slowed, hampered by reimbursement uncertainty and unknown returns on investment. Still, some health systems have found an enduring use case for virtual care: oncology. (Devereaux, 7/5)
KHN: ‘Free’ Screening? Know Your Rights To Get No-Cost Care
An ounce of prevention … well, you know the rest. In medicine, prevention aims to spot problems before they worsen, affecting both a patient’s health and finances. One of the more popular parts of the Affordable Care Act, which allows patients to get certain tests or treatments without forking out cash to cover copayments or deductibles, is based on that idea. (Appleby, 7/6)
Also —
KHN: Widely Used Hospital Gowns Show Signs Of Exposing Workers To Infection
Disposable gowns designed to deflect the splatter of bodily fluids, used in thousands of U.S. hospitals, have underperformed in recent and ongoing laboratory tests and may fall short of safety standards, leaving health care workers with a greater risk of infection than advertised. A peer-reviewed academic study, published to little notice amid the coronavirus pandemic, found that isolation gowns commonly worn in medical units or intensive care units ripped too easily and allowed about four to 14 times the expected amount of liquid to seep through when sprayed or splashed. (Kelman, 7/6)
Bloomberg: How A Shortage Of Plastic Is Impacting Health Care
“We’re definitely seeing some shortages on types of plastic components that go into medical devices, and that’s a big issue at the moment,” says Robert Handfield, a professor of supply chain management at the Poole College of Management at North Carolina State University. (Swetlitz, 7/5)
Salt Lake Tribune: After 33 Years Of Incinerating Medical Waste, Stericycle Shutters Its North Salt Lake Plant
After 33 years of burning Utah’s medical waste on the edge of growing Davis County subdivisions, Stericycle’s North Salt Lake incinerator closed for good on Friday, dropping the curtain on a drawn-out drama over the company’s alleged failure to control toxic emissions and efforts to cover it up. (Maffly, 7/6)
