1965: The Year That Brought Civil Rights To The Nation’s Hospitals
A conversation with author David Barton Smith examines how civil rights activists working at the Social Security Administration and the Public Health Service in the 1960s used the new Medicare law to end racial discrimination at hospitals.
Study: 30 Percent Of Children’s Readmissions To Hospitals May Be Preventable
In more than three-quarters of the cases that researchers said might have been preventable, factors at the hospital contributed to the child’s return, according to the researchers.
Insurers May Share Blame For Some Generics’ Price Hikes
News reports have led many consumers to blame drugmakers for the rapidly rising costs of some commonly used generic drugs. But changes made by insurers often play a major role, too.
Diabetes Linked To Risk Of Mental Health Hospitalization In Young Adults: Study
The rate of hospital treatment for mental health conditions or substance abuse problems was four times higher for people with diabetes aged 19 through 25 than for those without the disease.
Sometimes Tiny Is Just The Right Size: ‘Microhospitals’ Filling Some ER Needs
These facilities are full-service hospitals and offer a full array of emergency services but may have only a handful of beds for admitted patients.
Despite Opioid Concerns, Seniors Often Exit The Hospital With Prescription: Study
Researchers found that nearly 15 percent of seniors filled prescriptions for an opioid painkiller after leaving the hospital and of those, 42.5 percent had the order refilled later.
Many Toddlers Fail To Get Necessary Medicaid Renewal At Their First Birthday
Infants born to women covered by Medicaid or CHIP may be automatically eligible for that insurance during their first year, but advocates say confusing rules and bureaucratic problems too often prevent an easy extension of that coverage.
Study Finds Doctors Quick To Change Practice For Breast Cancer Patients
Despite the usual view that physicians are slow to alter their routines based on new scientific evidence, researchers found that breast cancer surgeons quickly adopted advice to not remove lymph nodes after a landmark clinical trial in 2011.
Young Adults Can Face Challenges To Health Enrollment
Even as the administration focuses on getting more young adults into marketplace coverage, many enrollment specialists say that this group has some difficulty transitioning from family plans or Medicaid.
Catastrophic Insurance Could Help With Long-Term Care Expenses: Studies
Urban Institute researchers examine how such a plan could work and whether it would be better to make payments when people first need care or after they have used up much of their own money instead.
States Offer Privacy Protections To Young Adults On Their Parents’ Health Plan
Now that young people up to the age of 26 can stay on their family plan, it can be difficult for them to keep their medical information confidential.
Feds Urge State Medicaid Programs To Encourage Long-Acting Contraceptives
Medicaid spends billions on unintended pregnancies, and federal officials say better use of long-acting contraceptives, such as IUDs, offer advantages for women and are cost-effective.
If Zika Concerns Might Derail A Trip, Consider ‘Cancel-For-Any-Reason’ Plans
Consumers planning a vacation who have worries about health issues may want to look into travel insurance that allows them to cancel the trip for any reason.
Customers’ Pot Smoking May Not Be A Deal Breaker For Life Insurers
A survey of officials at life insurance companies finds that many factor in marijuana use when considering coverage, but they are often concerned about the frequency of use.
Study Suggests Federal Standard May Be Thwarting Some Transplant Patients
Researchers report that performance standards set by federal health officials may have led to many patients being dropped from transplant lists without improving survival rates.
Young People At Risk For STDs Often Don’t Get Tested: Study
A CDC survey of teens and young adults finds that nearly half who have had sex but not been tested for disease believe they are not at risk. Yet young people account for half of all new sexually transmitted infections.
When Adult Children Get Sick, It May Be Hard For Parents To Get Information
Federal law seeks to protect the privacy of patients’ health information, but sometimes leaving parents out of the loop can complicate the patient’s recovery.
Virginia Insurer’s Decision To Drop Bronze Plans Prompts Concerns
But the action may not indicate a developing national trend to drop bronze coverage. Instead, analysts note that bronze and silver plans may be becoming more similar.
A Doctor Yearns For A Return To The Time When Physicians Were ‘Artisans’
Dr. Abraham Nussbaum, author of a new book examining the drive toward quality metrics such as checklists, says he fears medicine could become just another job and not a “calling.”
People With HIV Are Less Likely To Get Cancer Treatment
New research finds that patients infected with the virus that causes AIDS are less likely to get treatment for nine common cancers than are people who don’t have HIV.
