Newswire Archives
In a study reported in the journal Health Affairs, researchers describe how many accountable care organizations (ACOs) are employing home visits as a strategy to improve care management, identify patients’ needs, and reduce hospital use. They found that 80% of ACOs use home visits within 72 hours of hospital discharge for at least some of their patients.
The study can be obtained at https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/pdf/10.1377/hlthaff.2019.00003.
A federal task force created by the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 to recommend updates to best practices for managing chronic and acute pain issued its final report, addressing the following pain treatment categories: medications, restorative therapies, interventional procedures, behavioral health approaches, and complementary and integrative health approaches.
The report can be obtained at https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/pmtf-final-report-2019-05-23.pdf.
According to a report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, the number of students enrolled in colleges and universities across the country continued its downward trend this year. Enrollment overall fell by 1.7 percent in the spring compared with last year.
The report can be obtained at https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/CurrentTermEnrollmentReport-Spring-2019.pdf.
The latest Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer Overall that was released yesterday indicates that cancer death rates continue to decline for U.S. men, women and children. Death rates for all cancers and ages combined decreased an average 1.8 percent per year for males and 1.4 percent per year for females between 2012 and 2016.
More information can be obtained at https://seer.cancer.gov/report_to_nation/.
The George E. Thibault, MD Nexus Award celebrates exemplary interprofessional collaboration between health systems, clinics, educational institutions, and/or community organizations whose thinking and acting has redesigned healthcare education and delivery. They will be awarding in two categories: local, single-system implementation and broader, multi-system implementation. Application deadline is June 7, 2019.
View more info and apply here.
Millennials couldn’t be the youngest generation forever. The oldest of them turn 38 this year. So how will the next generation change U.S. national discourse? A report from the Pew Research Institute explores Gen Z's opinions on today's top issues, from education to the economy.
The report can be obtained at https://magazine.pewtrusts.org/en/archive/spring-2019/who-is-generation-z?utm_campaign=2019-05-29+Rundown&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Pew.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized a rule today to update and modernize requirements for the Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE). This program provides comprehensive medical and social services to certain frail, elderly individuals who qualify for nursing home care but, at the time of enrollment, still can live safely in the community.
The final rule can be obtained at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/06/03/2019-11087/medicare-and-medicaid-programs-programs-of-all-inclusive-care-for-the-elderly.
A data brief from the Commonwealth Fund analyzes what individuals in every state spend on premiums and out-of-pocket costs for medications, co-payments, and dental and vision care.
The data brief can be obtained at https://www.commonwealthfund.org/sites/default/files/2019-05/Hayes_households_employer_ins_spend_premiums_OOP_db.pdf.
According to a data brief from The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, physicians have not made significant progress in data-sharing. The percentage of physicians who sent, received, found, and integrated health data barely grew between 2015 and 2017, going from 9 to 10 percent. Rates were markedly higher for physicians using certified EHRs than for those using non-certified ones, and for those physicians who are part of large practices.
The data brief can be obtained at https://www.healthit.gov/sites/default/files/page/2019-05/2015to2017PhysicianInteroperabilityDataBrief_0.pdf.
The U.S. Department of Education has announced that they are providing more comprehensive data to their College Scorecard, an online consumer toolkit that originated in the Obama administration. The Department added new information for non-degree granting institutions (those that only award certificates) and is releasing new preliminary loan debt data by individual fields of study. The Scorecard now also includes data on graduation rates for non-first-time and non-full-time students and the percentage of students who transferred or were still enrolled in school. "We committed to students that we would continually improve the College Scorecard so that they could access relevant, accurate and actionable data as they make decisions about their education after high school," said Secretary Betsy DeVos in a statement. "The updates released today are another step in fulfilling that promise. We look forward to seeing how students, parents, institutions and researchers utilize this important information."
More information may be accessed here and here. The College Scorecard website may be accessed here.
Today, the Division of Health Careers and Financial Support at HRSA released the 2019 Application and Program Guidance for the Faculty Loan Repayment Program. The application cycle closes on Thursday, June 27, 2019. The Program aims to increase recruitment and retention of faculty from disadvantaged backgrounds by providing loan repayment to those who have an interest in pursuing a career at an eligible health professions school.
More information about the program can be obtained at https://bhw.hrsa.gov/loansscholarships/flrp.
Adults with less education have lower life expectancy, increased risk for chronic conditions, and lower self-reported health status than their more-educated counterparts. A study from the Urban Institute assesses trends in self-reported measures of general health, mental health, activity limitations, and obesity by educational attainment from 1997-2017, using data from the National Health Interview Survey.
The report can be obtained at https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/100256/education_and_health_long_term_trends_0.pdf.
On Friday, Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Rep. Michal C. Burgess (R-TX) introduced the Educating Medical Professionals and Optimizing Workforce Efficiency and Readiness (EMPOWER) for Health Act of 2019. This bipartisan legislation would reauthorize Title VII HRSA health professions education and training programs from Fiscal Year 2020 through Fiscal Year 2024. Allied health programs are eligible entities for the Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Programs (GWEP) and Geriatric Academic Career Awards (GACA). Rep. Burgess urged the Energy and Commerce Committee to consider the legislation soon.
Rep. Schakowsky’s statement: https://schakowsky.house.gov/press-releases/schakowsky-burgess-introduce-empower-for-health-act/
Rep. Burgess’ statement: https://burgess.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=402128
Bill text: https://burgess.house.gov/uploadedfiles/empower_for_health_act_2019.pdf
Bill summary: https://schakowsky.house.gov/uploads/EMPOWER%20for%20Health%20Act%20H.R.%202781_SUMMARY.pdf
A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics [NCHS) provides full-year health insurance estimates for the United States and 17 selected states using 2018 National Health Interview Survey data.
The report can be obtained at https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhis/earlyrelease/insur201905.pdf.
The American Hospital Association (AHA) Physician Alliance today released a resource to help hospital and health system leaders address burnout in their organizations. A Well-Being Playbook highlights seven key steps for success and provides real-world examples of successful interventions deployed in hospital and health system settings, as well as studies and tools others have found effective.
The Playbook can be obtained at https://www.aha.org/system/files/media/file/2019/05/plf-well-being-playbook.pdf.
The Trump administration made the formation of association health plans (AHPs) — those offered by business or professional associations to their members — a central focus of its health policy agenda by significantly expanding their reach, but a federal court decision made in March found the new rules violate federal tax law. A new To the Point post from the Commonwealth Fund explains the court decision, the administration’s subsequent guidance on AHPs, and what may happen next.
The post can be obtained at https://www.commonwealthfund.org/blog/2019/past-future-association-health-plans?redirect_source=/blog/2019/uncertain-future-association-health-plans.
According to the Agency for Healthcare Quality (AHRQ), the percentage of adults whose healthcare providers always initiated the “teach-back” method increased from about 24% in 2011 to 30% in 2015. Teach-back, an evidence-based way of confirming understanding, begins when providers ask patients to describe in their own words what their providers just told them.
Survey results can be obtained at https://www.ahrq.gov/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/research/findings/nhqrdr/dataspotlight-health-literacy.pdf.
The U.S. has an average level of skill proficiency compared to many other countries, but its share of young people lacking basic skills is high, according to a new report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Information about the U.S. in the report can be obtained at http://www.oecd.org/unitedstates/Skills-Outlook-UnitedStates-EN.pdf.
A report from the RAND Corporation reveals that in 2017, the prices paid to hospitals by private health plans averaged 241 percent of what Medicare would have paid. Notably, there was wide variation in pricing among both hospitals and states, suggesting that employers have opportunities to redesign their health plans to better align hospital pricing with the value of care provided.
The report can be obtained at https://www.rand.org/news/press/2019/05/09.html.
Health care systems and policymakers increasingly are exploring strategies to help address patients’ social circumstances, but there is much confusion around the terms and concepts that pertain to the social determinants of health. A Milbank Quarterly Perspective discusses how greater clarity on key terms and the concepts underlying them could advance policies and practices.
The Perspective can be obtained at https://www.milbank.org/wp-content/uploads/mq/Volume-97/Issue-02/Meanings-and-Misunderstandings-A-Social-Determinants-of-Health-Lexicon-for-Population-Health.pdf.
