Health Care Access in the News:  Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Consumer Health Coalition (CHC) has highlighted major news headlines and studies related to health care access from the past week. We hope you find this information INTERESTING AND useful!

HEALTH CARE QUALITY

HHS OFFICIAL URGES PARTICIPATION IN ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS PROJECT
Thursday, March 13, 2008
By Joe Fahy, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt invited health care and community leaders yesterday to participate in a new effort to expand electronic health record systems in physician offices. During a visit to Pittsburgh, Mr. Leavitt urged local leaders to support a Medicare demonstration project that will give incentive payments to doctors who install the systems and meet certain guidelines for improving care. Implementing electronic systems that meet uniform standards would help transform the nation's health care sector into a health care system, Mr. Leavitt told about 40 representatives of physician, hospital and business groups, consumer advocates and others at the Regional Enterprise Tower, Downtown. In an interview, Mr. Leavitt said electronic systems have the potential to lower health care costs by reducing multiple medical tests, preventing errors and hospital admissions, and improving management of chronic disease."

GO ELECTRONIC, OFFICIAL URGES PHYSICIANS
Thursday, March 13, 2008
By Rick Stouffer, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

"U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt on Wednesday introduced local health care-related professionals to a pilot program that will pay small- and mid-sized practices $58,000 per doctor to convert to electronic medical recordkeeping. Leavitt called the program one way to unify the nation's health care services and reduce costs. He said the diffuse, high-cost sector threatens to swallow the entire economy. The former Utah governor designated the Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative as one of 14 so-called chartered value exchanges, which gives it access to government data on the quality of care doctors deliver to patients. The data will be available to consumers and corporate purchasers. Leavitt said the government must give incentives to health care players to do a better job of measuring quality and prices for customers."

ADDRESSING THE LACK OF DIVERSITY IN HEALTH PROFESSIONS
March/April 2008
By Kevin Grumbach and Rosalia Mendoza, Health Affairs

"African Americans, Latinos, and American Indians are severely underrepresented in the health professions. A strong case for diversity may be made on the grounds of civil rights, public health and educational benefit, and business gains. Improving the diversity of the health professions requires multiprong strategies addressing the educational pipeline, admissions policies and the institutional culture at health professions schools, and the broader policy environment."

ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

EXPERT URGES POSITIVE OUTLOOK TO COPE WITH AUTISM
Friday, March 14, 2008
By Jennifer Reeger, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

"Notbohm, author of several books about autism and the mother of a child with the disorder, spoke to a crowd of 600 Thursday at the first Autism Conference and P.E.P. (Parents, Educators and Providers) Rally at California University of Pennsylvania in Washington County. The conference, sponsored by the university and Intermediate Unit 1, brought together parents, educators, social workers, education students and others interested in autism spectrum disorders that affect one in every 150 children. Autism affects children differently, but is often characterized by impaired social interaction skills and communication problems. Notbohm's speech focused on "Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew," which is the title of one of her books on the disorder. Notbohm said parents and teachers who work with children with autism must remain optimistic despite difficulties and setbacks. "It is simply more expedient to turn your attention forward, to look for opportunities, to be a problem solver," she said."

NEW EVIDENCE REGARDING RACIAL AND ETHNIC DISPARITIES IN MENTAL HEALTH
March/April 2008
By Thomas G. McGuire and Jeanne Miranda, Health Affairs

"Minorities have, in general, equal or better mental health than white Americans, yet they suffer from disparities in mental health care. This paper reviews the evidence for mental health and mental health care disparities, comparing them to patterns in health. Strategies for addressing disparities in health care, such as improving access to and quality of care, should also work to eliminate mental health care disparities. In addition, a diverse mental health workforce, as well as provider and patient education, are important to eliminating mental health care disparities."

PUBLIC HEALTH/HEALTHY COMMUNITIES

STATEWIDE SMOKING BAN NEARS
Monday, March 10, 2008
By Tom Barnes, Post-Gazette Harrisburg Bureau

"House-Senate negotiators are closing in on a proposal to ban, or at least limit, smoking in most public places and work places around the state, such as restaurants, bars, taverns, clubs and casinos. Senate Democratic leader Bob Mellow of Scranton, a member of the House-Senate conference committee that is writing the smoking ban, agreed it's time for action. He's hoping to enact a bill before the summer recess starts June 30. "We've been reviewing [the pros and cons of a ban] long enough," he said. "I've been in the Senate a long time and this isn't the first time we've talked about banning smoking. It's time for the committee to act." The six-member panel will hold two important hearings this week -- today and Thursday here at the Capitol, to take final testimony regarding where cigarette smoking should be banned or allowed."

RACIAL AND ETHNIC DISPARITIES IN US HEALTH CARE
Thursday, March 13, 2008
By H. Mead, L. Cartwright-Smith, K. Jones, C. Ramos, K. Woods, B. Siegel, The Commonwealth Fund

"Many Americans are in poor health and do not receive the best medical care. While these problems affect people of all groups and walks of life, the challenges are especially acute for racial and ethnic minorities. Myriad research studies and reports have documented that minorities are in poorer health, experience more significant problems accessing care, are more likely to be uninsured, and often receive lower quality health care than other Americans. These differences may be caused in part by factors such as income, education, and insurance coverage. But even after adjusting for these determinants, disparities often persist. Given the rapidly growing diversity of this nation, an increasing number of minority Americans find themselves at risk of disease and not getting the care they need."

HEALTH CARE POLICY & MARKETPLACE

HEALTH CARE PROPOSAL MOVES AHEAD IN HOUSE
Thursday, March 13, 2008
By Joe Fahy, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"After a lengthy debate, the Pennsylvania House moved forward yesterday with a plan to extend more affordable health care coverage to hundreds of thousands of uninsured adults. The House voted 114-81 in favor of a proposal crafted by Democrats that is similar in some respects to Cover All Pennsylvanians, a plan proposed by Gov. Ed Rendell early last year. Final approval of the House Democrats' plan is expected Monday, but it faces an uncertain future in the Republican-controlled Senate. Rep. Todd Eachus, a Luzerne County Democrat who spent much of the afternoon defending the proposal, called the vote "a first step in a serious debate about access to affordable health care" in the state. Like the governor's plan, the House Democrats' plan, known as Pennsylvania Access to Basic Care, would build on the state's adultBasic program, adding coverage for other services such as behavioral health care and prescription drugs. AdultBasic currently offers physician care, in-patient hospitalization and other services to low-income uninsured people ages 19 to 64."

THE FAILURE OF SCHIP REAUTHORIZATION: WHAT'S NEXT?
Thursday, March 13, 2008
By Genevieve M. Kenney, The Urban Institute

"As efforts to reauthorize the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) failed in 2007, Congress settled on a short-term extension of the program.The issues that proved contentious in the SCHIP reauthorization debate—namely, the proper role of the government in health care, whether SCHIP should cover higher-income children, how to ensure that undocumented children will not be covered, and how the program should be funded—will likely be revisited when Congress again takes on SCHIP reauthorization later in 2008 or early in 2009, when the extension is set to expire. Instead of seeing the reductions in uninsurance among children that were projected under the vetoed SCHIP reauthorization bills, the number of uninsured children will likely increase, at least in the short run. Without strong growth in public coverage, more children are apt to join the ranks of the uninsured, which increased by 1 million over the past two years."

PITTSBURGH HOSPITALS, CLINICS SEE MORE PATIENTS UNABLE TO PAY
Friday, March 14, 2008
By Kris Mamula, Pittsburgh Business Times

"Hospitals in the Pittsburgh region are seeing a sharp increase in the number of patients who cannot afford care. Excluding bad debt, charity care among 50 hospitals surveyed by the Hospital Council of Western Pennsylvania hit $82 million in the last six months of 2007, a 22 percent increase from a year earlier. Experts say the increase reflects the record number of people without health insurance -- 47 million nationally in 2006 -- and weakness in the local economy. Squirrel Hill Health Center CEO Susan Friedberg Kalson has started an effort to attract more insured patients to keep the clinic on solid financial ground."

RALLY CAP
Thursday, March 13, 2008
By Chris Young, Pittsburgh City Paper

"Last March, Marion Constantinides bruised her upper arm after slipping on a sheet of ice. Another fall two weeks later further aggravated the injury, tearing a muscle in her arm and sending her to a primary care center in Squirrel Hill for an evaluation. Unfortunately, the visit proved pointless. Although her doctor said the injury required minor surgery, Constantinides left the clinic deciding to simply let her arm heal itself. "That's what happens when you're uninsured," says the 57-year-old Greenfield resident, who resorted to physical therapy, which she had to perform herself, to help heal the tear. "If I'm ever in a bad accident, I hope it's a big one, and I hope it's the last, because I can't afford treatment." But while debates in Harrisburg drag on, Constantinides is left "try[ing] not to think about" being uninsured. Right now, that's particularly difficult since she's due for a new glasses prescription. "What do I do?" she says. 'I have no way to cover it other than to save whatever little money I have.'"

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