“From an outsider’s perspective, this analysis suggests that Florida appears to be overpaying its Medicaid plans, and it would seem to be only a matter of time before the state figures this out, and adjusts rate increases accordingly. Florida clearly didn’t have a problem with the profitability of Medicaid plans in the state last year, as the state awarded WellCare a 5.4% increase on July 1, 2006, while AMERIGROUP received a 7.6% increase on the same date.”

• SB 1830 would amend the existing rules by the Agency for Health Care Administration and raise the per member payments to HMO's by nearly 4 percentage points, costing the state $34 million, which would go to HMOs statewide, according to a bill analysis.
• SB 1828 would give a pay adjustment to HMOs in counties in which Medicaid reform has been launched (Baker, Broward, Clay, Duval and Nassau).

Both of these bills are sponsored by Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey. He told the Tampa Tribune he filed them at the request of the Florida Association of Health Plans and WellCare. “They convinced him the bills would attract more companies into the Medicaid market and give patients more choices, Fasano said,” according to the article.

 “That view is not shared by doctor groups and clinics that have served Medicaid patients for many years and are forming provider service networks to compete with HMOs. They say they want to maintain the support services they have developed for the chronically ill and ensure that their patients have non-HMO choices - issues that were key concerns in the legislative debate on Medicaid reform the past two years.

 

"The House Committee on Health Innovation approved the bill with a 6-2 vote this week, even though a staff analysis states it "may prevent new entities from entering the Medicaid marketplace and may cause smaller existing managed care providers to withdraw. This may in turn reduce or curtail the. . .  choices available to Medicaid recipients, especially in rural areas."

Florida Budget - High Stakes for Health Care

TAKE ACTION TODAY!

on Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation

Call Senators Martinez and Nelson TODAY!

Call 1-800-828-0498

Ask them to vote YES on the
Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act

This week, the Senate will vote to decide if our government should have the option to negotiate lower drug prices for seniors. And the opposition is paying millions to defeat this bill.

What should you say?

• Vote YES on the Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation bill.
• Many seniors in our state cannot afford the high price of prescription drugs. 
• 86% of Americans agree: Medicare should use the bargaining power of millions of seniors to negotiate lower drug prices. 

Why now?

Currently, the government is prohibited from using the bargaining power of 43 million Americans in Medicare to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies for lower drug prices. Earlier this year, the House of Representatives passed a bill to give the government the option to do just that. Now, it’s the Senate’s turn to just say NO to the drug companies.
  

Videos

PERIODICALS AND BOOKS

Florida Health News, free non-profit news service, now online
The Florida Health Policy Center has announced the launch of an independent, free, non-profit news service:  Florida Health News Inc. FHN will post health-related stories reported around the state, highlight the Florida impact of national stories, and track state health legislation.  The news service also will feature original coverage of major health policy developments and a free Monday-through-Friday news service.  You can visit the site and subscribe to the e-mail news service by clicking on the link: www.FloridaHealthNews.org. To send your comments, story tips and news of conferences and other events, or get more information, contact pat.curtis@floridahealthnews.org or 850/556-1668.

Kaiser Health Disparities Report: A Weekly Look at Race, Ethnicity and Health
This free, weekly report from kaisernetwork.org and the Kaiser Family Foundation, synthesizes news coverage from hundreds of print and broadcast news sources related to health and health care issues that effect racial and ethnic communities. The report also highlights new studies and journal articles, initiatives, developments in the field, and upcoming events.

REPORTS AND STUDIES

New Listings

New Listings: Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP

Too Sick to Work, Too Soon for Medicare: The Human Cost of the Two-Year Medicare Waiting Period for Americans with Disabilities

Americans under age 65 who have severe and permanent disabilities can qualify for Medicare coverage. But there's a catch: before these individuals can enroll, they must wait two years after receiving their first disability benefit check. As a result, there are as many as 1.5 million men and women too disabled to return to work who are waiting to receive Medicare coverage for the health care they need. Researchers tell the real-life stories of 21 adults who are struggling through the waiting period and the financial hardship, pain, and suffering it causes. As the stories reveal, many in the waiting period are left with enormous debt, compromised health, and devastated personal lives. Many are forced to sell their homes or go bankrupt. Others do not make it through the waiting period, dying before their Medicare coverage ever begins. For many of those who finally become eligible, a lack of needed care in the interim has led to a sharp deterioration in their health.  (April 2007, Commonwealth Fund and Medicare Rights Center)

Physician Pay-for-Performance in Medicaid: A Guide for States
Many health care purchasers are trying to link health care spending to quality and efficiency through pay-for-performance (P4P) programs. This report examines the current and planned P4P activities of state Medicaid programs, based on a survey and follow-up interviews with state Medicaid directors and their staffs as well as review of related documents. The authors found that more than half of states currently operate one or more pay-for-performance programs and nearly 85 percent expect to do so within the next five years. (April 2007, Commonwealth Fund)

In preparation for the SCHIP policy debates during reauthorization, FamiliesUSA has published a series of briefs outlining the major issues.

SCHIP 101: What Is the State Children's Health Insurance Program, and How Does It Work? explains the basics about SCHIP, including who qualifies for SCHIP, how SCHIP is financed, and whether eligible children are getting enrolled.

SCHIP and Children's Health Coverage: Fitting the Pieces Together examines where children, including low-income children, get their health coverage, as well as how SCHIP and Medicaid have reduced the number of uninsured children.

SCHIP and Children's Health Coverage: Leveling the Playing Field for Minority Children the important role that SCHIP plays in reducing disparities in access to care, as well as how the SCHIP reauthorization process can be used to further this effort.

When One Size Doesn't Fit All: The Importance of State Flexibility in SCHIP Eligibility explains why the flexibility to provide health coverage to children in families with incomes above 200 percent of the federal poverty level was built into the SCHIP program—and why it makes sense to keep it.

The Great Divide: When Kids Get Sick, Insurance Matters, for ground-breaking data that show that children without health insurance receive less and inferior care, and, for those uninsured children with severe illnesses or injuries, this can lead to most severe and tragic consequences.

Health Opportunity Accounts: What Are They, and Why Should State Advocates Care?  discusses the HOA provisions contained in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) and why you should be concerned if you see HOAs proposed in your state.

New Listings: Federal Budget

New Listings: Health Insurance, Health Costs

Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: Election 2008

Health care ranked as the second most important issue to voters, after the war in Iraq, in the 2008 presidential election, according to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll. Fifty-two percent of respondents said they would like to see a health care reform proposal from a candidate “that would make a major effort to provide insurance for nearly all of the uninsured and would involve a substantial increase in spending. (March 2007, Kaiser Family Foundation)

FamiliesUSA has added three new pieces documenting the risks of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).

Six Reasons to Be Wary of High-Deductible HSA Plans

Stop Bad Ideas—How HSAs Can Drain Your Wallet and Harm Your Health

Stop Bad Ideas—HSAs: Missing the Target

A Pound of Flesh: Hospital Billing, Debt Collection, and Patients’ Rights outlines what several states are doing to protect uninsured and underinsured consumers from medical debt.

Understanding How Health Insurance Premiums are Regulated outlines how states and the federal government regulate health insurance premiums to assist consumers with affordability.

 New Listings: Health Equity Issues 

Language Proficiency and Adverse Events in U.S. Hospitals: A Pilot Study

Commonwealth Fund–supported researchers from the Joint Commission report on the type and frequency of adverse events experienced by LEP and English-speaking patients in six U.S. hospitals. Their findings are startling: LEP hospital patients are more likely than their English-speaking counterparts to experience adverse events that result in harm, and the severity of that harm is often greater. The availability of language translation services, provided by trained medical interpreters, is crucial for ensuring the safety and quality of care that LEP patients receive, the authors say. They also recommend that hospitals indicate patients' native language and communication needs in their record and document the language services provided during medical encounters. (April 2007, International Journal for Quality in Health Care)

Florida Reports 

Expanding Medicaid Eligibility for Pregnant Women

(By Carol Brady of Florida Association of Healthy Start Coalitions)
This one-page report responds to these questions: Why is health care coverage important during pregnancy?How does Medicaid impact health care coverage for pregnant women? Why do we need to expand Medicaid eligibility for pregnant women? How can Florida expand coverage for pregnant women? Expanded eligibility would leverage federal funding for the uninsured, increasing access to prenatal care for at-risk women and matching SCHIP Medicaid eligibility for infants through age one. Expanding Medicaid coverage for uninsured women up to 200% of the federal poverty level would provide needed support to the working, uninsured families for whom pregnancy-related health care is a significant burden. 

Florida Children’s Action Agenda 2007/2008 Available Online
Florida state Senators Nan Rich and Durell Peaden and Representatives Loranne Ausley and J.C. Planas have released the final recommendations of the 2006 Florida Children’s Summit.  The Summit participants learned a lot, and the next Summit in Fall 2008 will reflect that.  In 2008 they will spend substantially more time in workshops hashing out recommendations and will secure experienced workshop facilitators who are knowledgeable about the topics they are facilitating.  Also, they will institute a process to ensure that when leaving the 2008 Summit - or very shortly thereafter - all will know the Summit recommendations. 

Miami-Dade and Monroe County 2006 Health Profiles
Health Council of South Florida has released downloadable Health Profiles that provide answers to 10 commonly asked questions about county demographics, health needs, and resources.

Florida Health Insurance Coverage of Children 0-18 (2004-2005)
Kaiser Family Foundation has released information about this on-line resource. 

Medicaid Changes: What will they mean for Broward and Duval counties, and beyond?
This document is Briefing #1 by researchers at Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute engaged in a two-year evaluation of the Medicaid reform pilot counties for both Florida counties. The evaluation is assessing how these changes affect Medicaid beneficiaries’ ability to access needed care as well as the impact on community health providers.(September 2006, Georgetown University Health Policy Institute)

Report looks at uninsured in Florida
This report from the Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy at FIU documents and breaks down Florida's uninsured figures, finding 18.5% of the total Florida population uninsured. The report looks at employment and industry data related to lack of coverage, and proposes a partial solution.

Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP

How Stable Is Medicaid Coverage for Children?
The researchers find that while the program provides a "long-term continuous source of coverage for millions of children," it also creates "a revolving door for others." Many children are covered for reasonably long periods, but many others experience short gaps—from two to four months—in coverage. The authors note that "[e]ven brief gaps are likely to cause disruption in care management and possibly in heath care itself." (March/April 2007, Health Affairs)

Transforming the U.S. Child Health System
Researchers look at the current child health system--fragmented, underperforming, and fraught with inefficiencies--and propose an agenda for radical system change. Instead of the current patchwork system of programs and funding streams. They recommend integrated care that takes "a more comprehensive and holistic approach to optimizing health development." (March/April 2007, Health Affairs) 

IMPROVING CHILDREN'S HEALTH: A Chartbook about the Roles of Medicaid and SCHIP
This publication provides 30 graphs summarizing current information about health insurance coverage and the health needs of low-income children, as well as the effects of Medicaid and SCHIP coverage on children's health. (2007 Edition, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)

Low Income Uninsured Children with Special Health Care Needs: Why Aren’t They Enrolled in Public Health Insurance Programs?
Many eligible children are not enrolled in public insurance programs. This Urban Institute report concludes that parents’ lack of information about the programs and negative perceptions of the application process are two primary reasons why eligible children are not being enrolled. (Jan. 2007, Pediatrics)

The Kaiser Family Foundation has posted several new resources related to children’s coverage and the reauthorization of SCHIP. Selected resources include the following (Feb. 2007):
Interactive Children’s Health Insurance Coverage Timeline
Characteristics of the Uninsured: Who Is Eligible for Public Coverage and Who Needs Help Affording Coverage?

Aging out of Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment (EPSDT): Issues for Young Adults with Disabilities
This report discusses the challenges and implications for young people with disabilities when they become adults and lose their EPSDT benefits. It also examines the effects of recent changes to the Deficit Reduction Act that increase states’ power to aid individuals with disabilities. (1/18/07, Kaiser Family Foundation)

Toward Real Medicaid Reform
In this paper the authors describe and develop several options for Medicaid reform that would expand coverage, provide fiscal relief to states, shift responsibility for some or all of the care of dual eligibles to the federal government, and eliminate or restructure disproportionate-share hospital (DSH) payments. (2/23/07, Health Affairs)

Next Steps: Strategies to Improve the Medicare Part D Low-Income Subsidy
Dept of HHS has estimated that at least 75 percent of the Medicare beneficiaries who do not have any prescription drug coverage are eligible for the Low-Income Subsidy. This report identifies recommended legislative, administrative, and regulatory reforms that should be made to the Low-Income Subsidy to improve access to the program for seniors and people with disabilities with limited means. (Jan. 2007, Access to Benefits Coalition and National Council on Aging)

Congress Has a Number of Options to Pay for Extending Health Coverage to More Low-Income Children
There is growing consensus that SCHIP reauthorization should make substantial progress toward covering all uninsured low-income children.  The cost, however, will be substantial.  Immediately enrolling the roughly 6 million children who are eligible for publicly funded coverage but are unenrolled would cost the federal government more than $50 billion over five years. In the House and, most likely, in the Senate as well, SCHIP reauthorization legislation will be subject to “pay-as-you-go” rules, which require that the cost of increases in mandatory programs (such as SCHIP) be fully offset through entitlement reductions and/or revenue increases.  Some have argued that the goal of reaching many of the eligible uninsured children should be shelved because the cost cannot be “paid for.” In fact, however, ample offsets exist on both the spending and revenue sides of the budget to cover the costs several times over — if there is political will to pursue them. (3/8/07, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities) 

Medicaid: Health Promotion and Disease Prevention for School Readiness
Medicaid’s child health program, Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT), emphasizes health promotion and disease prevention as vehicles to ensure that children are ready for school and able to succeed in life. Required components of preventive care can be mapped to specific health outcomes that are important attributes of school readiness and prerequisites for educational success. The federal government and states can take specific action to assure that children receive all of the health care services, including preventive services, necessary to promote their optimal health and development and, thus, to maximize their future productivity. (March/April 2007, Health Affairs)

Uninsured Children Are Eligible for the State Coverage
The decade-old State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) has signed up close to 70 percent of its target population, a new Urban Institute report estimated, but 1.8 million eligible children nationwide are yet to be enrolled. Federal funding, about $5 billion this year, will have to increase substantially if these children are to join the approximately 3.9 million children now with SCHIP coverage. (2/9/07, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)

The State Children's Health Insurance Program: Past, Present, and Future
At the end of the 2007 fiscal year, congressional authorization for the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) is set to expire. For SCHIP, the reauthorization process--historically a chance to review, refine, and revamp programs--will take place at a time when the uninsured rate for children is once again on the rise. This new report examines the array of policy options that Congress is likely to consider for SCHIP, a program widely hailed for assisting children whose families have too much income to qualify for Medicaid but too little to afford private insurance. In addition to reviewing the program's history, goals, and performance, it describes how eligibility, benefits, and financing might be modified during reauthorization; it also discusses the policy and political implications of change.

Health Insurance, Health Costs

The Illusion of Coverage: How Health Insurance Fails People When They Get Sick
This report tells the personal, emotional, and physical hardships of the millions of hard-working, insured Americans who are struggling with medical debt.With stories of dozens of insured individuals and families from seven states, the report demonstrates how private insurance companies fail to protect health consumers from substantial financial losses. Some of key findings: Shifting more costs of care onto patients -- through high deductibles, co-insurance, and less comprehensive coverage -- has significant consequences for both health and financial well-being; Insurance company policies and procedures leave patients confused, in debt, reluctant to seek health care, and vulnerable to predatory scam products; When it comes to health insurance, you can’t measure "affordability" by looking only at premiums: You also have to consider the costs that people will face when they get sick.  As this report shows, more and more insured people face staggering out-of-pocket medical bills that leave them asking whether it was worth having insurance at all. (Mar. 2007, The Access Project)

Uninsured Receive Less Care and Experience Worse Outcome
A new study commissioned by the Kaiser Family Foundation and authored by The Urban Institute documents that people who are uninsured receive less care and have worse outcomes following an accident or the onset of new chronic condition than those with insurance.The study finds that following an accidental injury, the uninsured were less likely than the insured to receive any medical care. Similarly, the uninsured with a new chronic condition were also less likely to receive care. In addition, the uninsured with an injury were about twice as likely not to have received any recommended follow-up care, as was also the case with new chronic conditions. Ultimately, the study indicates that the uninsured were more likely to report not fully recovering and no longer being treated following an accident and roughly seven months after the initial health shock, the uninsured with new chronic conditions reported worse health status than the insured with similar conditions. (3/14/07, JAMA)

Access Denied: A Look at America's Medically Disenfranchised
This study  examines access to basic health care among U.S. residents of all races and ethnicities, income levels and insurance statuses. According to the study, 56 million residents, or nearly one in five, do not have a medical home," and a shortage of local primary care physicians is one reason people lack access to basic medical care (March 2007, National Association of Community Health Centers)

State of the States: Building Hope and Raising Expectations
State leaders are increasingly willing to address the rising number of uninsured Americans and are investing in efforts to expand coverage. It outlines the specific developments in a few key states, and it identifies trends that many new state plans have in common. (Jan. 2007, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)

Health Insurance Coverage of Women Ages 18 to 64, by State, 2004-2005
provides statistics on insurance for all women, including low-income women. In addition, Women’s Health Insurance Coverage describes the various sources of insurance for women and examines how being uninsured affects women. (Feb. 2007, Kaiser Family Foundation)

Insurance Premium Cost-Sharing and Coverage Take-up
One of the many reasons an individual may be uninsured is that she or he decides that an employer’s offer of health insurance is too expensive.This report looks at how the take-up rate for workers within firms varies with the level of premium contributions in those firms. (Feb. 2007, Kaiser Family Foundation)

Immigrants and Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance
This report examines why foreign-born workers are less likely to have employer-sponsored health insurance coverage. The authors conclude that immigrants have a higher probability of working in a firm that does not offer insurance.  (Feb. 2007, Health Services Research)

Covering the Uninsured: Growing Need, Strained Resources
This report explains the continued increase in the number of uninsured Americans and examines how federal programs have struggled to stem these increases.(Jan. 2007, Kaiser Family Foundation)

National Health Spending in 2005: The Slowdown Continues
This report outlines the growth of health care spending in relation to the gross domestic product (GDP). It concludes that prescription drug expenditures drove the increase in spending in 2005 because hospital, physician, and clinical services grew at similar rates as they did in 2004. (Health Affairs, 26, no. 1, 2007)

An Analysis of Leading Congressional Health Care Bills, 2005-2007: Part I Insurance Coverage
Many of the health care proposals pending on Capitol Hill could significantly reduce the number of uninsured Americans and decrease health care costs. The report analyzed 10 health plans introduced in the 109th and 110th Congresses as well as President Bush's proposal to give tax deductions of $7,500 to individuals and $15,000 to families for purchasing health insurance, no matter what the cost or type of insurance or whether it is purchased through an employer. (March 2007, The Commonwealth Fund)

Fundamental Reform of Payment for Adult Primary Care: Comprehensive Payment for Comprehensive Care
A team of physicians led by The Commonwealth Fund explain how their proposed system would avoid the problems of previous capitation systems, which merely bundled together inadequate fee-for-service payments. The authors call for a new social contract: substantially increasing payments for primary care in return for greater accessibility, quality, safety, and efficiency. (Mar. 2007, Journal of General Internal Medicine)

Paying for Care Episodes and Care Coordination

Commonwealth Fund president Karen Davis explores alternatives to the current fee-for-service payment system, which she says is a barrier to effective, coordinated, and efficient care. Davis examines new approaches that base payment on the total care a patient receives during an episode of illness or a defined period. Creating a global fee for "care episodes," she says, would properly reward providers who provide effective, lower-cost care. She also discusses how physician payments could be tied to care provided within a patient's "medical home," rewarding coordination and efficiency and slowing the escalating costs of health care. (Mar. 2007, New England Journal of Medicine)

The Uninsured Experience Worse Outcomes
A new study commissioned by the Kaiser Family Foundation and authored by Dr. Jack Hadley of The Urban Institute documents that people who are uninsured receive less care and have worse outcomes following an accident or the onset of a new chronic condition than those with insurance. The study -- based on analysis of eight years of data and over 30,000 observations -- finds that following an accidental injury, the uninsured were less likely than the insured to receive any medical care. (3/14/07, Kaiser Family Foundation)

Whose Kids Are Covered? A State-by-State Look at Uninsured Children
New research data shows lower-income families are often doubly squeezed: They are less likely to be offered health coverage by their employers, and less able to afford it on their own. View the entire report or the press release. (March 2007, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)

Cumulative Social Disadvantage and Child Health
The accumulation of social disadvantage among children was strongly associated with poorer child health and having insurance did not reduce the observed health disparities. (Pediatrics, vol 117, No. 4)

Health Equity Issues

Heart Attack Patients With Financial Barriers To Health Care Have Poorer Recovery
About one in five heart attack patients report having financial barriers to health care services, and these patients are more likely to have a lower quality of life and increased rate of rehospitalization, according to a study in the March 14 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on access to care. According to background information in the article more than 16 million Americans avoid health care due to cost or have trouble affording their medications despite having health insurance. Patients who have difficulty affording health care may have an increased risk for poor health outcomes, though few studies have directly investigated this. (3/14/07, JAMA)

Black-White Life Expectancy Gap Narrows, But Remains Substantial
Reductions in the death rate from homicide, HIV disease, unintentional injuries and among women, heart disease - have contributed to narrowing the life expectancy gap between blacks and whites in the United States, although substantial inequalities and challenges remain. (3/14/07, JAMA)

Key Facts: Race, Ethnicity and Medical Care, 2007 Update

This updated quick reference source on health disparities presents the best available data and analysis, ncluding data on the uninsured and access to care by race/ethnicity as well as information about the isproportionate effect that specific conditions such as diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and asthma have on racial and thnic minority populations in the U.S. New in the 2007 Key Facts are demographic data on the racial/ethnic minority population in each state and the U.S. territories. This edition of Key Facts also includes data from the National Healthcare Disparities Report, examining changes in health care disparities over time.  (Jan 2007,

Kaiser Family Foundation)

America's Health Rankings: A Call to Action for People and their Communities
The United Health Foundation, the American Public Health Association and Partnership for Prevention?, have released this 2006 edition, to stimulate public conversation concerning health in our states, as well as provide information to facilitate citizen participation. Participation in all elements is encouraged: personal behaviors, community environment, clinical care and public and health policies. Florida's rank among states went from 40 in 2005 to 41 in 2006.

NATIONAL EVENTS AND NOTICES

April 17, 2007

CONFERENCES AND EVENTS

7th Annual Diversity Challenge at Boston College: Race and Culture Intersections in Scientific Research and Mental Health Service Delivery for Children, Adolescents, and Families
Proposal submission deadline: April 21
October 2007
Presentations should focus on developments in research, professional practice, education or social justice initiatives as they pertain to promoting the mental health and redressing the mental health disparities for racial and ethnic minority children, adolescents, and families. Researchers, practitioners, educators, medical service providers, employee assistance personnel, government agencies, spiritual healers, and providers of community services are encouraged to submit proposals. 

Improving Quality of Care
April 23-24   Washington, DC
The 4th Annual Leadership Summit on Health Disparities will assemble clinicians, members of congress, patient advocacy groups, government healthcare experts, and community activists to bring focus and to seek solutions to healthcare disparities.  The summit consists of accredited clinical sessions, community, and policy sessions:  Focus is CVD, diabetes, infectious and respiratory disease, renal disease, cancer and mental illness. 

Community Benefit 101: The Nuts and Bolts of Planning and Reporting Community Benefit
April 24   San Francisco
For today's tax-exempt health care organizations, planning and reporting community benefit are critically important functions.  Catholic Health Association, the leader in the community benefit field for 20 years, is offering a seminar that covers the basics of community benefit in not-for-profit health care, a valuable introduction for persons new to the topic and a useful review for those who are already doing the work of community benefit planning and reporting.  Attend with your org's community benefit team and plan an integrated, practical approach to community benefit programming that your group can initiate on your first day back in the office. 

2007 NNPHI Annual Conference
May 21-23   New Orleans
The National Network of Public Health Institutes hosts an annual educational conference for its members and leaders from federal agencies, nonprofit organizations, foundations, and academia.

Advancing Science-Based Prevention: Creating Real World Solutions 
May 30 - June 1  Washington, D.C.
All participants are encouraged to submit abstracts for individual paper and poster presentations, organized paper symposium, poster forums, roundtable discussions/scientific dialogues and technology demonstrations for the Society for Prevention Research 15th Annual Meeting.

2007 AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting
June 3-5  Orlando
Presentation of cutting-edge health services research is the cornerstone of this meeting, offering opportunities for researchers to share important findings with policymakers and providers who can move the research into action. This year's ARM is organized around 21 themes, including Gender & Health. 

The Changing Face of Health Education and Health Promotion
June 7-9   Seattle
This national health education and health promotion conference is cosponsored by the Directors of Health Promotion and Education, the Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Proposals are encouraged for concurrent sessions, pre or post-conference workshops, or poster presentations at the 2007 National Health Education Conference & SOPHE's 2007 Midyear Scientific Conference. 

Crossroads II: Community-Based Collaborative Research for Social Justice
June 7-9 Hartford, CT
The Institute for Community Research (ICR) is convening its 2nd international conference on community-based collaborative research (CBCR), focusing on the promise, pitfalls, and "best practices" of CBCR to address disparities and inequities in the arenas of health, education, artistic and cultural representation, development, and the environment.

Race and Class Inequalities in Health
June 19-22   Boston
Conceptual and data-based papers are requested for presentation at the annual Society for Epidemiologic Research (SER) meeting in 2007. There will be a contributed paper session on Race and Class Inequalities in Health and those working in this area are encouraged to submit abstracts of their work.  Accepted abstracts will be distributed at the June meeting and will also be published in a Supplement issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.  

2007 CSTE Annual Conference: Eliminating Health Disparities: Data to Action
June 24-28   Atlantic City, NJ
Abstract proposals are being sought by the Program Planning Committee for the 2007 Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists Annual Conference.

Health Equity and Environmental Public Health - From Local to Global
July 11-13   Columbus, OH
The NACCHO Annual 2007 Conference will be the year's largest gathering of local public health officials in the United States. This conference will provide a vital and central venue for local health officials and their public health partners to examine strategies, share ideas, and plan actions designed to address issues of health inequity and environmental public health from local to global perspectives. 

Global Primary Health Care Strategies
July 21 - Aug 11
The Dept of Health Policy and Management of the Univ. of South Florida College of Public Health, with  Jamaican Southern Regional Health Authority offers this graduate field course in Treasure Beach Jamaica. The course will cover strategies for providing access to health care services for disadvantaged rural populations as a part of its focus. The 3 credit course will be coupled with an hour of field practicum credit for a total of 4 semester hours of credit. Mornings will be spent in the field in the Black River Health District on projects that will feed into afternoon class sessions. The 4 credit program, including tuition, lodging, field travel, course materials, pickup and return to Montego Bay airport and 12 dinners will cost $3500 for both Florida and out of state participants. Airfare is extra.

Women of Color: Addressing Disparities, Affirming Resilience, and Developing Strategies for Success -- Minority Women's Health Summit
August 23-26   Washington DC  

SOPHE 58th Annual Meeting - Partnerships to Achieve Health Equity  
Oct 31–Nov 3   Alexandria, VA
Abstracts are now being accepted online for workshops, symposia, oral presentations, and posters for Society for Public Health Education's 58th Annual Meeting. SOPHE is pleased to be partnering with CDC's Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) program and Eta Sigma Gamma for its 40th Annual Meeting.  Sub-themes include health systems change; social determinants of health and transdisciplinary approaches to health education; health communications, health literacy and technology; cultural competence in bridging differences, and; evaluation and dissemination of evidence-based approaches. For more information, contact lvillejo@mdanderson.org

AUDIO AND WEB EVENTS 

Health Care for America
The Economic Policy Institute has released a progressive Health Care for America plan, a proposal for guaranteed, affordable health care for all Americans building on Medicare and employment-based insurance.  Institute for America has announced a nationwide effort to discuss and debate how to get good health care coverage for all Americans while controlling spiraling health care costs.  The Institute is collaborating with the Medicare Rights Center and a network of citizen action groups to foster public forums and internet discussion groups designed to create a groundswell of public support for action on health care for all.  Many of these groups were active in the successful grassroots movement to stop President Bush’s plan to privatize Social Others are working to pass innovative state health care coverage plans.

April

National Minority Cancer Awareness Week: April 15-21
Each year, during the third week of April, the nation spotlights the impact of cancer on minority populations.  The Moffitt Cancer Center is also taking the opportunity to highlight information related to cancer disparities in minority populations.  As Moffitt increases its contribution to the reduction of cancer health disparities, efforts will focus on education, research, policy, and advocacy. Resources:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – Health Disparities
National Cancer Institute – Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Closing the Health Gap Campaign
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Minority Health

Foot Health Awareness Month: April
American Podiatric Medical Association
(301) 581-9227   www.apma.org

National Child Abuse Prevention Month: April
Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families
(800) 394-3366  info@childwelfare.gov   www.childwelfare.gov/preventing

National Infant Immunization Week: April 21-28
National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(800) CDC-INFO (232-4636) English/Spanish
nipinfo@cdc.gov  www.cdc.gov/nip/events/niiw/

Cover the Uninsured Week: April 23-29
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
(202) 572-2928  info@covertheuninsured.org www.covertheuninsured.org

2007 WalkAmerica: April 27-29
March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation
(888) MODIMES (663-4637)  (800) 525-WALK (9255)
walkamerica@modimes.org  www.walkamerica.org

May

American Stroke Month: May
American Heart Association
(800) 242-8721  inquire@americanheart.org  www.americanheart.org

Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month: May
Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America
(800) 7-ASTHMA  info@aafa.org  www.aafa.org

Hepatitis Awareness Month: May
Hepatitis Foundation International
(800) 891-0707  hfi@comcast.net  www.hepfi.org

Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month: May
American Academy of Dermatology
(888) 462-DERM (3376)
mediarelations@aad.org  www.aad.org

Mental Health Month: May
National Mental Health Association
(800) 969-6642  www.nmha.org

National High Blood Pressure Education Month: May
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Health Information Center
(301) 592-8573  (240) 629-3255 TTY
nhlbiinfo@nhlbi.nih.gov  http://hin.nhlbi.nih.gov/nhbpep_kit/

National Osteoporosis Awareness and Prevention Month: May
National Osteoporosis Foundation
(202) 223-2226
communications@nof.org   www.nof.org

Melanoma Monday: May 1
American Academy of Dermatology
(888) 462-DERM (3376)
mediarelations@aad.org  www.aad.org

High Blood Pressure Sunday: May 6
International Society on Hypertension in Blacks
(404) 880-0343 ishib@ishib.org  www.ishib.org

National Alcohol- and Other Drug-Related Birth Defects Week: May 13-19
National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc.
(800) NCA-CALL (622-2255)
national@ncadd.org  www.ncadd.org

National Women's Health Week: May 13-19
Office on Women's Health
U.S. Department of HHS
(202) 690-7651
sharon.ricks@hhs.gov  www.womenshealth.gov/whw

National Women's Check-up Day: May 14
Office on Women's Health
U.S. Department of HHS
(202) 690-7651
sharon.ricks@hhs.gov   www.womenshealth.gov

World No Tobacco Day: May 31
WHO Regional Office
(202) 974-3890  http://www.who.int/tobacco/wntd/en/

June

National Headache Awareness Week: June 3-9
National Headache Foundation
(888) NHF-5552
info@headaches.org  www.headaches.org

Sun Safety Week: June 3-9
Sun Safety Alliance
(703) 837-4202  pschneider@sunsafetyalliance.org
www.sunsafetyalliance.org
 
National Cancer Survivors Day: June 3
National Cancer Survivors Day Foundation
(615) 794-3006  info@ncsdf.org  www.ncsdf.org

National Men's Health Week: June 11-17
Men’s Health Network
(888) MEN-2-MEN (636-2636) Men's Healthline
info@menshealthweek.org  www.menshealthweek.org

August

Cataract Awareness Month: August
American Academy of Ophthalmology
(415) 447-0213
eyemd@aao.org   www.aao.org/eyemd

National Immunization Awareness Month: August
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(800) 232-2522
npiinfo@hmhb.gov   www.cdc.gov/nip/

September

National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month: September
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(800) 729-6686
info@samhsa.gov   www.recoverymonth.gov

National Cholesterol Education Month: September
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Health Information Center
(301) 592-8573
nhlbiinfo@nhlbi.nih.gov   hin.nhlbi.nih.gov/cholmonth

National Sickle Cell Month: September
Sickle Cell Disease Association of America, Inc.
(800) 421-8453
scdaa@sicklecelldisease.org  www.sicklecelldisease.org

Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month: September
National Ovarian Cancer Coalition
(888) OVARIAN (682-7426)
nocc@ovarian.org   www.ovarian.org

Prostate Cancer Awareness Month: September
National Prostate Cancer Coalition
(888) 245-9455
info@fightprostatecancer.org   www.fightprostatecancer.org

National Suicide Prevention Week: September
American Association of Suicidology
(202) 237-2280
info@suicidology.org  www.suicidology.org

STOP A Suicide Today Day: September 10
Screening for Mental Health, Inc.
(781) 239-0071
AKeliher@MentalHealthScreening.org  www.stopasuicide.org

National Farm Safety & Health Week: September 16-22
National Education Center for Agricultural Safety
(888) 844-6322
halversc@nicc.edu  www.nsc.org/necas

Reye's Syndrome Awareness Week: September 16-22
National Reye's Syndrome Foundation
(800) 233-7393
nrsf@reyessyndrome.org  www.reyessyndrome.org

Take a Loved One for a Check-up Day: September 18
Office of Minority Health
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
(800) 444-6472
info@omhrc.gov  www.healthgap.omhrc.gov

Hearing Aid Awareness Week: September 30 - October 6
International Hearing Society
(734) 522-7200
acmarkey@ihsinfo.org  www.ihsinfo.org

October 
 
"Talk About Prescriptions" Month: October
National Council on Patient Information and Education
(301) 656-8565
ncpie@ncpie.info   www.talkaboutrx.org

Healthy Lung Month: October
American Lung Association
(800) LUNG-USA (586-4872)
info@lungusa.org   www.lungusa.org

Let's Talk Month: October
Advocates for Youth
(202) 419-3420
tom@advocatesforyouth.org   www.advocatesforyouth.org

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month: October
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month Board of Sponsors
nbcamquestions@yahoo.com  www.nbcam.org

National Family Sexuality Education Month/Let's Talk: October
Planned Parenthood Federation of America
(212) 541-7800
ducation@ppfa.org   www.plannedparenthood.org

National Child Health Day: October
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Maternal and Child Health Bureau
(301) 443-2170
www.mchb.hrsa.gov

NDSD Mental Health Screening TM: October 11
Screening for Mental Health, Inc.
(781) 239-0071
ndsd@mentalhealthscreening.org  www.mentalhealthscreening.org

National Mammography Day: October 19
American Cancer Society
(800) ACS-2345   www.cancer.org
 
Respiratory Care Week: October 11
American Association for Respiratory Care
(972) 243-2272
marketing@aarc.org   www.aarc.org/resources/rc_week/

November 
 
American Diabetes Month: November
American Diabetes Association
(800) DIABETES (342-2383)
askada@diabetes.org   www.diabetes.org

Diabetic Eye Disease Month: November
Prevent Blindness America
(800) 331-2020
info@preventblindness.org   www.preventblindness.org

Lung Cancer Awareness Month: November
Lung Cancer Alliance
(800) 298-2436
info@lungcanceralliance.org   www.lungcanceralliance.org

National Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month: November
Alzheimer's Association
(800) 272-3900
info@alz.org  www.alz.org

National Family Caregivers Month: November
National Family Caregivers Association
(800) 896-3650
info@thefamilycaregiver.org  www.thefamilycaregiver.org

National Healthy Skin Month: November
American Academy of Dermatology
(888) 462-DERM (3376)
mediarealtions@aad.org   www.aad.org

National Hospice Palliative Care Month: November
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization
(703) 837-1500
jradulovic@nhpco.org   www.nhpco.org

Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month: November
(877) 272-6226
information@pancan.org  www.pancan.org

Prematurity Awareness Month: November
March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation
(888) MODIMES (663-4637)
askus@marchofdimes.com  www.marchofdimes.com

Prematurity Awareness Day: November 13
March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation
(888) MODIMES (663-4637)
askus@marchofdimes.com  www.marchofdimes.com

Great American Smokeout: November 15
American Cancer Society
(800) ACS-2345
www.cancer.org

Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease Awareness Week: November 18-24
(888) 964-2001
iffgd@iffgd.org  www.aboutgerd.org

 
December