July 11, 2006
FLORIDA
Seeking Underinsured Medical/Dental Debt Stories
Medicaid Reform Will Include Chronically Ill Children
KidCare Back-to-School Marketing
FL Implements Some Medicare Part D Supplements
NATIONAL
Medicaid Citizenship Proof Eased Somewhat
Seeking Underinsured Medical/Dental Debt Stories
Florida CHAIN is collaborating in a study with the Access Project that seeks to address the problem of under-insurance and inadequate insurance coverage. We are looking for individuals who have incurred medical or dental debt even though they have private insurance. Having to resort to credit card use, retirement funds, or home equity to take care of medical costs qualifies for our purposes. The goal of this study is to challenge policy approaches that shift even more costs to consumers. The study will also try to identify policies and approaches that can help alleviate the problem of medical debt among people with insurance.If you or someone you know is willing to participate in this study, immediately contact Andrew Leone at andrewl@floridachain.org or 954-684-9895 for a short phone interview.
Medicaid Reform Will Soon Include Chronically Ill Children
The aged, disabled and low-income children and families in Broward and Duval counties are the first mandatory groups that will enroll in new health care plans under Florida’s Medicaid reform project.
But families, consumer advocates and even some policymakers will be surprised to know that children with chronic medical conditions will soon be required to enroll as well.
“During Phase I, the state will work with the Department of Health to establish a plan for children with chronic conditions,’’ states page 49 of Florida’s Medicaid waiver application to the federal government. “To the maximum extent possible, the program will be initiated in Duval and Broward. Once established, reform enrollment in demonstration areas will be mandatory.”
Children’s Medical Services (CMS) is actively seeking state approval to set up shop as a provider service network in Broward and Duval. In fact during the Legislature’s 2005 special session on Medicaid reform, CMS officials obtained special language that allowed it to become a provider service network.
CMS, which is housed within the state Department of Health, already cares for the bulk of chronically ill children through its tight network of physicians and specialists across the state.
AHCA is still reviewing CMS’ health care plan application. Once approved, children enrolled in CMS’s current health care plan will be automatically transferred into the agency’s “new” plan.
With a ready-made group of enrollees to serve, CMS has a distinct advantage over other health care plans that may want to offer competing plans. Doesn’t this diminish the “freedom of choice” that the Bush administration used as a justification for Medicaid reform?
People need to be aware of this development. Some legislators are likely to be surprised as well.
In late 2005, Republican sponsors of the original Medicaid reform bill rebuffed efforts to get children with chronic conditions excluded from the mandatory list of enrollees, saying they were already exempted.
KidCare Back-to-School Marketing Campaign
Florida’s KidCare program will get a boost from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation with advertising the state health insurance program to families.
The Foundation’s Covering Kids & Families Back-to-School Campaign will kick off August 9 and will urge parents to call a toll-free number to find out whether their children are eligible for low-cost or free coverage. That number is 1-877-KIDS-NOW.
The Foundation’s efforts, part of national campaign encouraging families to pursue state-federal health insurance programs for their uninsured children, comes as the Florida Legislature cut funding for similar outreach and marketing efforts here in the Sunshine State.
Children’s advocates estimate there are over 500,000 uninsured children in Florida, and about two-thirds would be eligible for KidCare, the state’s health insurance program.
“You can help by handing out fliers to parents, writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper, or planning a community event to promote low-cost and free health care coverage,’’ according to a press release from the national office of Covering Kids & Families.
State Offers New Part D Supplement for Some Transplant and Cancer Patients
Transplant and cancer patients who need life-saving medicine not covered by new federal prescription programs can seek state assistance with medication co-pays as of July 1, on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Agency for Health Care Administration has set aside $3.7 million to pick up patients’ co-pay for anti-rejection and cancer drugs not included under Medicare Part D. The state should be commended for stepping in and providing a stop-gap measure to help the medically needy, but this funding for only about 350 people is not enough.
Medicare considers those drugs as outpatient treatments and pays for them under Medicare Part B. The federal government paid 80 percent of the cost, leaving 20 percent for patients to pick up. Until recently, Florida picked up the 20 percent cost for those patients deemed “medically needy” – people who make a little too much to be eligible for Medicaid but can’t afford their financially crippling medical bills. But when Medicare Part D took effect, Medicaid no longer covered the drug co-pay for critical medication for organ transplant and cancer patients.
Five hundred people were sent letters on June 26th to alert them to their potential eligibility for this new pharmaceutical expense assistance program. AHCA concedes that some people who would be eligible may have been missed.
Eligible individuals are urged to immediately call the Florida Pharmaceutical Expense Assistance Program at 1-850/487-4441. Inquiries into eligibility are progressing, and each case is being looked into individually. If you are unsure of whether your case applies, inquiring is the best way to find out.
Transplant and cancer patients must not be placed on waiting lists for these expensive but life-sustaining drugs. State officials and consumer health advocates must urge the federal government to fix this serious flaw in the Medicare prescription program. Florida Health Education and Life Preservation Coalition (FLHELP), of which Florida CHAIN is a member, will be tracking enrollment. Look for more information and action steps as they develop.
Medicaid Citizenship Proof Requirement Eased Somewhat
Facing a ruling by a federal judge scheduled to hold a hearing on a lawsuit challenging the July 1 proof of citizenship requirement for Medicaid eligibility, states received some exemptions and alternatives.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) issued a new interim rule on the citizenship documentation requirements on July 6. Unlike previous guidance, this interim rule exempts SSI and Medicare recipients from providing new evidence of citizenship.
But even with these exemptions, the new requirements still are likely to force significant numbers of U.S. citizens who are fully eligible for Medicaid, primarily poor children and parents, to go without health care.
"The exemption of seniors and people with disabilities ... is a commendable development," said Ron Pollack, head of the Families USA advocacy group. "Numerous other people who need health care the most — such as foster children, the homeless and people victimized by a natural disaster — may still lose Medicaid coverage ... and that should be corrected."
As a result of the Deficit Reduction Act, as of July 1 individuals declaring they are citizens or nationals of the U.S have been required to provide documentation of their citizenship status and their identity to be eligible for Medicaid. Furthermore, all new applicants were to be unable to enroll in Medicaid until successfully proving their citizenship status and identity.
The requirement was intended to keep illegal immigrants from fraudulently enrolling in Medicaid. However, advocates have argued that its main impact has been likely to impede or delay coverage for significant numbers of eligible U.S. citizens who are mentally or physically disabled, displaced by hurricanes, not born in hospitals, or otherwise do not have access to the required documentation.
Read more:
Center for Budget and Policy Priorities release
Center for Budget and Policy Priorities analysis
Los Angeles Times story
New York Times story
Florida CHAIN thanks the many advocates who have taken the time to respond to our recent Get Active alerts. Your messages do make difference. Look for increased reporting on state legislation and weekly calls to action during the Florida session.
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FIRST COAST COALITION FOR THE UNINSURED
June 30, 2006
The First Coast Coalition for the Uninsured mission is to champion health care coverage and access to health care for uninsured people in Duval County. The Coalition carries out its mission through the following activities:
(1) Monitoring and disseminating information to the public and policymakers about:
a) issues related to the impact of being uninsured, and
b) the realities faced by people without health care coverage and/or access to health care in Duval County.
(2) Coordinating community efforts to inform and provide access to health care and/or health care coverage.
(3) Identifying and reducing barriers to access and use of health care programs.
(4) Advocating for resources and policy changes to increase the availability and accessibility of comprehensive and continuous health care coverage and access to care.
(5) Enabling people and communities to advocate for health care coverage and access to health services.
(6) Maximizing the use of technology and community resources to optimize health care coverage and access to care.
The coalition is currently involved in monitoring the implementation of Medicaid Reform in Duval County and how it will affect coverage and services for Medicaid recipients, as well as understanding the implications
it may have on the safety net providers.
The coalition is also planning to organize a “Walk In My Shoes” event designed by Community Catalyst which is an activity that helps community leaders and other participants understand what it’s really like to be navigate the health care system if you are uninsured. The participants will experience all of the barriers and frustrations that some people face every day in dealing with the health care system. This event is planned for January 2007.
Coalition partners include Florida CHAIN, ICARE, Healthy Start Coalition of Northeast Florida, St. Vincents Health System, IM Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless, Shands Jacksonville, Duval County Health Department, We Care, Nemours, Jaxcare, Health Planning Council of Northeast Florida.
Photo Captions:
top right: JaxCare works with businesses of all types that have a part-time or low-wage workforce.
above left: The I.M. Sulzbacher Center medical services are designed as part of a community wide "Safety Net" of health care.
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REAL STORIES
July 11, 2006
Kellie Griffith, Duval County resident, describes the problems she is experiencing in getting KidCare coverage for her seven children.
Kellie Griffith has one question in mind as she worries about getting health care coverage through KidCare for her seven children: if a family like hers does not qualify, what’s the point of having the program at all? Mrs. Griffith, a Duval County resident, works at a $9/hour job that offers Blue Cross Blue Shield health insurance at no cost to her. But her husband and children cannot partake of the coverage as it is prohibitively expensive for her to add family members. Her husband, who has been chronically ill for some time, also works for similar income, but his job does not offer insurance.
Mrs. Griffith has been trying to apply for KidCare for the children, as shots and check-ups are due before the start of the new school year. To date, after six weeks she hasn’t gotten a response to her application. The last time she was able to speak with someone, she was told to wait an additional three weeks for a resolution.
“We work hard to keep up with our bills. Because both my husband and I work, we were turned down for Medicaid. It was a humiliating experience. The lady there was so rude asking questions like ‘What are you really after, Mrs. Griffith?’ insinuating that we are trying to get a free ride.”
“What I am after is trying to stay afloat,” she says. “If we can’t get KidCare, what am I going to do?” Two months ago, because of the high deductible in her health care coverage, Mrs Griffith had to put $500 on her credit card because she needed to get a sling on her arm so she could keep working. She fears going further into debt will be the only choice available to her family if she is unable to get KidCare on time for her children to start the school year.
Florida CHAIN Seeks Underinsured, In-Debt Stories
Florida CHAIN is collaborating in a study by the Access Project that seeks to address the problem of under-insurance and inadequate insurance coverage. We are looking for individuals who have incurred medical or dental debt even though they have private insurance. Having to resort to credit card use, retirement funds, or home equity to take care of medical costs qualifies for our purposes.
The goal of this study is to challenge policy approaches that shift even more costs to consumers.The study will also try to identify policies and approaches that can help alleviate the problem of medical debt among people with insurance.
If you or someone you know is willing to participate in this study, contact Andrew Leone at andrewl@floridachain.org or 954-684-9895 at your earliest convenience for a short phone interview.
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RECENT HEALTH ARTICLES
July 11, 2006
Florida Health Issues, News & Opinions
Medicare and Medicaid
Medicare Drug Coverage, Drug Costs
Other Medicare, Medicaid
Health Insurance and Costs
Other National Health Issues
Florida Health Issues, News Coverage & Opinions
OPINION: We're in crisis mode
Last year, the Miami-Dade County grand jury, in effect, issued an indictment on the way we treat people in our community with mental illnesses. Its report, Mental Illness and the Criminal Justice System: A Recipe for Disaster, A Prescription for Improvement, disclosed what most in the criminal justice system have known for years, we have a mental health crisis in our communities, in our state, and in this country. (7/0/06, Miami Herald)
Jackson Memorial Hospital reaches out to affluent patients to close budget gap
As the largest provider of indigent care in the Southeast, Jackson has never been known for its service. But, as the tax-supported teaching hospital fights for survival, that's changing -- at least for international and domestic patients who have the insurance or means to pay premium prices. Through a new patient hospitality division, Jackson is laying down the red carpet for affluent or privately insured patients, especially those in Latin America and the Caribbean, whose wealth or generous insurance coverage gives them choices on where to spend their health-care dollars. (7/9/06, Orlando Sentinel)
Gov. Bush names new health care chief
Christa Calamas was named Thursday to head the Florida Agency for Health Care by Gov. Jeb Bush in the latest personnel change in the governor's final year in office. Calamas replaces Secretary Alan Levine who was recently selected as the new chief executive officer of the North Broward Hospital District. Calamas most recently served as the General Counsel for AHCA. The appointment is effective July 8. She previously served as the assistant general counsel to Bush. (7/7/06, AP)
Stung by Wilma, hospitals and medical facilities can now deliver care without FPL
Kidney dialysis centers are buying generators. Hospitals are lining up tankers to deliver gasoline to their parking lots, so the medical staff can fill up after the next storm. Institutions large and small are arranging to have sterile water trucked in. Doctors are ditching their electric-powered phones.(7/7/06, South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
Senior centers offer answers for questions on Medicare, HMOs and prescriptions. A free program offered through Broward County helps residents with their Medicare, HMO and prescription concerns. Volunteers work out of the resource center in Fort Lauderdale, the Tamarac and Cooper City community centers, the Broward Sheriff's Office in Oakland Park, and the regional Focal Point Senior Centers in Pembroke Pines, Hollywood, Margate and Deerfield Beach. Residents also can be helped over the phone. The program grew this year when the government changed the Medicare Part D prescription benefit plan. (7/7/06, South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
MIAMI-DADE Mayor's Initiative focuses on seniors' health
Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez, in partnership with the Miami-Dade County Department of Health's Consortium for a Healthier Miami-Dade and the Alliance for Aging, hosted the African-American Wellness Expo for Seniors on June 28 at North Dade Regional Library in Miami Gardens. The ''Mayor's Initiative on Aging: To Life!'' is the result of a public-private partnership of organizations dedicated to the well being of residents 55 and over, who will benefit from a series of promotional, educational and fitness activities. (7/6/06, Miami Herald)
Poll: Leon County majority in favor of tax hike to cover uninsured
Two public-opinion polls suggest that a majority of people have favorable views of a sales-tax increase to benefit people who don't have health insurance. Voters will decide in the Nov. 7 election whether to increase Leon County's sales tax from 7.5 percent to 8 percent to pay for a comprehensive health-care program for people without insurance. The tax would generate some $18 million a year and help an estimated 9,000 people. The annual cost for each county resident has been estimated from $52 to $59.
(7/3/06, Tallahassee Democrat)
NATIONAL ISSUES
Medicare and Medicaid
Medicare Drug Coverage, Drug Costs
CMS Releases Details On Efforts To Regulate Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Plans
CMS on Wednesday for the first time released details about agency efforts to regulate health insurers for service problems related to Medicare prescription drug plans and said agency officials have sanctioned plans more than 1,000 times this year. (7/2/06, Kaiser Network)
OPINION: Medicare Rx Drug Benefit A Planned Looting
The Medicare prescription drug benefit, which will cost an estimated $1.2 trillion over the first 10 years, was "premeditated taxpayer rape" and "a planned looting of the public on behalf of corporate interest," wrote a Seattle Times columnist. "To understand the enormity of the crime, note that $1.2 trillion is three times the $400 billion the president declared the benefit would cost when Congress voted on it," according to Harrop. She adds that the benefit "forbids the federal government to negotiate prices with drug companies," although "no one demanded that the Department of Veterans Affairs stop negotiating drug prices, which it has been doing for years." (6/29/06, Kaiser Network)
Group Of Democrats To Introduce Legislation Overhauling Medicare Drug Benefit
Congressional Democrats on Tuesday plan to announce a proposal to alter the Medicare prescription drug benefit to allow the federal government to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies and to let beneficiaries choose a drug plan administered by the federal government rather than by a private insurer, the AP/Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports. Under the proposal, money saved through negotiated drug prices would be used to eliminate the drug benefit's so-called "doughnut hole," the gap in coverage under which beneficiaries are responsible for 100% of drug costs between $2,250 and $5,100.
(6/27/06, KaiserNet)
OPINION: Escalating Prescription Drug Prices
Two recent surveys of drug prices "show a disturbing pattern of increases as the new Medicare drug benefit was getting under way" and "make it clear that health plans and individual consumers will need to be especially vigilant to keep spending on medications within reasonable bounds," a Times editorial states. According to the editorial, the "price trends ought to put enormous pressure on Medicare drug plans to get the steepest possible discounts and rebates from the manufacturers when negotiating drug prices for the coming year." The editorial adds, "If the plans can't do better, Congress should allow the Medicare program to negotiate prices directly with the pharmaceutical companies, an approach that was blocked on the theory that competition among private plans would suffice to keep drug prices down. (6/26/06, New York Times)
Troubles Linger in Regulation of Medicare Customer Service
After enthusiastically promoting Medicare drug plans for three years, the Bush administration is having difficulty regulating these same plans to ensure they comply with federal standards for marketing, customer service and consumer protection. The new benefit is administered by dozens of private insurers under contract to Medicare, which has set detailed standards for marketing and customer service. Federal officials said many insurers had evaded their duty to resolve complaints from beneficiaries and had instead simply referred callers to the government's toll-free telephone number. In a recent memorandum to insurers, a senior Medicare official, said the government "has been receiving a large number of urgent requests from beneficiaries who are enrolled" in drug plans under the new program, known as Part D of Medicare. (6/25/06, New York Times)
Other Medicare, Medicaid News
Medicaid's New Proof-of-Citizenship Requirements Gain Some Flexibility
Federal officials announce exemptions for elderly and disabled recipients of benefits.
Scrambling to keep millions of low-income U.S. citizens from unintentionally being denied healthcare benefits, federal officials Thursday proposed alternatives that states can use to carry out a controversial law requiring Medicaid recipients to prove their citizenship. The regulations, which would become final later this summer, would exempt from the documentation requirements some 8 million elderly and disabled people who are enrolled in Medicare or receiving Supplemental Security Income through Social Security. Additionally, people who are making a "good faith effort" to prove their citizenship would not face loss of coverage. Instead of requiring beneficiaries to take steps such as obtaining a passport, states could use several different kinds of government program databases to establish eligibility. In rare cases where no documentation of citizenship can be found, sworn affidavits from the beneficiary and at least one other person could be used. Ronald F. Pollack, the executive director of Families U.S.A., a consumer group working with plaintiffs in the court case, said: "The exemption of seniors and people with severe disabilities from the citizenship verification requirement is a commendable development. But many other people who need health care the most and can't come up with the required documentation — such as foster children and homeless people — may still lose Medicaid coverage and join the ranks of the uninsured. This should be corrected. (7/7/06, Los Angeles Times)
White House to Ease Medicaid Rule on Proof of Citizenship
The Bush administration said Thursday that it would exempt millions of the most vulnerable Medicaid recipients from a new law that requires them to prove they are United States citizens by showing birth certificates, passports or other documents. The action was apparently intended to pre-empt a ruling by a federal judge who is scheduled to hold a hearing on Friday on a lawsuit challenging the new requirement, which took effect on July 1. (7/7/06, New York Times)
Change in Medicaid Citizenship Rules "Commendable," But Further Changes Needed for Poor Children and Parents
The July 6 announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services that it will exempt 8 million elderly or disabled people from new citizenship documentation requirements for receiving Medicaid is an important and commendable action that will prevent many vulnerable low-income citizens from losing essential health care services for which they are eligible. But even with these exemptions, the new requirements still are likely to force significant numbers of U.S. citizens who are fully eligible for Medicaid — primarily poor children and parents — to go without health care. (7/7/06, CBPP)
OPINION: Washington Post Editorial Condemns Medicaid Proof-of-Citizenship Requirement
A new law requiring Medicaid recipients to prove their citizenship is "unnecessary, expensive and mean-spirited" and "poses the threat that millions of people entitled to receive Medicaid benefits will be denied coverage." (7/1/06, Washington Post)
New “Lock-In” Law Threatens Older And Disabled Americans' Access To Health Care
Beginning this weekend, older and disabled Americans who are enrolled in a Medicare private health plan will be required by law to stay in their plan until the end of the calendar year. In 2007 and beyond, they will be locked into plans beginning April 1. “People with Medicare will be trapped in private health plans that are hazardous to their health if Congress does not lift the ‘lock-in' law,” said Robert M. Hayes, president of the Medicare Rights Center. “Getting out of Medicare HMOs and back to Original Medicare has often been the remedy for people who hit road blocks when they needed health care, or discovered they had large, unexpected costs when they got sick.” (6/06, Medicare Rights Center)
Medicaid Rule Called a Threat to Millions: Proof of Citizenship Needed for Benefits
Under the rule, intended to curb fraud by illegal immigrants, such proof as a passport or a birth certificate must be offered at the time a person applies for Medicaid benefits or during annual reenrollment in the state-federal program for the poor and disabled. Critics fear that the provision will have the unintended consequence of harming several million U.S. citizens who, for a variety of reasons, will not be able to produce the necessary paperwork. They include mentally ill, mentally retarded and homeless people, as well as elderly men and women, especially African Americans born in an era when hospitals in the rural South barred black women from their maternity wards. (6/30/06, Washington Post)
Consumers File Class-Action Lawsuit Over New Proof-of-Citizenship Medicaid Requirement
A class-action lawsuit filed over a new law requiring Medicaid beneficiaries and applicants to provide proof of citizenship to receive benefits beginning July 1 alleges that the law is unconstitutional and should not be implemented. (6/28/06, Kaiser Network)
Proposed Changes to Medicaid in FY 2007 Federal Budget Would Increase States' Costs, Per Governors
Secretary Mike Leavitt, said that the policy changes "would reduce funding for Medicaid just as states are working to redesign their programs to utilize the reform tools" included in the FY 2006 budget reconciliation law enacted in February. According to the letter, the policy changes -- which include a large reduction in allowable provider taxes, limits on reimbursements to providers and changes to reimbursements for rehabilitation services -- would shift costs to states and "diminish long-standing, legitimate state-funding mechanisms" previously approved by Medicaid policy changes included in the fiscal year 2007 budget proposed by the Bush administration would shift costs to states and limit reform efforts, according to a letter from the National Governors Association. (6/28/06, Kaiser Network)
Health Insurance and Costs
Facing City's Health Inequities
When babies in some racial and ethnic groups are dying twice as often as those in other groups, when there are more than 83,000 excess deaths per year among certain groups, and when death rates for members of some groups are nearly 30 percent higher than for members of other groups -- then you know you have a problem in your society. These statistics do not refer to health inequities that exist in some far, distant developing nation, but in our own United States and in Louisville. (6/29/06, Courier-Journal)
Implementing Employer and Individual Mandates
As is true of automobile insurance, a strong case can be made for a mandate that requires individuals to purchase health insurance rather than shifting costs to others. Employer mandates are believed to be paid eventually by employees, not by owners of firms, whereas an employer subsidy will be poorly targeted. An individual mandate, in turn, raises other difficult issues of collection and enforcement. No employer mandate is sufficient without an individual requirement, and millions of Americans will fall outside of any mandated system.(6/28/06, Urban Institute)
Economic Equality Is Best Medicine
Health of societies mostly relies on political and economic policies, not the individual treatment of disease The headlines read that rich Americans aren't as healthy as poor Brits, despite our spending twice as much money on health care as they do...Thomas Pynchon wrote in "Gravity's Rainbow" that "if they can get you asking the wrong question, they don't have to worry about the answers." Which medical care drug plan to choose is the wrong question. Instead let's ask, "What makes a society healthy?"... Our federal government, in its Institute of Medicine 2003 report "The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century," states on page 59: "more egalitarian societies (i.e. those with a less steep differential between the richest and the poorest) have better average health." This remarkable finding has emerged from research carried out over the last 25 years. (6/25/06, Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
Other Health Issues
Charities Tied to Doctors Get Drug Industry Gifts
Some physicians in private practice have established tax-exempt charities into which pharmaceutical and medical device companies are, "with little fanfare, pouring donations" that amount to "millions of dollars" annually. Physicians in most cases establish the charities to conduct medical research, which is often performed by or in conjunction with the physicians who establish them, or to educate physicians through fellowships, which often occur at the practices of the physicians who establish them. Critics maintain that the donations from pharmaceutical and medical device companies might "bias the treatment decisions of physicians," lead to "suspect research findings" or "even risk running afoul of anti-kickback laws." (6/28/06, New York Times)
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HEALTH ADVOCACY RESOURCES
July 11, 2006
Florida CHAIN Website Resources
Grants and Fellowships
Organizations and Services
Manuals, Guides and Toolkits
Technology and Audio Visual Materials
Audioconferences and Webcasts
Media Programming
Web Sites, Web Features
Videos
Periodicals and Books
Reports and Studies
New Listings
New: Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIPS
New: Health Insurance, Health Costs, Health Care Reform
New: Health Equity Issues
New: Other Health Issues
Florida Reports
Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIPS
Federal Budget/Health Care
Health Insurance, Health Costs, Health Care Reform
Health Equity Issues
Other Health Issues
FLORIDA CHAIN WEB SITE RESOURCE UPDATE
Medicare Part D Consumer Fact Sheet on Getting Drugs After the Transition Period
Provided by US Dept. of Health and Human Services.
The Florida CHAIN web site now includes resource information in Spanish. To access, click here.
GRANTS AND FELLOWSHIPS
New grant listings
NIH Behavioral and Social Research on Disasters and Health
Opening Date: Sept. 5
The purpose of this announcement is to stimulate research in the behavioral and social sciences on the consequences of natural and man-made disasters on the health of children, the elderly and vulnerable groups, with an ultimate goal of preventing or mitigating harmful consequences.
Funding for Community-Based Approaches to Improve Care for Vulnerable Populations
Deadline: Rolling
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is accepting applications for its Fresh Ideas: Community-Based Approaches to Improve Care for Vulnerable Populations grant program. The purpose of this program is to promote community-based approaches to health and health care problems that interact with social problems. Examples include inadequate housing, poor education and poverty. Priority is given to projects that focus on hard-to-reach populations such as new immigrants and refugees and at-risk adolescents.
Continuing grant listings, in order of submission deadlines
American Heart Association, Clinton Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to Help Schools Create a Healthier Environment for Nation's Students
Applications available July 1
The Alliance for a Healthier Generation has announced a new collaboration with schools to create environments that foster healthy lifestyles and prevent overweight and obesity among students. The Alliance works to address the issues that contribute to childhood obesity and to inspire all young Americans to develop lifelong healthy habits. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation awarded the Alliance $8 million to support the Healthy Schools Program.
Aligning Forces for Quality: Support for Health Care Coalitions
Registration Deadline: July 14
Application Deadline: Sept. 7
The Regional Market Project is a $10 million national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation designed to help communities dramatically improve the quality of the health care they provide for chronic diseases in ambulatory settings. Aligning Forces for Quality will help up to six communities align three key drivers of quality improvement: performance measurement and public reporting; capacity to help physicians in the community improve the quality of ambulatory, chronic illness care; and consumer engagement. Selected communities will each receive grants of up to $600,000 to use over three years for planning, convening, coordination, and infrastructure development. The program will accept only one proposal per community. To help ensure that only one organization per community applies, all applicant organizations must register with the program on or before July 14.
Allegany Franciscan Ministries Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie Counties
Tau Grants Deadline: July 14
Ten Tau 2006 Palm Beach Region grants are anticipated, with amounts up to $5,000.
Lorraine Gallagher Freimann Healthcare Initiative Grants
Allegany Franciscan Ministries and Palm Healthcare Foundation make these funds available on an annual competitive basis to organizations providing services to underserved populations in Palm Beach County. They seek programs that remove barriers to healthcare access for underserved and indigent populations, focusing on language access and medical translation services and healthcare navigation for diverse communities.
Florida Healthy Kids Corp. Call for Innovative Approaches to Reach Uninsured Children
Proposal deadline: July 21
FHKC is soliciting new and innovative approaches to reaching the families of uninsured children in Florida with the overall goal of increasing new enrollment in Florida KidCare. Applicant organizations are encouraged to propose new ideas and methods of reaching those eligible for Healthy Kids and KidCare. Activities currently or previously funded by other sources will not be considered unless they involve expansions or target a different population.
RWJF Caring Across Communities Grants
Initial brief proposals deadline: July 28
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation issued a call for proposals for a grant program to address the mental health needs of underserved children and youth, with a special emphasis on projects that help children of immigrant and refugee families overcome cultural and language barriers to mental health services. Caring Across Communities will award approximately $100,000 per year for up to 3 years to an estimated 15 geographically and ethnically diverse project teams. Participating organizations might include community mental health centers, multicultural service agencies, faith-based organizations, or other immigrant-or refugee-serving organizations with mental health expertise. An elementary, middle or high school can be either a sole site for services, or a significant provider in a network of care. Grantees must use approaches that are culturally and linguistically relevant to children and their families.
AcademyHealth Health Services Research (HSR) Impact Award
Deadline: July 28
AcademyHealth requests nominations of health services researcher that has made a positive impact on health policy and/or practice. The lead researcher of the winning impact will receive $2,000, and the research will be disseminated widely as part of AcademyHealth's ongoing efforts to promote the field of health services research and communicate its value for health care decision-making. The award will be announced at the 2007 National Health Policy Conference on February 12-13, and the winner will receive complimentary registration, travel and lodging to the conference.
Tobacco Policy Change: Tobacco Policy Change: A Collaborative for Healthier
Deadline: Aug. 1
This program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, is a national initiative that provides resources and technical assistance for local, regional, and nationally-based organizations and tribal groups interested in implementing effective tobacco prevention and cessation policy initiatives. Applicants must have demonstrated success in policy advocacy and grassroots organizing. Particular attention will be given to applicants working in communities or states most affected by tobacco-related disease and exposure. Grants will range from $75,000 to $150,000, depending on the strength of the proposal and matching funds.
RWJF Common Ground – Transforming Public Health Information Systems
Deadline: August 15
Common Ground will support state and local public health agencies collaboration in redesigning business processes and in developing collaborative requirements definitions for information systems to strengthen public health agencies that will help to improve preparedness and chronic disease prevention and control.
Packer Policy Fellowships
Application deadline: August 15
On behalf of the Australian Department of Health and Ageing, The Commonwealth Fund announces this Australian-American health policy fellowship program. The Packer Policy Fellowships offer a unique opportunity for outstanding, mid-career U.S. professionals--academics, physicians, decision-makers in managed care and other private health care organizations, federal and state health officials, and journalists--to spend up to 10 months in Australia conducting original research and working with leading health policy experts on issues relevant to both countries.
Ronald McDonald House Charities -- Children’s Health Grant
Letter of Inquiry Deadline: Aug. 15
Ronald McDonald House Charities is accepting applications for its Children’s Health Grant programs. These grants are intended to support programs that directly improve the health and wellbeing of children, that address a significant funding gap or critical opportunity, have a potential long-term impact and produce measurable results. Eligible applicants include non-profit organizations.
American Psychiatric Foundation Offers Grants for Mental Illness Public Education and Outreach
Deadline: September 1
The American Psychiatric Foundation, a charitable and educational subsidiary of the American Psychiatric Association, is making up to $750,000 in total grant funds available over the course of three years (2005-07) to fund public education, information, and outreach initiatives that promote the early recognition and treatment of mental illness. The foundation seeks to fund new and innovative ideas and programs that promote public awareness of mental illness, the effectiveness of treatment, and the importance of early intervention.
Blue Foundation for a Healthy Florida Winter 2006 Grant Cycle
Deadline: September 15
The Blue Foundation for a Healthy Florida supports philanthropic, community-based solutions that address many different health care challenges facing Florida both today and in the future. Grants will be awarded to improve program capacity and reduce barriers to access, with a particular focus on the uninsured and underserved. The Foundation will focus a significant portion of its resources to maximize impact in the area of community-based health clinics and outreach services. The Foundation awards up to $1 million annually. Grants range in size from $10,000 to $100,000. Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations with 501 (c)(3) status and located in Florida.
Nominations Invited for RWJ Community Health Leadership Awards
Letters of Intent Deadline: Sept. 22
The Robert Wood Johnson Community Health Leadership Program annually honors with $120,000 each, ten outstanding individuals who overcome daunting odds to expand access to health care and social services to underserved and isolated populations in communities across the United States. The program's goal is to elevate the work of its leaders through financial support, opportunities for growth and networking, and assistance raising awareness of their contributions. Candidates should be working at the grassroots level, have received no significant national recognition, and be in "mid-career," with no less than five and no more than fifteen years of community health experience. CHLP welcomes nominations from consumers, community leaders, health professionals, government officials, and others who have been personally inspired by people providing essential community health services. Nominations from development and public relations departments or professional grant writers cannot be accepted.
RWJF Health and Society Scholars Program Call for Applications
Deadline: October 13
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJ) issued a call for applications for the RWJ Health and Society Scholars Program, a two-year fellowship designed to build the nation's capacity for research, leadership and action to address the broad range of factors affecting health.
Applied Epidemiology Fellowship at CDC for Medical Students
Deadline: Dec. 4
Funded by Pfizer Inc. and administered by the CDC Foundation, this fellowship provides medical students with applied hands-on training experience in epidemiology and public health. Up to ten 3rd-4th year medical students from around the US will spend up to a year at the CDC, carrying out epidemiologic analyses in areas such as birth defects, injury, chronic disease, infectious disease, environmental health, reproductive health, and minority health. The program provides a stipend for living expenses.
CVS/pharmacy Accepting Applications for Community Grants Program
Deadline: October 31
CVS/pharmacy supports the communities it serves by offering nonprofit organizations the CVS/pharmacy Community Grant. The Community Grants program is currently accepting proposals for the following: 1) Programs targeting children under the age of 18 with disabilities that address any of the following: health and rehabilitation services; public schools promoting a greater level of inclusion in student activities and extracurricular programs; and creating opportunities or facilities that give greater access to physical movement and play. 2) Healthcare services for uninsured people. All CVS/pharmacy Community Grant applications must be submitted online between January and October of each calendar year.
Research Proposals on Disparities Issues
Proposals will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation seeks to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in the care of patients with cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus type 2 and/or depression. To that end, RWJF invites research proposals that offer solutions towards reducing health care disparities. RWJF encourages researchers to include data and analyses in their proposals to help us better understand these disparities related to: sub-ethnic and other marginalized groups (e.g., Mexican, Puerto Rican, Vietnamese and American Indian); and acculturation factors (e.g., generation, years in US, age of migration and language proficiency). RWJF will consider projects of up to $75,000 with a one-year time frame.
State Coverage Initiatives
Through funding from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, State Coverage Initiatives offers both policy planning and demonstration grants. SCI grants are designed to support states in the early stages of planning coverage expansions and those states that have decided on a new coverage expansion mechanism and seek assistance designing and implementing the program. Specific new grant opportunities are announced on the Web site and through the e-newsletter, St@teside; however, states may submit project ideas at any time. For specific info, contact isabel.friedenzohn@academyhealth.org or 202/292-6726
Allegany Franciscan Ministries Capacity Building Scholarship
Allegany Franciscan Ministries will award, in Miami-Dade, Tampa Bay, and Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie areas, Capacity Building Scholarships throughout 2006 as long as funds are available. Scholarships of up to $300 may be requested to pay registration fees for conferences, seminars and other training opportunities for the staff and volunteers of nonprofit organizations in order to increase their capacity to deliver efficient and effective services to those in need. Organizations may submit scholarship applications at any time, preferably at least six weeks prior to the registration deadline of the conference or training program.
Directory Of Health Policy Fellowships
This Kaiser directory contains new listings for undergraduates, graduate students and professionals searching for summer, school-year, or post-doctoral positions.
ORGANZATIONS AND SERVICES
Newly posted resources are at the top of the list.
Medicare Rights Center (MRC) is a comprehensive independent source of health care information and assistance for older adults and people with disabilities. Multiple services include: a telephone hotline; a database of case advice; education and training; public policy work; electronic newsletters; and communications with local and national media outlets. Publications include:
Questions to Ask when Considering a Medicare Health Plan; What do I need to know about the new drug benefit if I am in a Medicare HMO or other private health plan?; Medicare: A National Treasure for 40 Years.
Access to Benefits Coalition
The nonprofit ABC is dedicated to ensuring that Medicare beneficiaries with limited incomes know about and make the best use of all available resources for accessing prescription drugs and reducing their costs. ABC is working through local community coalitions to inform beneficiaries and their families, as well as the professionals who serve them, about Medicare Part-D. Extra Help is provided online or in person; find out if you or someone qualifies by going to BenefitsCheckUpRx?. Publications include: Applying for the Low-Income Subsidy: A Tool Kit for Advocates; and Pathways to Success: Meeting the Challenge of Enrolling Medicare Beneficiaries with Limited Incomes
The National Hispanic Resource Help-Line 1/800-473-3003 provides support for Latinos throughout the nation who need information about educational, health and human service providers. To become part of their database, click here.
MANUALS, GUIDES, TOOLKITS
Newly posted resources are at the top of the list.
Medicare Part D Extra Help/Low Income Outreach Toolkit
CMS now offers an Extra Help/Low Income Outreach Toolkit. The outreach and education initiatives outlined in this plan are designed to identify all remaining likely Low Income eligible beneficiaries; ensure that they complete applications; and encourage them to actively choose their Medicare drug plans. Estimates show approximately 3 million Medicare beneficiaries remain who are likely to qualify for Extra Help but have not yet applied for it or enrolled in a Medicare drug plan. There is a May 16 - Nov. 15, 2006 Special Enrollment Period so those eligible for Extra Help can join a Medicare drug plan immediately without paying a penalty.
MediKids Parent Information Brochure
This new MediKids Parent Information brochure is mailed out with the MediKids card and replaces the 26 page Parent's Handbook.
Florida Medicaid Reform Brochure
This Florida Medicaid reform brochure will be mailed to Medicaid and MediKids beneficiaries in Broward and Duval counties between 6/29 and 7/13.
Navigating the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Coverage Program: A Guide for People With Disabilities, Benefits Counselors, Disability Organizations and Others on Ensuring Adequate and Appropriate Access to Prescription Drugs
Written by a senior research scholar at Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute, and a disability policy consultant, this guide provides information for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries about how to best use the Medicare drug benefit. The guide offers an overview of the drug plan in a question-and-answer format, as well as a discussion about possible denials of coverage, exceptions, grievances and appeals. (6/6/06, United Cerebral Palsy)
Consumer-Directed Health Care Resources
KaiserEDU.org recently posted new resources on consumer-directed health care, including a narrated slide tutorial, an issue module and a public poll analysis. The slide tutorial discusses the principles and models of CDHC, including health savings accounts. He also discusses CDHC financing, CDHC's impact on health care spending and related policy issues. The companion issue module summarizes the latest research and policy analysis on CDHC and covers CDHC's impact in the marketplace and on low-income populations, health insurance coverage, risk selection, and consumers' access to health information. The Public Opinions on HSAs examines how many Americans have heard of and understand what health savings accounts are (6/5/06, Kaiser Family Foundation)
Fact Sheets and Primer on the Uninsured
The Kaiser Family Foundation has collected links to some resources on the topics of health coverage and the nation’s uninsured population to assist you in your work related to these issues:
The Uninsured and Their Access to Care
Covering the Uninsured: Growing Need, Strained Resources
Massachusetts’ New Law to Cover the Uninsured
Women's Health Insurance Coverage
The Uninsured: A Primer
Medicare Part D Consumer Fact Sheet on Getting Drugs After the Transition Period
Provided by US Dept. of Health and Human Services.
Fact Sheet Summarizes Medicaid and SCHIP Eligibility Rules for Immigrants
A new fact sheet from the Foundation's KCMU provides an overview of the current rules on immigrants' eligibility for Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program.
Medicare Rights Center Resources to Fix Part-D
MRC promotes fixing Part-D by making it available under Original Medicare and negotiating drug prices. Here are four resources to help educate others:
Presentation (Powerpoint) on Why We Need a Drug Benefit Under Original Medicare
"Part D - No Guarantee" Confusion Chart Flier
Why is the Privatized Part D Drug Benefit a Disaster?
The New Part D Prescription Drug Program: A Gamble for All Americans
Applying for the Part D Low-Income Subsidy: A Tool Kit for Advocates
Access to Benefits Coalition provides these Tools You Can Use to help people apply for the extra help available through the new Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage.
Families USA is offering a new resource, Making Public Programs Work for Communities of Color: An Action Kit for Community Leaders, from its Minority Health Initiatives Department. The kit provides community leaders with information, tools, and resources to engage in health advocacy and improve the health and well being of their communities. Emphasizing the importance of public programs in reducing racial and ethnic health disparities, the kit contains: a summary and statistics of racial and ethnic health disparities and the role public programs can play in reducing them; an overview of Medicaid (and SCHIP) and Medicare, including their relationships to communities of color; fact sheets on improving health coverage for racial and ethnic minority groups; state and local case studies on health advocacy; advocacy tools including a powerpoint presentation, and lists of organizations and publications. Contact: 202/628-3030 or rpanares@familiesusa.org.
2005-2006 Healthy Kids Marketing and Public Relations Tool Kit now available
Healthy Kids asks users to please forward updates on items used, including how they were used, numbers distributed and feedback on effectiveness. Call center staff need to be aware of any efforts so they know which items are out in each community and are prepared to address questions. To make changes or additions to any design or use the trademarked logos or phone numbers, prior approval is required to ensure that accurate information is distributed. Send requests to floyda@healthykids.org or fax to 850/224-0615.
Health Literacy Fact Sheets
This series of nine fact sheets was created for those who are designing patient education materials for consumers with low health literacy skills. The sheets define health literacy, describe its impact on health outcomes, provide strategies to prepare appropriate educational materials to assist low-literate consumers, and provide resources for additional health literacy information and publications.
The Medicaid Matters web site is a resource for people working across the country to protect Medicaid, the health insurance that 50 million rely on. It stores a ready-to-use toolkit of messages, materials and dissemination ideas. Users are able to download, at no cost, tested messages emphasizing the importance of Medicaid and the threat now facing the program. Messages are enhanced by high quality, full color photography. One set of materials is designed to be ready to print. Once downloaded, they can be forwarded to any print house or copy shop without any further formatting. The second set of materials is designed so that components of the product can be adapted to suit the needs of that organization or constituency that wishes to use them.
TECHNOLOGY AND AUDIO/VIDEO RESOURCES
Audio Conferences and Webcasts
Dated events listed chronologically; standing webcasts listed last
YMCAs and Hospitals: Successful Collaborations for Healthier Communities
July 20 11:00 am PT (12:00 MT, 1:00 pm CT, 2:00 pm ET)
ACHI Audio Conference. Join this session for a discussion of trends in hospital and YMCA working relationships and joint ventures - including forms of program collaboration, sharing of existing facilities, and joint construction and operation of new facilities. Learn what specific benefits hospitals and YMCAs have derived and delivered to their communities, and gain an introduction to guidelines for exploring and establishing a collaboration in your own community.
Trust Counts Now: Hospitals and Their Communities
August 17. 11:00 am PT (12:00 MT, 1:00 pm CT, 2:00 pm ET)
ACHI Audio Conference.
Policies and Procedures to Strengthen Community Benefit Accountability
Sept. 21 ACHI audio conference
Video/Forum to Assess Medicare Drug Benefit Implementation for Low-Income and Dual Eligible Beneficiaries
Explores key challenges in reaching low-income people on Medicare and reviews potential strategies for improving participation in the low-income subsidy program. Panelists discuss the early experiences of these beneficiaries and consider how to address ongoing challenges. A new video, produced by the Kaiser Family Foundation, Transitions 2006, which explores some of the issues and challenges experienced by dual eligibles, is also presented. (5/18/06, Kaiser Network)
The State of Latinos and HIV/AIDS in the United States
This Bienestar and AIDS Institute briefing allows members of Congress to learn more about the issues related to HIV/AIDS in the Latino community. Web page includes several power point presentations. (5/3/06, Kaiser Network)
Medicare Advantage: Early Views and Trendspotting Webcast
Alliance for Health Reform and Commonwealth Fund hosted this May 19 briefing on the Medicare managed care program, Medicare Advantage. These questions and others are discussed: Is the Medicare Advantage program now growing again after a period of declining enrollment? How do beneficiary costs in Medicare Advantage compare to costs for beneficiaries in the traditional fee-for-service program? Are the payments provided under the 2003 law being used to offer more comprehensive coverage for prescription drugs and other health benefits? For more information, please visit the Alliance's briefing Web site.
Families USA Conference Call Audio Playbacks
Throughout 2006, Families USA is holding a series of conference calls on a range of health care topics for state and local advocates. Interested, but can't make it? Don't worry. You can catch up on what you missed by listening to the audio playback. To listen to these conference calls, you will need RealPlayer or Windows Media Player. Click here for listening instructions.
ACHI Spring Training for Health Champions Conference Sessions
(March 14-16, 2006) Download and view more than 30 presentation files from the meeting.
Media Programming
How Hospitals Heal Themselves
A one-hour documentary airing on public television Spring and Summer 2006
Call your local PBS station for time of broadcast
This rare good news documentary reports on a surprising solution to escalating costs, unnecessary deaths and waste in America's hospitals. Doctors and nurses tell how they did their best, working overtime, while hospital conditions worsened. They were delighted to learn a new way to improve patient care dramatically and reduce unnecessary deaths, suffering, errors, infections and costs without additional resources or government regulations.
Remaking American Medicine?...Health Care for the 21st Century
Crosskeys Media® and Devillier Communications, Inc. announce a four-part series to be broadcast on PBS nationally every Thursday at 10 p.m. in October. Line-up and date for each show:
Silent Killer - October 5
Every year at least 98,000 Americans die - and countless more are injured - as a result of medical errors. This program begins by profiling the efforts of Sorrel King, whose 18-month-old daughter Josie was killed at one of the most respected hospitals in the world, Johns Hopkins.
First Do No Harm - October 12
This program focuses on the impact of medical errors in two hospitals and follows the efforts of physicians who are challenging their colleagues to live up to their oath to First Do No Harm. Confronts one epidemic of hospital-acquired infections that are shattering the lives of their victims.
The Stealth Epidemic - October 19
Chronic diseases like diabetes and congestive heart failure affect nearly 100 million Americans, and treatment of these illnesses consumes nearly 70 percent of all health care resources. Yet doctors are often unable to prevent needless suffering or even death, and these failures are threatening the viability of our entire health care system.
Hand in Hand - October 26
As medicine continues to become more and more technologically sophisticated and the systems that deliver medical care become more complex, the relationship between providers, patients and families is more important than ever.
"60 Minutes" Targets Hospitals' Billing of the Uninsured
"60 Minutes" segment transcript
"60 Minutes" responses to segment transcript
Web Sites, Web Features & Databases
Newest postings are listed at the top of State and National Web Resources sections below
State Web Resources
Florida Voter Registration Application Online
To apply to register to vote, fill in the PDF application online and print it out, or print the application and write in the information. Please use a black ballpoint pen. THE FLORIDA VOTER REGISTRATION APPLICATION REQUIRES AN ORIGINAL SIGNATURE. If the PDF application is filled in online, it must be printed out and signed prior to mailing.
Medicaid Applications Online 24/7 and in Neighborhoods
Local partners can direct families to their area sites or online to apply for Medicaid and other benefits. The Web Application is generally preferable as the data makes it into the Florida system more quickly and there is a reduced chance of data entry errors.
Florida Kids insurance application can be completed online
Families wanting to apply for the state's health insurance program for children can now apply online. Florida Healthy Kids has redesigned its Web site at www.healthykids.org to allow people to apply electronically for the KidCare programs, which include Healthy Kids, Children's Medical Services and MediKids. (2/16/06, Daytona News-Journal) More
Website Offers Free 24 Hour Health Information to Floridians to address concerns and inquiries
The Florida Department of Health (DOH) Secretary encourages health care consumers to visit www.FLHealthSource.com whenever they need information about a licensed health care professional. DOH’s Division of Medical Quality Assurance (MQA) maintains FLHealthSource.com. The site provides health care consumers with a host of information, including license status, office address, and disciplinary information for all health care professionals licensed in Florida. The site also provides additional information for the five profiled professions –medical doctors, osteopathic physicians, chiropractic physicians, podiatric physicians and advanced registered nurse practitioners (ARNPs).
Statehealthfacts.org provides free, up-to-date, and easy-to-use health data on all 50 states, covering more than 500 health topics.
Florida Progressive Information Network (FLPIN)
offers a nonpartisan communication system designed to link progressive organizers with progressive activists. Individuals may sign up free of charge to receive alerts on a variety of progressive issues from other organizations participating in the Network. In order to make FLPIN work, it must be used on a regular basis. The more information put in, the more valuable it is as a tool. Link FLPIN to organization websites. A training manual is at www.flpin.net/alert.pdf. For more information or assistance, contact jen@floridahumanist.org
National Web Resources
Covering Kids & Families New Web Site
Visit the site to use its new features, including: better-organized, streamlined layout; Back to School Campaign resources; Communications Action Center, a one-stop outreach resource; new Covering Kids & Families Policy Center; new promising strategies section; resources for families looking for information about low-cost and free health care coverage; streamlined free materials ordering section; new PSA featuring Bernie Mac; new royalty-free photos; resources for event planners. For more information, call 202/338-7227 or email coveringkidsandfamilies@gmmb.com.
New Violence Prevention Resources from the Prevention Institute
Creating Safe Environments.
A physician's guide to preventing intimate partner abuse and violence.
New Community Health Action Web Site
This website is intended to give leaders at community-based organizations, easy and ready access to important information on healthcare issues. The site also features a free quarterly newsletter called Community Health Advocacy News & Views with resources and information.
State Level Data on Health Coverage & the Uninsured
Kaiser Family Foundation's interactive web tool includes the health insurance status of the state’s population (those with various types of health coverage or who are uninsured), and demographic information (such as income, race/ethnicity, age, gender) for those who are uninsured, have employer-based insurance, or Medicaid. Information about Medicaid and Medicare beneficiaries can be found in those respective categories. Find data from other categories on the website that relate to Health Coverage & Uninsured.
The Johns Hopkins INFO Project's New OneSource Database
This provides one-stop access to over 360,000 resources and six separate databases with a single mouse click or search term. OneSource users can quickly search for reports, articles, documents, posters and pamphlets, photos, web sites, Q&As and news articles through a single interface. An enhanced search and browse capability makes finding global family planning, reproductive health and population information faster and more simple than ever. Enter your terms in the search box. Select the resource type you want to look for, or search all six databases at once, and click Search.
Uninsured Tutorial, Module, and Reference Library
This KaiserEDU.org page contains comprehensive resources including links to key research, policy analysis, and the latest data and statistics on the uninsured.
Access to Care for People with Disabilities
New KaiserEDU.org Tutorial provides an overview of policy issues related to accessing health care for people with disabilities, as well as information on the types and prevalence of disabilities in the U.S., the major health care financing mechanisms, and the interaction of the Medicaid program with the ADA.
Health Care Coverage in America: Understanding the Issues and Proposed Solutions includes a corresponding PowerPoint presentation. (Cover the Uninsured)
Immigrant Health Policy Reference Library
This new compendium summarizes data and research on immigrants’ health coverage and access to care. The library also includes a list of organizations that conduct analysis on the impact of major health policies on immigrants and presents research on specific populations, including Latino, African and Asian immigrants.
Health Coverage and the Uninsured - Updated Tutorial
Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, this tutorial has been updated and expanded to include the latest national and state-level data on insurance coverage. It also now includes current policy proposals for expanding coverage to the uninsured and criteria for evaluating the different proposals.
Updated Fact Sheet on Medicaid's Role for Dual Eligibles
Kaiser Family Foundation's Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured has updated a fact sheet on Medicaid's role in providing care to dual eligibles, low-income Medicare beneficiaries, and the transitioning of their prescription drug coverage from Medicaid to the new Medicare drug benefit.
Medicare/Medicaid Dual Eligibles Tutorial
This new narrated slide tutorial provides an overview of dual eligibles -- beneficiaries covered by both Medicare and Medicaid. The tutorial presents a profile of dual eligibles, reviews eligibility, benefits and financing for duals, and discusses their transition into the new Medicare prescription drug coverage program.
Medicaid Fact Sheets Tool
Compare your state's Medicaid program and the population it serves to other states and the nation by visiting Kaiser's new interactive online State Medicaid Fact Sheets tool.
Interactive Tools on Medicaid
The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured presents the State Medicaid Fact Sheets and the Medicaid Benefits Online Database, two interactive tools featuring the latest key data, information and services provided for each state’s Medicaid program. Both tools allow for easy access to the data which can then be printed, saved and emailed.
2006 Federal Poverty Guidelines
The Southern Institute on Children and Families, National Program Office for Covering Kids & Families has made available the 2006 Federal Poverty Guidelines. Compiled from the 2006 HHS Poverty Guidelines, these guidelines provide income levels for families at 50%, 100%, 125%, 133%, 150%, 185% and 200% of the Federal Poverty Level.
Healthcare Coverage Options Database: Assistance for Obtaining Health Coverage
This Web site provides information on health insurance options for low-income U.S. residents. The site includes comprehensive information on large-scale programs like Medicaid, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), and the federal Health Care Tax Credit Program, as well as hundreds of smaller state, federal, and private programs.
Videos
Problems with the Medicare Drug Program and How to Fix Them: Video
This new 14-minute video produced by Families USA features trusted newsman Walter Cronkite discussing the problems within the new Medicare prescription drug benefit and offering solutions for the Part D program. The video offers an authoritative look at Medicare’s prescription coverage. First-hand experiences come from retirees from across the country, who offer an up-close look at the troubles the new drug benefit has generated, from the headaches of sorting through dozens of plans to the financial tolls the program will take on so-called beneficiaries. A dedicated community pharmacist shares his insights on the roll-out of Part D and knowledgeable consumer advocates analyze the politics at the core of the creation of the Medicare drug program. Watch the Video Online or Request a Copy
PERIODICALS AND BOOKS
Health Benefits Newsletter
Titles include: Variety of Strategies Needed to Curb Health Costs; Lower Medical Bills Through Health Coaching; Unveiling the True Cost of Health Care - For a Price; Obesity and Diabetes Rates Soar Among Hispanics, and Employers More Aware of Behavioral Risks.
Kaiser Family Foundation offers a weekly Medicare Q&A column that is being distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune News. The column answers questions from readers related to the new Medicare drug benefit.
REPORTS AND STUDIES
New Listings
New Listings: Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIPS
Children in Foster Care May Have to Delay Health Care Because of Federal Citizenship Requirement
This new analysis finds that the July 6 regulations will hamper the efforts of Medicaid and child welfare agencies to meet the needs of some of the nation's most vulnerable children and will place the health of some of these children at risk. A number of state Medicaid agencies already are on record with strong
concerns about the administrative costs and burdens the documentation requirement will entail. Placing states at risk of losing federal matching funds for the provision of health care to these children both risks these children's health and imposes an unnecessary burden on states. (7/7/06, CBPP)
Proposed Federal Budget Discretionary Caps Would Hit States Hard
The Senate Budget Committee on June 20 approved legislation that would make a number of far-reaching changes in the federal budget process. Included in the legislation are provisions that would establish statutory caps that would lead to substantial cuts in a range of domestic discretionary programs that would have far-reaching effects in every state. Includes state-by-state analysis. (7/5/06, CBPP)
New Listings: Health Insurance, Health Costs, Health Care Reform
New 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.
Prescription Drugs - Authorized Generics Increase Competition, Lower Prices, Study Finds
Authorized generics -- which are distributed by generic drug makers under agreements with brand-name manufacturers -- can boost competition and lower prices for consumers, according to a study commissioned by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America and conducted by IMS Health (6/29/06, KaiserNet)
New Listings: Health Equity Issues
Using Data on Race and Ethnicity To Improve Health Care Quality for Medicaid Beneficiaries
The issue brief, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Commonwealth Fund, examines how states can use race and ethnicity data to improve the quality of care for Medicaid beneficiaries. According to the brief, there are several measures that state Medicaid programs could take to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health care -- including improving state data-collection processes; collaborating with health plans to make improved health plan data collection a priority; providing data on race and ethnicity to health plans; and offering technical, administrative and financial incentives to health plans to address disparities.
(6/30/06, Center for Health Care Strategies )
New Listings: Other Health Issues
CMS Lacks Ability To Perform Adequate Oversight Of Medical Laboratories
The government agency charged with overseeing the quality of testing in medical laboratories has failed to ensure that even serious repeat deficiencies are cited and corrected, federal auditors said Tuesday. A 93-page report by the Government Accountability Office concluded that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS, had not enforced the minimum standards required by law and could not properly judge whether a lab's quality had improved or worsened. (6/28/06, Los Angeles Times)
Florida Reports
Job Growth in Florida Does Not Improve the State's High Rates of Uninsured See jobs grow; see care shrink
A union study finds that the number of Floridians without health insurance is on the rise, especially in industries adding the most new jobs. Florida is the nation's leader in job creation, but a study found that the industries creating these jobs are those least likely to provide health insurance. Florida has one of the highest uninsured rates in the nation, with more than 3 million Floridians—18 percent of the population—lacking coverage. The study, released by Florida International University and conducted by the Research Institute on Social and Economic Policy, found that half of the new jobs created in the state between 2003 and 2005 were in construction, retail, and leisure and hospitality—all industries with high rates of uninsured employees. (6/14/06, Miami Herald)
Uninsured children hospitalized for injury die at a higher rate than children with coverage
This USF Health newsletter article describes Childhood Injury in Florida, 2002: A Report on Hospitalized Care & Prevention Information.
Florida KidCare’s web site has these reports for download: Florida KidCare Statewide Enrollment Trend, Title XXI Enrollment and Major Program Changes.
Grading State Systems for Adults with Serious Mental Illness
A National Alliance on Mental Illness report grades each state's public mental health system for adults with serious mental illness, and assigns the nation an overall grade of D. The report grades states on 39 criteria in the areas of infrastructure, information access, services and recovery based on a survey of state mental health agencies last October and November.
Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIPS
Commonwealth Fund Reports Examine Ways To Expand Coverage in Medicaid, SCHIP
Two new reports outline how state and federal officials can implement policies to reduce coverage instability and expand coverage overall in Medicaid and SCHIP for uninsured families and children. "Instability of Public Health Insurance Coverage for Children and Their Families: Causes, Consequences and Remedies," reviews national and state studies and interviews Medicaid and SCHIP administrators, providers and health plan representatives from four states, finding that coverage instability can be reduced by adopting procedures such as limiting the frequency of required renewals; developing easy, seamless transitions among public coverage programs; and setting affordable limits on premium costs. "Automatically Enrolling Eligible Children and Families Into Medicaid and SCHIP: Opportunities, Obstacles and Options for Federal Policymakers," finds that allowing states to automatically enroll residents in Medicaid and SCHIP could significantly extend health coverage to eligible children and families. Legal and technical barriers prevent automatic enrollment, and federal policymakers need to provide states with flexibility in determining eligibility and new resources to invest in information technology. (6/16/06, Commonwealth Fund).
Medicaid Experiments in Some States Garner Attention in Other States
Responding to Congress' actions last year, states are moving to transform Medicaid by encouraging patients to take responsibility for their own health. This is being done through fees and restricted benefits, but differently by different states. New flexibilities allow greater state control over Medicaid. (6/12/06, RWJF News Digest)
Big Dollars, Little Sense: Rising Medicare Prescription Drug Prices
1) Virtually all of the Part D plans raised their prices for the majority of the top 20 drugs in this study. 2) For all of the top 20 drugs prescribed to seniors, VA prices in April were lower than the lowest prices charged by Part D plans. (June 2006)
New Proof-of-Citizenship Requirements for Medicaid Eligibility
The Kaiser Family Foundation's Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured has released documents on the new citizenship requirements included in the Deficit Reduction act of 2005, effective 1 July 2006. All US citizens and nationals must now prove citizenship when applying for Medicaid coverage. Report and Fact Sheet. (6/10/06, KFF)
Freezing State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) Funding in Reauthorization Would Threaten Recent Gains in Health Coverage
This Center on Budget and Policy Priorities report based on states’ most recent SCHIP spending projections for fiscal year 2007, that 17 states will face a combined shortfall next year of $800 million – the cost of covering 530,000 children. A state-by-state analysis is included. (6/5/06, CBPP)
Mental Health Patients Face High Out-of-Pocket Costs Under Medicare Part D, Reach Donut Hole Faster
Individuals with mental illnesses spend four times more out of pocket for prescription drugs under Part D than they typically would under employer-sponsored drug coverage, says a new study by Thomson Medstat sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health. Analyzing drug-spending data on 1,114,009 people with Medicare with retiree drug coverage in 2004, researchers found that mental illness significantly increases the amount spent annually on prescription drugs. In addition, mental health patients with Medicare reach the "doughnut hole"-the gap in coverage in which enrollees must bear the full cost of prescriptions-on average two months earlier than other people with Medicare. (6/5/06, PR NewsWire)
Opening Doorways to Health Care for Children
This national Children's Partnership report outlines a 10-step plan to enroll "eligible but uninsured" children into Medicaid and SCHIP. The plan focuses on using common doorways, like schools, along with technology and common sense reforms to make enrollment and renewal routine and timely. By putting this plan into action, up to 95% of America's children could receive health coverage. (May 2006, Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured)
Latest Trends in Medicaid Spending and Enrollment
Medicaid spending and enrollment growth rates fell in 2003 and 2004, following trends in the U.S. economy. Enrollment in Medicaid decreased from an average of 9% between 2000 and 2002 to an average of 4.1% between 2003 and 2004, reflecting both an improved economy and Medicaid cost-containment policies approved by some states during the period. Meanwhile, per-beneficiary Medicaid spending for acute care services increased at a slower rate in 2003-2004 than private insurance spending, rising by 4.7% during the period, compared with 8.2% for private insurance premiums (6/1/06, Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured)
Mental Health in the Medicare Part D Drug Benefit: A New Regulatory Model?
The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (MMA) of 2003 represents the most significant expansion of Medicare benefits since the program's inception and has important implications for mental health. Medicare will become a major payer for psychotropic medications through the new prescription drug benefit. The structure of the drug benefit's delivery system creates incentives for plans to under-provide medications, like psychotropic drugs, that are used persistently and are associated with high expected costs. (5/06, Health Affairs)
Americans Locked Into Medicare-Approved Drug Plans That Refuse Assistance
People Must Be Allowed to Change Their Drug Plan
Older and disabled Americans must be allowed to switch out of Medicare private drug plans because of the effects of confusion, misinformation from the government, and deceptive drug plan marketing practices.
Snapshot: Health Care Costs 101, 2006 Edition
Now in its third edition, this presentation provides a concise, visual snapshot of national health care spending trends for use by journalists, policymakers, or anyone interested in health care cost issues. Based primarily on National Health Expenditures data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the slides show how spending is distributed by type of service and illustrate growth in spending categories such as hospital services and prescription drugs. For the first time, it also examines how contributions from households, business, and government are blended to finance both public and private health coverage. (March 2006, California HealthCare Foundation)
Families USA Report on Medicaid Part-D
This latest report found that the vast majority of new Medicare Part D beneficiaries already had prescription drug coverage before the program started earlier this year and, in an effort to downplay this situation, the Administration has significantly lowered its own enrollment projections. You can read the full report or a press release announcing the report.
New State-By-State Data on Medicaid and SCHIP's Success in Reducing the Coverage Gap for Children
Georgetown University Health Policy Institute Center for Children and Families reports the surprisingly positive trends in coverage for children, largely due to Medicaid (and to a lesser extent, its smaller companion program, SCHIP), that provide affordable health insurance coverage to children in low-income families. However, there is significant variation across the states. Tables Methodology
Federal Budget/Health Care
Bill Would Make Far-Reaching Changes in Budget Rules, Aim Knife at Domestic Programs While Shielding Tax Cuts for Fiscal Discipline
This Center on Budget and Policy Priorities analysis of sweeping legislation altering federal budget procedures would make large changes in how Congress and the President make budget decisions and seeks to force dramatic changes in the budget. This legislation, if enacted, it could have profound effects on American society. (6/19/06, CBPP)
Administration’s Fiscal Year 2007 Budget is Likely still to Leave SCHIP Coverage for Low-Income Children in Jeopardy finds that the Administration’s budget proposal will fall short of fully funding states’ needs for SCHIP funding in 2007 — and could lead more than 200,000 children to go without SCHIP coverage next year.
The Cost and Coverage Impact of the President’s Health Insurance Budget Proposals finds that the Administration's proposals to expand tax breaks for Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) would cause a net increase in the number of uninsured Americans.
Analysis of Medicaid Provisions in the Bush Administration 2007 Budget explains how most of the provisions in the budget, which include both legislative proposals and regulatory changes that the Administration is planning to make without legislative action, will shift Medicaid costs to the state. These funding cuts are on top of the significant federal Medicaid cuts enacted as part of the budget reconciliation bill signed into law.
The Administration’s Medicaid Proposals Would Shift Federal Costs to States finds that more than four-fifths of the Medicaid savings proposals in the Administration’s new budget would reduce federal Medicaid expenditures by shifting costs directly to the states. This likely would lead some states to scale back their Medicaid programs significantly by restricting eligibility and reducing coverage.
New Congressional Budget Office Estimates Indicate Millions of Low-Income Beneficiaries Would Be Harmed by Medicaid Provisions in Budget Bill
Health Insurance, Health Costs, Health Care Reform, Budget
Congressional Testimony Regarding HSAs
"Health Savings Accounts: Why They Won't Cure What Ails U.S. Health Care, Invited Testimony Committee on Ways and Means U.S. House of Representatives Hearing on "Health Savings Accounts,'" (6/28/06, Commonwealth Fund)
Demo Shows Better Care Cuts Health Costs
"Instituting a series of basic and widely accepted care measures for 75,000 patients undergoing care for pneumonia and heart bypass surgery would have reduced hospital costs for those patients by as much as $1 billion." (6/26/06, Commonwealth Fund)
51.3 Million Uninsured for Part of 2005
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 51.3 million Americans (17.6% of the population) were uninsured for at least part of 2005. This number is slightly down from 51.6 million estimated in 2004. 41.2 million were uninsured at the time of the interview in 2005. (6/22/06, AHA NewsNow)
Instability of Public Health Insurance Coverage for Children and Their Families: Causes, Consequences, and Remedies
This report examines the extent, causes, and consequences of instability in public coverage programs for children and families. It focuses particularly on the phenomenon of "churning," which occurs when individuals lose and regain coverage in a short period of time, suggesting that the loss of coverage is not due to eligibility factors. It also looks at strategies that can make public program coverage more stable for children and families. (June 2006, Commonwealth Fund)
Number of Uninsured Contribute to Crisis in Emergency Room Care
The "grim conclusion" of new research from the Institute of Medicine is that emergency medical care in the United States is "on the verge of collapse," in part because emergency rooms are overloaded with uninsured patients. (6/15/06, Washington Post)
Generosity and Adjusted Premiums in Job-Based Insurance
The basis for calculations is simulated bill paying for a large standardized population. After adjusting for quality of benefits, authors found adjusted premiums are 18 percent higher in the nation's smallest firms than in firms with 1,000 or more workers. They are 25 percent higher in indemnity plans and 18 percent higher in preferred provider organizations than in health maintenance organizations. The generosity of coverage increased from 1997 to 2002. (May/June 2006, Health Affairs)
Putting Healthcare Dollars Into The 'right' Prevention Services
A series of articles and commentaries address the need to channel resources into those areas of preventive care which will benefit the most people for each dollar spent. Former Surgeon General of the United States David Satcher, MD, chaired the National Commission on Prevention Priorities, which guided the approach used to rank these services. He writes, "Our intent was to identify preventive services that produce the greatest population health benefit and cost effectiveness in order to help inform decision makers at multiple levels about which preventive services are most valuable." (July 2006, American Journal of Preventive Medicine)
Millions Squandered In Unnecessary Tests Ordered In Routine Doctor Visits
More than one-third of U.S. adults undergo diagnostic tests for conditions for which they have no symptoms, which adds to health care costs and increases patient stress, according to a study in the June issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. . . . Projecting that rate of occurrence across the U.S. population, the study estimates that the annual direct medical cost from inappropriate use of the three tests is between $47 million and $194 million. (5/22/06, Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report)
Coping with the health insurance blues: Growth In Number Of Small Businesses Offering High-Deductible Health Coverage
About 60% of the 45 million uninsured U.S. residents "come from families where the primary breadwinner owns or works for a small business," as "the percentage of small businesses offering coverage is plunging." Because of increasing insurance costs, "a growing percentage of small businesses are turning to insurance plans with deductibles of $1,000 or more for individual coverage and $2,000 or more for family coverage. (5/16/06, Chicago Tribune)
Why Do People Lack Health Insurance?
Forty-six million people--nearly one in five non-elderly adults and children--lack health insurance, an increase of 6 million since 2000. This brief looks at the reasons people report for being uninsured. The high cost of insurance is a rapidly rising concern for uninsured, whether old or young, healthy or disabled, with high incomes or well below the poverty line. (5/4/06, The Urban Institute)
Shifting Ground: Changes in Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance
The US health care system is based on employer-sponsored coverage with over 90 percent of privately insured individuals receiving coverage from their own or a family member's employer (US Census Bureau 2005). In this report we sue data from an ongoing federal survey of employers to examine trends in employer-sponsored health insurance coverage and take-up rates across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. (5/4/06, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)
Snapshots: Health Care Costs
Series of online publications written by Kaiser staff that use charts, data and analysis to provide insight into the political and policy debates about the cost of health care in the United States. The publications are designed to encourage an informed policy discussion as leaders in Washington and across the country weigh strategies for controlling the rising cost of health care for people, businesses and government alike: Comparing Projected Growth in Health Care Expenditures and the Economy; Distribution of Out-of-Pocket Spending for Health Care Services
The Coverage Gap: A State-by-State Report on Access to Care
Using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2004 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) – a national survey of preventive and health risk behaviors – the researchers analyzed health disparities between insured and uninsured adults. Using data from the US Census Bureau Current Population Survey from 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2004 and 2005, they also looked at the number of Americans age 50-64 that are without health care coverage. The report is being released to launch Cover the Uninsured Week, the largest mobilization in history to promote health coverage for all Americans.
Kaiser Family Foundation Reports & Chartbooks on the Uninsured
Health Coverage in America, 2004 Data Update
Employer Health Benefits 2005 Annual Survey
Sicker and Poorer: The Consequences of Being Uninsured
The Cost of Care for the Uninsured: What Do We Spend, Who Pays, and What Would Full Coverage Add to Medical Spending?
Threadbare: Holes in America’s Health Care Safety Net
Challenges and Tradeoffs in Low-Income Family Budgets: Implications for Health Coverage
Three Reports on Enrollment and Outreach for Public Health Coverage Programs
In a Time of Growing Need: State Choices Influence Health Coverage Access for Children and Families
Opening Doorways To Health Care For Children
Outreach Strategies For Medicaid And SCHIP
Health Equity Issues
Obtaining Race, Ethnicity, and Primary Language Data in Health Care Organizations: Current Challenges and Proposed Solutions
This forthcoming article reinforces the importance of collecting these data points accurately for understanding health care equality and disparities. The authors examine methods that work well and others that can lead to inaccurate data, insult or other discomfort for patients. Self-reporting of information by patients is emphasized. (August, 2006, Health Services Research)
Study Suggests Why and How Best to Collect Data on Patient Race, Ethnicity
Hospitals and other health care organizations that collect data on patients' race, ethnicity and language may be more likely to look at disparities in care, design targeted programs to improve quality of care and provide patient-centered care, according to a new article by researchers at the Health Research and Educational Trust and Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. Yet the collection of such data often is fragmented and incomplete, largely due to a lack of understanding about how best to collect this information from patients, the authors say. (6/27/06, AHA NewsNow)
Report Affirms It's Legal to Collect Race, Ethnicity Data to Improve Quality
A policy brief released yesterday by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation affirms that it's legal to collect data on patients' race and ethnicity for quality improvement purposes, and urges the Department of Health and Human Services to issue data collection guidelines to encourage the practice. The report by researchers at George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services emphasizes that racial and ethnic data are critical to measuring quality of care in diverse populations and for overall quality improvement. (6/22/06, RWJF)
Mental Health Parity Does Not Increase Overall Spending
A recent report in the health policy journal Health Affairs claims that total spending on mental health services will not grow if private insurance plans and Medicare put coverage on par with other medical services, although patients’ out-of-pocket spending will decrease.The paper’s authors reviewed past research that justified Medicare’s and private insurer’s discrimination against mental health services, and current research that supports parity. They found that a second-generation of studies looking at mental health parity in the context of managed care “did not find that large health spending increases attributable to parity, and all studies that address risk-protection identified sizable decreases in consumers’ out-of-pocket mental health care spending.” (6/06, Health Affairs)
African-American Men Survey
The Washington Post, the Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard University have released a new, comprehensive survey looking at how African-American men view their lives in the United States and their outlook for the future. The survey gauges the views and experiences of African-American men on marriage and family, education, careers and health, among other issues. (6-5-06, Kaiser Family Foundation)
Making Disparities Disappear: Using Nationally Tested Tools for Community-Based Action
Today, while the overall quality of healthcare delivered in America is slowly improving, large segments of our population continue to experience disparities in the quality of healthcare they receive. For example, as seen in the third annual National Healthcare Disparities Report recently published by our agency, Hispanics received poorer quality of care than whites in 53% of the most important measures; blacks received poorer quality of care in 43% of these measures; and American Indians and Alaska Natives received poorer quality of care in 38% of the key measures. (5/1/06, Medscape)
The 2005 National Healthcare Quality Report (NHQR) and 2005 National Healthcare Disparities Report (NHDR) are now available on AHRQ's Web Site. The 2005 NHQR is a comprehensive national overview of quality of health care in the United States. The 2005 NHDR tracks disparities in both quality of and access to health care in the United States for both the general population and for congressionally designated priority populations.
Other Health Issues
Even Brief Exposure to Secondhand Smoke Confirmed Harmful to Health
A report released today by the U.S. surgeon general concludes there is no risk-free level of exposure to secondhand smoke, since even brief exposure can cause immediate harm. In his office's first comprehensive report on the topic in 20 years, Surgeon General Richard Carmona says nonsmokers exposed to secondhand smoke at home or work increase their risk of developing heart disease by 25%-30% and lung cancer by 20%-30%. The study estimates that nearly half of all nonsmoking Americans are regularly exposed to secondhand smoke, and says the only way to protect them from harm is to eliminate smoking indoors. (6/27/06, CDC)
"2006 Kids Count” Report Released
The annual report measures each state in terms of 10 statistics, including infant mortality, teen birth rate and infants born with low birthweights. The report finds no change in U.S. infant mortality since 2000, less than a percentage point increase to 7.9% in 2003 in the percentage of infants born weighing less than 5.5 pounds and a decrease in the teen birth rate from 48 births per 1,000 girls in 2000 to 42 births per 1,000 in 2003. (6/27/06, Annie E. Casey Foundation)
The Oral Health of Children A Portrait of States and the Nation 2005
The Health Resources and Services Administration presents this chartbook highlighting the major findings of the National Survey of Children's Health on children's oral health. This survey, the first of its kind, presents national- and State-level information on the health and well-being of children and their use of health services, including oral health and dental care. The survey includes many positive findings about children's oral health.
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NATIONAL EVENTS AND NOTICES
July 11, 2006
CONFERENCES AND EVENTS
Many Communities, One World: Promoting Health at Home and Abroad
July 28-30 Salt Lake City
The 11th Annual Doctors for Global Health General Assembly is an opportunity to come together and meet others working to advance health and human rights. The program includes keynote speakers; panel discussions and workshops about current issues facing the United States (such as the struggle for health care for all and the plight of immigrants), an overview of Doctors for Global Health's current activities and social/networking time. Topics to be covered include accompaniment and volunteerism, and how communities can foster healing in the wake of violence. Click here for more information.
Health and Philanthropy: Leveraging Change
August 24-25 Indianapolis
This 19th annual symposium of the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University will explore ways in which health and philanthropy intersect through topics that range from public policy, access, and funding for research to disaster relief, global issues, information technology and more. A strength of the Center's annual symposium is that it brings together scholars, researchers, and practitioners for cross-disciplinary, give-and-take explorations of ideas that shape the field. Click here for more information.
National Prevention Summit: Prevention, Preparedness, and Promotion
October 26-27 Washington, DC
The 2006 National Prevention Summit will focus on disease prevention, health preparedness, and health promotion and will feature innovative programs that are making a difference in communities across the country to build a HealthierUS. These programs are focused on healthy lifestyle choices. One special emphasis this year will be the prevention of childhood overweight and obesity. Another emphasis will be on preparing for public health emergencies, such as avian influenza. Click here for details.
Health as a Human Right: Health Education, Equality and Social Justice for All
November 2-4 Boston
Society for Public Health Education’s 57th Annual Meeting will examine the impact of reciprocal influences of health and human rights, including the impact public health programs and policies have on human rights and health disparities, the consequences human rights violations have on health, the importance of health in realizing human rights, and the ways in which health educators can ensure that human rights are integrated into public health strategies to eliminate disparities. Click here for more information.
Making Methods and Practice Matter for Women, Children and Families
December 6–8 Atlanta
Maternal and Child Health Epidemiology (MCH EPI) conference organizers invite you to join MCH professionals in sharing experiences, enhancing knowledge, and generating new ideas for improved MCH data use and informed policymaking. Click here for details.
Association for Community Health Improvement's Spring Training for Health Champions
March 7-9, 2007 New Orleans
Click here for ACHI's conference timeline.
AUDIO CONFERENCES AND WEBCASTS
YMCAs and Hospitals: Successful Collaborations for Healthier Communities
July 20 2:00 pm ET
ACHI Audio Conference. Click here for details and to register.
Join this session for a discussion of trends in hospital and YMCA working relationships and joint ventures - including forms of program collaboration, sharing of existing facilities, and joint construction and operation of new facilities. Learn what specific benefits hospitals and YMCAs have derived and delivered to their communities, and gain an introduction to guidelines for exploring and establishing a collaboration in your own community.
Trust Counts Now: Hospitals and Their Communities
August 17 2:00 pm ET
ACHI Audio Conference. Click here for details and to register.
Policies and Procedures to Strengthen Community Benefit Accountability
Sept. 21 ACHI Audio Conference. Click here for details and to register.
NOTICES
Help Eligible, Uninsured Children Get Enrolled!: Annual Covering Kids & Families Back-to-School Campaign National Kick Off August 9
Most of the nearly 8.3 million uninsured children in the United States, most of whom are eligible for low-cost or free health care coverage. The Back-to-School Campaign is designed to urge parents to call toll-free 1(877) KIDS-NOW to find out if their uninsured children are eligible. Plan a community activity or participate in an event. Visit www.coveringkidsandfamilies.org to register for Covering Kids & Families e-mail updates and to find out what you can do to help inform these parents. Browse the Covering Kids & Families toolkits in the Communications Action Center for ideas. Contact the Covering Kids & Families Communications Team at coveringkidsandfamilies@gmmb.com or 202/338-7227 with any questions about the Back-to-School Campaign, or for assistance with planning.
Nominations Sought for Robert Wood Johnson Community Health Leadership Award
Letter of Intent Deadline: Sept. 22
The Robert Wood Johnson Community Health Leadership Program (CHLP) honors 10 outstanding individuals each year for their work in creating or enhancing health care programs serving communities whose needs have been ignored and unmet. Each leader receives $120,000 to be used for personal and program enhancement over a period of up to three years. CHLP seeks individuals who have the leadership skills to overcome complex obstacles and find creative ways to bring health care services to their communities. Candidates should be working at the grassroots level, have received no significant national recognition and be in "mid-career," with no less than five and no more than fifteen years of community health experience. Nominations can be made by consumers, community leaders, health professionals and government officials who have been personally inspired by the nominee. Interested nominators need to complete a Letter of Intent (LOI) form. Completed nominations will be due in November. Click here for details and forms or call 617/426-9772.
CAMPAIGNS AND INITIATIVES
JULY
UV Safety Month: July
For materials: 415/447-0213 eyemd@aao.org www.aao.org
AUGUST
World Breastfeeding Week: August 1-7
For materials: 847/519-7730 x286 MHurt@llli.org www.lalecheleague.org
Children's Eye Health and Safety Month: August
For materials: 800/331-2020 info@preventblindness.org www.preventblindness.org
Cataract Awareness Month: August
For materials: 415/447-0213 eyemd@aao.org www.aao.org
National Immunization Awareness Month: August
For materials: 703/836-6110 npi@hmhb.org www.partnersforimmunization.org
SEPTEMBER
World Suicide Prevention Day: September 10
For materials: 781/239-0071 info@mentalhealthscreening.org www.stopasuicide.org
Take A Loved One for a Check-up Day: September 19
U.S. Office of Minority Health
For materials: (800) 444-6472 info@omhrc.gov www.healthgap.omhrc.gov
Prostate Cancer Awareness Month: September
For materials: 888/245-9455 info@pcacoalition.org www.pcacoalition.org
National Sickle Cell Month: September
For materials: 800/421-8453 scdaa@sicklecelldisease.org www.SickleCellDisease.org
National Cholesterol Education Month: September
For materials:301/592-8573 nhlbiinfo@nhlbi.nih.gov hin.nhlbi.nih.gov/cholmonth
Healthy Aging Month: September
Educational Television Network, Inc.
For materials: 610/793-0979 info@healthyaging.net www.healthyaging.net
Leukemia & Lymphoma Awareness Month: September
For materials: 800/955-4572 infocenter@leukemia-lymphoma.org www.lls.org
Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month: September
For materials: 888/OVARIAN nocc@ovarian.org www.ovarian.org
Head Lice Prevention Month: September
For materials: 781/449-6487 npa@headlice.org www.headlice.org
National Alcohol and Drug Addiction Recovery Month: September
For materials: 800/729-6686 info@samhsa.gov www.recoverymonth.gov
Reye's Syndrome Awareness Month: September
For materials: 800/233-7393 nrsf@reyessyndrome.org www.reyessyndrome.org
OCTOBER
National Child Health Day: October 2
For materials: 301/443-2170 www.mchb.hrsa.gov
National Depression Screening Day: October 5
For materials: 781/239-0071 info@mentalhealthscreening.org www.mentalhealthscreening.org
National Health Education Week: October 16-20
For materials: 212/463-4053 ray@nche.org www.nche.org
National Mammography Day: October 20
For materials: 800/ACS-2345 www.cancer.org
Healthy Lung Month: October
For materials: 800/LUNG-USA (586-4872) info@lungusa.org www.lungusa.org
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month: October
For materials: 312/596-3400 nbcaminfo@yahoo.com www.nbcam.org/about_nbcam.cfm
National Family Sexuality Education Month: October
For materials: 212/541-7800 education@ppfa.org www.plannedparenthood.org
SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) Awareness Month: October
For materials: 800/221-7437 info@firstcandle.org www.firstcandle.org
Children's Health Month: October
For materials: 202/564-2188 www.childrenshealth.gov
National Hospice Month: November
For materials: 703/837-1500 nhpcoinfo@nhpco.org www.nhpco.org
Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month: November
For materials: 877/272-6226 information@pancan.org www.pancan.org
Lung Cancer Awareness Month: November
For materials: 800/298-2436 info@lungcanceralliance.org www.lungcanceralliance.org
National Family Caregivers Month: November
For materials: 800/896-3650 info@thefamilycaregiver.org www.thefamilycaregiver.org
American Diabetes Month: November
For materials: 800/DIABETES askada@diabetes.org www.diabetes.org
National Epilepsy Awareness Month: November
For materials: 800/332-1000 postmaster@efa.org www.epilepsyfoundation.org
Prematurity Awareness Month: November
Prematurity Awareness Day: Nov. 21
For materials: 888/MODIMES askus@marchofdimes.com www.marchofdimes.com
Great American Smokeout: Nov. 16
For materials: 800/ACS-2345 www.cancer.org
World AIDS Day: Dec. 1
For materials: unaids@unaids.org www.unaids.org/en/default.asp
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STATE HEALTH EVENTS AND NOTICES
July 11, 2006
WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA
Southeast Florida Events
KidCare Back to School Outreach Events
July 15 - Aug. 26 Tampa area locations
Part of the KidCare Back to School Marketing Campaign, these events will educate those potentially eligible and assist them with making applications. Click here for a list of dates and places around Tampa.
SOUTHEAST FLORIDA
Southeast Florida Events
Workplace Wellness Forum: The Chemistry of Stress and the Role of Nutrients in Stress Management
July 12 2:00 pm
Dept. of Health, 8323 NW 12th St., Miami
Stress is a leading cause of absenteeism and increased cost to employers. This workshop will provide information on how various stressors affect us (chemically, physically and emotionally) and on the nutritional and dietary aspects of stress management.
Southeast Florida Cancer Control Collaborative Meeting
August 3 10:00 am-3:00 pm
Miami-Dade County Health Dept, 9334 NW 17 St., Miami
Most of the meeting will be devoted to strategic planning. Click here to request more info or to obtain survey questions to submit your opinions for strategic planning; survey responses are due July 17.
Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Kickoff Breakfast
Aug. 3 7:30-9:00 am Biltmore Hotel, Coral Gables
This is a free event for people interested in learning more about forming a team for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K walk which will be held at Bayfront Park on October 7, 2006.
The Cervical Cancer Vaccine: Ask the Doctor
August 15 6:30-8:00 pm Gilda’s Club South Florida, 119 Rose Dr., Ft. Lauderdale
Dr. Jason Gates will discuss the new cervical cancer vaccine at this South Florida Cancer Control Collaborative event. Reservations required; call 954/763-6776.
Health Care and Social Security Issues Forum
August 21 1:00 PM South Palm Beach County Civic Center 16700 Jog Rd, Delray Beach
This event is sponsored by FLARA (Florida Alliance for Retired Americans) to hear from officials and candidates about their views on the future of healthcare and Social Security issues. For more information, call 561/792-8799.
Conference on Intervention
October 2-4 The Breakers Palm Beach Hotel
Click here for more information on this and four other events scheduled for 2006.
The Alliance for Human Services 4th Annual Institute hosts its 4th Annual Institute
October 27 Miami Beach Convention Center
Over 400 individuals (business leaders, social service providers, not-for-profit agencies, faith-based organizations, human service consumers) will gather to discuss and receive valuable information and innovative solutions on social service issues. The Alliance is dedicated to improving quality of life for Miami-Dade County residents through partnerships, coordination of resources, and community involvement. For more information, call 305/646-7274 or write ggrey@alliance4hs.org.
Southeast Florida Notices
South Florida Cancer Control Collaborative Planning Survey
Deadline: July 17
On August 3, SFCCC will undertake a strategic planning exercise. To begin this process, community opinions are being sought on issues related to cancer in South Florida. Contact dparker@med.miami.edu for a copy of the survey questions.
Association of Fundraising Professionals National Philanthropy Day 2006: Annual Call for Nominations
Deadline: July 17
Organizations have this opportunity to honor individuals, corporations, volunteers, foundations, organizations, and leaders whose remarkable vision, generosity, commitment, dedication and talent have enhanced the strength and effectiveness of philanthropic endeavors in Broward County. Nominations are now being accepted for Outstanding Philanthropist, Outstanding Foundation, Outstanding Volunteer Fundraiser, Outstanding Corporation, Outstanding Fundraising Executive and Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy. Recipients will be honored at the 18th Annual National Philanthropy Day Luncheon on Wednesday, November 15, 2006. Click here for full nomination procedures.
New Healthy Start Coalition Of Miami-Dade Website LAUNCHED! The website at www.hscmd.org will increase community awareness about the Healthy Start Coalition’s activities and accomplishments, and serve the women, infants and families of Miami-Dade County.
STATEWIDE
Events
Florida Conference on Aging 2006
August 14-17 Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel and Marina
For more information, click here.
2006 United States Conference on AIDS
Sept. 21-25 Hollywood Westin Diplomat
National Minority AIDS Council presents the largest AIDS-related gathering in the US, for over 4,000 case managers, physicians, public health workers and advocates to build national support networks, exchange the latest information and learn cutting-edge tools to address the challenges of HIV/AIDS. Click here for registration and more information including scholarships access.
10th Annual Joint Cancer Conference of the Florida Universities
Sept. 28-Oct. 1 The Breakers Hotel, Palm Beach
Click here for details.
12th Annual Children's Week
March 25-April 1, 2007 Tallahassee
Statewide Notices
Florida Cancer Clinical Trials Cooperative, Inc. (FCCTC) is a public resource that provides information about cancer clinical trials to Florida residents. They have a web-based and a phone-based Clinical Trial Matching Service that provides users with an opportunity to search for cancer clinical trials for which they might be eligible. The program allows people to print (or be mailed) information about potential trials to discuss with their physicians. The Florida Dialogue on Cancer established the FCCTC in 2004 and received a federal grant to create a clinical trials information system in Florida. Their data base includes current information about clinical trials at hospitals and research facilities throughout the state, including pediatric cancer trials. Information is available in English and Spanish. Go to http://www.floridacancertrials.com or call 1/800-584-9976
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