Today's Health News
Today's Health News is a free, daily compilation of select health news in Colorado and nationally. Subscribe, unsubscribe or manage your RSS News Feeds and automatic email notifications.
Five Hospitals In Denver Area Expand Or Replace Old Facilities
The Denver Channel
Hospitals around Denver are booming in the bad economy, with several on an expansion spree worth at least $2 billion even as the ailing economy trims growth in other industries. At least five hospitals in and around Denver are expanding or replacing old facilities. They're adding beds, new treatment procedures and modernizing old equipment. Fueling the trend are low interest rates and increased health insurance coverage expected because of the new health care law. Hospitals are also scrambling to meet rising demand caused by population growth, The Denver Post reports.
Growing Number Of Patients Find A Hospital Stay Does Not Mean They're Admitted
Kaiser Health News and The Washington Post
"After Ann Callan, 85, fell and broke four ribs, she spent six days at Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring. Doctors and nurses examined her daily and gave her medications and oxygen to help her breathe. But when she was discharged in early January, her family got a surprise: Medicare would not pay for her follow-up nursing home care, because she did not have the prerequisite three days of inpatient care. She was in observation care, which Medicare considers outpatient care. That means beneficiaries must cover a bigger share of drug costs and other expenses than they would when receiving inpatient care."
Health Care Wastefulness is Detailed in Studies
New York Times
In a snapshot of systemic waste, researchers have calculated that more than half of the 354 million doctor visits made each year for acute medical care, like for fevers, stomachaches and coughs, are not with a patient's primary physician, and that more than a quarter take place in hospital emergency rooms.
Malpractice Costs Add Less Than 3% to Nation's Healthcare Tab
Medpage Today
Costs associated with medical malpractice added about $55.6 billion to the nation's total health care costs in 2008 -- roughly 2.4% of a more than $2.3-trillion tab -- and most of that money went to pay for tests, procedures, and treatments associated with defensive medicine, according to an analysis by Harvard researchers.
Medicare Head Pushes Health Care Test Sites
Boston Globe
Newly installed Medicare chief Donald Berwick, keeping a low public profile after encountering controversy over his appointment, is moving quickly behind the scenes to seed the US health care system with 100 to 300 sites to test new models of caring for patients.
Medicare Will Experiment With Expansion Of Hospice Coverage
Kaiser Health News
In this Kaiser Health News consumer column, Michelle Andrews writes: "Many people may not realize that, in some ways, the new health law will expand options for patients at the end of life. One of these involves hospice care, in which a team of specially trained providers treats dying patients' pain and other symptoms but doesn't try to cure the underlying disease."
Mental Health Parity Act May Affect Your Medical Benefits
Los Angeles Times
The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, by some estimates, could affect the health coverage of approximately 113 million Americans. Exactly how it will affect them, though, will vary widely.
Patients' Choices May Narrow As Insurers Adjust Standards For Doctors, Hospitals
Chicago Tribune
The new federal health care law is bringing additional demands by insurance companies that doctors and hospitals be held to higher quality standards.
Participation In Children's Health Insurance Program Varies Widely Across Country
Kaiser Health News
"The hunt for the nearly 5 million uninsured U.S. children who are eligible for free or low-cost coverage through Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program just got a road map. A new study published today in Health Affairs shows that 39 percent of the uninsured but eligible kids live in three states: California, Texas and Florida."
Rural Healthcare in Colorado to See Improvements
Public News Service
Under the new federal health care reform plan, medical services are expected to become more patient-friendly for the more than 700,000 Coloradans who live in rural areas.