The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) misunderstood a law for decades affecting healthcare access for veterans with less-than-honorable discharges; days after Super Tuesday and a decision by the Supreme Court to hear a Republican challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Democrats are eager to talk about the issue, but vulnerable Republicans are not; moderate drinking is linked with lower levels of beta amyloid, the protein that forms the brain plaques of Alzheimer disease.
Thousands of veterans with other-than-honorable discharges were unlawfully denied care for years by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), according to a study. The Washington Post said “systemic misunderstanding” of the law by the VA created denials of care since 1980, affecting an estimated 400,000 veterans who became at risk of never gaining access to healthcare. According to the Veterans Legal Clinic at Harvard Law School, the discharges, informally known as “bad paper” discharges, are given for instances of misconduct that can range from drug use to insubordination but were not proved in court, and can follow the service member for a lifetime. Although these discharges make it less likely that veterans will qualify for VA services, the agency is required by law to accept applications, look for mitigating circumstances, issue written decisions, and provide appeal information.
As former Vice President Joe Biden sits atop the contenders for the Democratic presidential nomination after Super Tuesday, Democrats are hoping to use the Supreme Court’s decision to hear a Republican challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to fuel a repeat of their 2018 victory in taking control of the House of Representatives, The Wall Street Journal reported. And as Democrats not aligned with Senator Bernie Sanders continue to champion protecting and expanding the ACA, vulnerable Republicans up for relection this year don’t want to discuss their opinions of the case, The Hill reported.A new study says that moderate drinking is linked with lower levels of beta amyloid, the protein that forms the brain plaques seen in Alzheimer disease, The New York Times reported. The findings, in PLOS Medicine, reported that people who drank 1 to 13 standard drinks a week had a 66% lower rate of beta amyloid deposits in their brains. The results applied only to those who drank moderately for decades, not to those who recently began drinking moderately or drank more than 13 drinks a week.
Empowering Community Health Through Wellness and Faith
April 23rd 2024To help celebrate and recognize National Minority Health Month, we are bringing you a special month-long podcast series with our Strategic Alliance Partner, UPMC Health Plan. In the third episode, Camille Clarke-Smith, EdD, MS, CHES, CPT, discusses approaching community health holistically through spiritual and community engagement.
Listen
What We’re Reading: Abortion Privacy Rules; Alzheimer Drug Hurdles; Nursing Home Staffing Overhaul
April 23rd 2024New health privacy rules aim to protect patients and providers in an evolving abortion landscape; some physicians express concerns about efficacy, risks, and entrenched beliefs in treating Alzheimer disease; CMS addresses longstanding staffing deficits in nursing homes.
Read More
Overcoming Employment Barriers for Lasting Social Impact: Freedom House 2.0 and Pathways to Work
April 16th 2024To help celebrate and recognize National Minority Health Month, we are bringing you a special month-long podcast series with our Strategic Alliance Partner, UPMC Health Plan. Welcome to our second episode, in which we learn all about Freedom House 2.0 and the Pathways to Work program.
Listen
Survey Results Reveal Potential Factors Slowing the Decline in Cardiovascular Mortality Rate
April 23rd 2024Research indicated that worsened glycemic, blood pressure, and obesity control, as well as increased alcohol consumption, leveled lipid control, and persistent socioeconomic disparities may have contributed to the decelerated cardiovascular mortality decline in recent years.
Read More
Award-Winning Poster Presentations From AMCP 2024
April 23rd 2024At the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) 2024 annual meeting, multiple poster presentations concerned with health equity, data collection, glucagon-like peptide-1 agonists, and more were acknowledged for their originality, relevance, clarity, bias, and quality.
Read More