Deal Extends Funding for CHIP
The Senate Finance Committee has reached a deal to extend funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which was slated to run out of funds at the end of this month. According to The New York Times, the deal provides additional funding for 5 years and increases state flexibility in how the program is administered. Nearly 9 million children receive their health insurance through CHIP, which the federal government spends $14 billion on each year.
US Uninsured Rate Falls to Record Low
In 2016, 28.1 million Americans, or 8.8% of the population, were still without health insurance 3 years after the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The number of uninsured and the percentage are both record lows. Kaiser Health News reported that the uninsured rate was nearly 17% (50 million) when President Barack Obama took office in 2009. While the ACA has played a role, the improving economy, which had been in a recession in 2009, has also played a large role in the decline of uninsured. More than half of Americans still get their health insurance through their jobs.
Kaiser Names Dean of New Medical School
The Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine, set to open in 2019, has named its founding dean. Mark Schuster, MD, a health policy expert and pediatrician, has a history of creativity and innovation in patient care, which led Kaiser Permanente to appoint him, according to California Healthline. The school will not be affiliated with a university and will provide students with immediate hands-on clinical training that emphasizes teamwork. Schuster begins work in October, taking over from Christine Cassel, MD, who has been the planning dean of the medical school.
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.
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An Overview of Health Care and Pharmaceutical Trends, 2023-2024
April 19th 2024Douglas M. Long, BA, MBA, was featured as the keynote speaker on the closing day of The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy 2024 annual meeting, with a session dedicated to surveying the health care and pharmaceutical trends of the last year.
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Making Giant Strides in Maternity Health Through Baby Steps
April 9th 2024To help celebrate and recognize National Minority Health Month, we are kicking off a special month-long podcast series with our strategic alliance partner, UPMC Health Plan. Welcome to our first episode, which is all about the Baby Steps Maternity Program and its mission to support women throughout every step of their pregnancy journey.
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Government agencies have created an online portal for the public to report potential anticompetitive practices in health care; there are changes coming to the “boxed warning” section for chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapies (CAR T) to highlight T-cell blood cancer risk; questions about the safety of obesity medications during pregnancy have arisen in women on them who previously struggled with fertility issues.
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