Health Policy Commons^™

Community Health Centers: The Challenge Of Growing To Meet The Need For Primary Care In Medically Underserved Communities, Peter Shin, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Julia Paradise

Geiger Gibson/RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative

No abstract provided.

Community Health Centers: The Challenge Of Growing To Meet The Need For Primary Care In Medically Underserved Communities, Tishra Beeson, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Jessica Sharac, Peter Shin, Julia Paradise

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

This policy brief profiles health centers and the patients they serve, discusses how health centers are funded, and traces the history of health center growth. It closely examines the recent reduction in both federal appropriations and state grants for health centers, state cutbacks in benefits for adult Medicaid beneficiaries, and the anticipated impact of President Obama's FY 2013 request for federal funding for health centers. Finally, it looks ahead to both the challenges and opportunities health centers face as the nation prepares for 2014, when the ACA will be fully implemented.

Medicaid And Community Health Centers: The Relationship Between Coverage For Adults And Primary Care Capacity In Medically Underserved Communities, Peter Shin, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Brian K. Bruen, Alice (Xiao-Xiao) Lu, Rachel Arguello, Jennifer Tolbert

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

Community health centers play an important role in providing care to uninsured and low-income individuals living in medically underserved communities. They rely on many different revenue sources and, over time, Medicaid has become a central source of funding for most health centers. To better understand how Medicaid influences health center practice, this paper compares the strength of health centers in states that have expanded Medicaid coverage for adults to health centers in states with more limited Medicaid coverage for adults. Differences between the two groups of health centers help shed light on the implications of broader Medicaid coverage for low-income …

Estimating Medical Cost Offsets Attributable To Public Health Spending, Glen P. Mays

Health Management and Policy Presentations

Uncertainty about the magnitude and timing of economic returns associated with spending on public health services has contributed to policy debates about the optimal role of the federal government in financing these services.

Intentional Weight Loss And Dose Reductions Of Anti-Diabtetic Medications: A Retrospective Cohort Study, Anita Ashok Kumar, Ghanshyam Palamaner Subash Shantha, Scott Kahan, Rohit Joshua Samson, Nelson David Boddu, Lawrence Jay Cheskin

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

Background and Aim

Intentional weight loss, primarily by improving insulin resistance, is known to decrease the need for anti-diabetic medications. In this study, we assess the magnitude of weight loss that resulted in dose reductions or discontinuation of anti-diabetic medications in overweight or obese patients with type 2 diabetes (DM) undergoing weight loss treatment.

Methods

Case records of 50 overweight or obese patients with DM who successfully decreased dosage or discontinued diabetes medications after losing weight via attendance at two University-based, outpatient weight management centers were analyzed. Follow-up visits, weight reduction interventions, and decisions for dose reductions or discontinuation of …

Should Marijuana Be Decriminalized? [An Annotated Bibliography], Christina M. Costa

Undergraduate Research Award

No abstract provided.

Catholic Claims Stretch The First Amendment, Ellis M. West

Political Science Faculty Publications

The Obama administration recently issued a regulation requiring all employers except religious organizations to include contraceptives in their employees' health insurance. The Catholic Church and various politicians have accused the administration of violating the church's religious freedom. Although the administration has modified its original regulation, it continues to be attacked for "waging war" on religious freedom.

Public Health Spending, Preventable Outcomes, And Medical Cost Offsets: Questions For Health Reform, Glen P. Mays

Health Management and Policy Presentations

Uncertainty continues to surround the health and economic effects that can be expected from increased federal spending on public health and prevention strategies. Recent research provides some insight into the question of whether spending on public health strategies can offset the need for future spending on medical care.

Examining The Evidentiary Basis Of Congress's Commerce Clause Power To Address Individuals' Health Insurance Status, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Leighton C. Ku, Paula M. Lantz, Holly Mead, Michal Mcdowell

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

Chief among the issues that the United States Supreme Court considers in United States Department of Health and Human Services et al. v Florida et al. is the questionof whether Congress has the constitutional power to apply a “minimum essential coverage requirement” on most nonelderly Americans. Opponents of the provision (referred to under the Act as the “Individual Responsibility” requirement) argue that compelling individuals to buy affordable health insurance coverage exceeds Congressional powers. By contrast, the United States Department of Justice and supporters of the law assert that the minimum coverage requirement is consistent with a long line of Supreme …

Increasing Consumer Involvement In Medicaid Nursing Facility Reimbursement: Lessons From New York And Minnesota, Edward Alan Miller, Cynthia Rudder

Gerontology Institute Publications

Medicaid is the major purchaser of nursing home care in the United States. States design their methods of reimbursing nursing homes to achieve desired policy objectives related to facility cost and quality, access to care, payment equity, service capacity, and budgetary control. The incorporation of multiple, sometimes conflicting incentives into state reimbursement systems has resulted in enormously complex and demanding methodologies that inhibit consumer participation in state rating setting decisions. In turn, the lack of consumer involvement has the potential to result in the adoption of reimbursement systems that favor industry and government interests at the expense of issues important …

Slides: Unconventional Gas And Oil – Potential Air Emissions, John Imse

Air Quality Impacts from Oil and Gas Development (January 27)

Presenter: John Imse, Hydrogeologist, ENVIRON International Corporation presents an overview of the current methods for developing a shale play and the typical site operations

10 slides

Slides: Air Monitoring And Litigation Update, John Jacus

Air Quality Impacts from Oil and Gas Development (January 27)

Presenter: John Jacus, Partner, Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP, reviews recent litigation aimed at oil and gas development activities with respect to air emissions impacts, and also several recent and ongoing studies and ambient monitoring efforts focused upon air emissions from oil and gas activities

23 slides

Slides: Air Quality - Oil And Gas Development, Paul R. Tourangeau

Air Quality Impacts from Oil and Gas Development (January 27)

Presenter: Paul Tourangeau, Assistant General Counsel, DCP Midstream, LP and former Director, Colorado Air Pollution Control Division, addresses regulatory requirements and policies related to air emissions from the oil and gas sector, including recent and current initiatives at the state and federal level

8 slides

Slides: Hydrofracking: Air Issues And Community Exposure, Debra A. Kaden

Air Quality Impacts from Oil and Gas Development (January 27)

Presenter: Debra Kaden, Ph.D., Toxicologist, ENVIRON International Corporation, discusses air concentrations of chemicals of potential health concern surrounding oil and gas development activities, as well as temporal and spatial patterns of these chemicals in the ambient environment. Such information is necessary to evaluate possible health impacts of the drilling process on air in surrounding communities.

19 slides

Agenda: Air Quality Impacts From Oil And Gas Development, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center

Air Quality Impacts from Oil and Gas Development (January 27)

Oil and gas development and hydraulic fracturing have received enormous attention over the past few years, and most of that attention has focused on the potential impacts of such development on water quality. However, the potential impacts on air quality from oil and gas development have received far less public and media attention and discussion. This two-hour program will assess the current scientific knowledge, regulatory requirements and policies regarding the impacts on air quality from oil and gas development and will address current initiatives at the state and national levels to further regulate and control those impacts.

Quality Incentives For Federally Qualified Health Centers, Rural Health Clinics And Free Clinics: A Report To Congress, Leighton C. Ku, Merle Cunningham, Debora Goetz Goldberg, Julie S. Darnell, Martin Hiller, Peter Shin, Alice R. Levy, Kate Buchanan, Fraser Rothenberg Byrne

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

This report to Congress is submitted pursuant to Section 13113(b) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (hereafter, the Recovery Act), under Title XIII, also known as the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act or the HITECH Act. The Section requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide a study that examines methods to create efficient reimbursement incentives for improving health care quality in federally qualified health centers, rural health clinics, and free clinics.

The report discusses current initiatives and incentives that apply to these categories of primary care clinics and the current …

Saving Money: The Massachusetts Tobacco Cessation Medicaid Benefit: A Policy Paper, Leighton C. Ku, David Zauche, E. Ripley Forbes

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

In the United States, about 70% of smokers want to quit and 50% make a quit attempt each year. Unfortunately, only a small percent are successful, due in part to the lack of easy access to tobacco dependence treatments that have been proven effective. In light of the societal costs of tobacco-related illness, government must do everything it can to encourage and enable smokers to quit.

The tobacco use landscape in this country has changed in recent years -- people with lower income and education levels have a much higher probability of smoking. For instance, the smoking rate for those …

The Return On Investment Of A Medicaid Tobacco Cessation Program In Massachusetts, Patrick Richard, Kristina West, Leighton Ku

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

Background and Objective

A high proportion of low-income people insured by the Medicaid program smoke. Earlier research concerning a comprehensive tobacco cessation program implemented by the state of Massachusetts indicated that it was successful in reducing smoking prevalence and those who received tobacco cessation benefits had lower rates of in-patient admissions for cardiovascular conditions, including acute myocardial infarction, coronary atherosclerosis and non-specific chest pain. This study estimates the costs of the tobacco cessation benefit and the short-term Medicaid savings attributable to the aversion of inpatient hospitalization for cardiovascular conditions.

Methods

A cost-benefit analysis approach was used to estimate the program's …

Champaign County Youth Risk Factors Survey, Center For Urban And Public Affairs, Wright State University

Public Health

In 2012, APRI (formerly CUPA) partnered with the Champaign Health District to conduct a youth health assessment with students in Champaign County schools. The assessment is part of a larger community health assessment which also includes a survey of adults in Champaign County and strategic planning based upon the outcome of the surveys.

Two surveys were developed to assess youth risk behaviors—a middle school instrument and a high school instrument. Survey questions modeled questions from the Search Institute’s Developmental Assets survey, as authorized by the Search Institute, along with selected questions from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YBRS), conducted by …

Clark County Community Health Assessment, Center For Urban And Public Affairs, Wright State University

Public Health

The 2012 Clark County Community Health Assessment consists of a telephone survey of 1,053 Clark County adults. The primary purpose of the survey of adults is to evaluate the health status of residents, establish public health priorities, and identify baseline measures for establishing public health program outcomes.

The assessment is based upon questions from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey conducted annually by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as community health assessments conducted by neighboring communities and priority health needs within the county. The assessment addresses access to and utilization of health care; …

Improving Patient Flow And Reducing Emergency Department Crowding: A Guide For Hospitals, Megan Mchugh, Kevin Vandyke, Mark Mcclelland, Dina Moss

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Survey Of Sub-Saharan African Medical Schools, Candice Chen, Eric Buch, Travis Wasserman, Seble Frehywot, Fitzhugh Mullan, Francis Omaswa, S. R. Greysen, Joseph C. Kolars, Delanyo Dovlo, Diaa El Gali Abu Bakr, Abraham Abraham Haileamlak, Abdel K. Koumare, Emiola O. Olapade-Olaopa

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

Background

Sub-Saharan Africa suffers a disproportionate share of the world's burden of disease while having some of the world's greatest health care workforce shortages. Doctors are an important component of any high functioning health care system. However, efforts to strengthen the doctor workforce in the region have been limited by a small number of medical schools with limited enrolments, international migration of graduates, poor geographic distribution of doctors, and insufficient data on medical schools. The goal of the Sub-Saharan African Medical Schools Study (SAMSS) is to increase the level of understanding and expand the baseline data on medical schools in …

Duration Of Patients’ Visits To The Hospital Emergency Department, Zeynal Karaca, Herbert S. Wong, Ryan L. Mutter

Health Policy and Management Faculty Publications

Background

Length of stay is an important indicator of quality of care in Emergency Departments (ED). This study explores the duration of patients’ visits to the ED for which they are treated and released (T&R).

Methods

Retrospective data analysis and multivariate regression analysis were conducted to investigate the duration of T&R ED visits. Duration for each visit was computed by taking the difference between admission and discharge times. The Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) State Emergency Department Databases (SEDD) for 2008 were used in the analysis.

Results

The mean duration of T&R ED visit was 195.7 minutes. The average …

Purging Healthcare Of Conventional "Wisdom" - An Interview With Liak Teng Lit, Lien Centre For Social Innovation

Social Space

Liak Teng Lit is known for his iconoclastic views and for pushing the envelope on healthcare and other social causes. Social Space visits the maverick in his award-winning Khoo Teck Puat Hospital for some wake-up calls.

Hunger And U.S. Governmental Policies, Evangelical Advocacy: A Response To Global Poverty

Bibliographies

No abstract provided.

Defining Development And Foreign Aid, Evangelical Advocacy: A Response To Global Poverty

Bibliographies

A bibliography featuring primary authors, leading books, important papers, and other key publications introducing international development and offering a comprehensive overview of foreign aid.

Combating Medicare Fraud: A Struggling Work In Progress, Natalie Thorpe,, Stacie Deslich, Andrew Sikula Sr., Alberto Coustasse

Management Faculty Research

INTRODUCTION: The United States has spent approximately $2.6 trillion on healthcare in recent years. This accounts for 17.9% of the national gross domestic product. Fraud has been identified as one of the leading causes of the nation's increasing health expense. Medicare fraud has taken many forms including overutilization, upcoding, billing for services not provided and filing false cost reports. Fraud has been found throughout the healthcare industry and has been difficult to detect.

METHODOLOGY: The methodology for this qualitative study was a literature review. Four electronic databases and several government websites were utilized. Thirty nine sources were referenced for this …

The Emergence And Potential Impact Of Medicine 2.0 In The Healthcare Industry, Terra Stump, Sarah Zilch, Alberto Coustasse

Management Faculty Research

Medicine 2.0 has emerged within healthcare information technology to enable more defined relationships among providers and patients. Physicians, hospitals, and patients are using Medicine 2.0 through social networking to maintain their foothold in the evolution of medical technologies. The authors’ purpose was to determine potential improvements that Medicine 2.0 has on communication and collaboration of healthcare information. Research has shown that Medicine 2.0 has integrated into the healthcare industry and is enabling an increase in communication in healthcare matters. The provider-patient relationship is improving through the use of Medicine 2.0 and has positively impacted society so far.

Using First Nations Children's Perceptions Of Food And Activity To Inform An Obesity Prevention Strategy, Ashlee-Ann E. Pigford, Noreen D. Willows, Nicholas L. Holt, Amanda S. Newton, Geoff D.C. Ball

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

No abstract provided.

Do Indigenous Australians Age Prematurely? The Implications Of Life Expectancy And Health Conditions Of Older Indigenous People For Health And Aged Care Policy, Philippa R. Cotter, John R. Condon, Tony Barnes, Ian P.S. Anderson, Leonard R. Smith, Teresa Cunningham

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

Objective. To assess whether Indigenous Australians age prematurely compared with other Australians, as implied by Australian Government aged care policy, which uses age 50 years and over for population-based planning for Indigenous people compared with 70 years for non-indigenous people.

Methods. Cross-sectional analysis of aged care assessment, hospital and health survey data comparing Indigenous and non-indigenous age-specific prevalence of health conditions. Analysis of life tables for Indigenous and non-indigenous populations comparing life expectancy at different ages.

Results. At age 63 for women and age 65 for men, Indigenous people had the same life expectancy as non-indigenous people at age 70. …