News Archive
Health At A Glance 2011: OECD Indicators [November 29, 2011]
Tavenner To Replace Berwick At CMS Helm [November 28, 2011]
Employees In Postsecondary Institutions, Fall 2010, And Salaries Of Full-Time Instructional Staff, 2010-11 [November 23, 2011]
Top Health Industry Issues Of 2012 [November 22, 2011]
Medical School Enrollment Reaches An All-Time High [November 21, 2011]
Study Highlights The Impact Of Potential Cuts To GME Funding [November 18, 2011]
Over 100,000 Primary Care Providers Sign Up To Adopt Electronic Health Records Through Regional Extension Centers [November 17, 2011]
Health Worker Shortages And Global Justice [November 16, 2011]
Health Care Innovation Challenge Funding Available [November 15, 2011]
Improving Health Literacy Within A State [November 14, 2011]
Health IT And Patient Safety: Building Safer Systems For Better Care [November 11, 2011]
Federally Qualified Health Centers Poised For Significant Role In Reform [November 10, 2011]
Survey Of Patients With Complex Care Needs In Eleven Countries Finds That Care Is Often Poorly Coordinated [November 9, 2011]
State Of Health Care Quality 2011 [November 8, 2011]
Blue Ribbon Panel On Global Arrangement Report Informs Next Steps For American Higher Education [November 7, 2011]
Accountable Care Organizations In Medicare And The Private Sector [November 4, 2011]
Using Report Cards To Measure Racial And Ethnic Health Disparities: State Experience [November 3, 2011]
Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance: Down, But Not Out [November 2, 2011]
States Are Cutting Medicaid Funding [November 1, 2011]
State-By-State Report Card On Access To Palliative Care In Our Nation’s Hospitals [October 31, 2011]
National Scorecard On U.S. Health System Performance [October 28, 2011]
Trends In College Pricing 2011 [October 27, 2011]
Physicians Need More Training On How To Use EHRs [October 26, 2011]
Medicaid: A Lifeline For Blacks And Latinos With Serious Health Care Needs [October 25, 2011]
Complexities Of National Health Care Workforce Planning [October 24, 2011]
Comparative Indicators Of Education In The United States And Other G-8 Countries: 2011 [October 14, 2011]
Record Numbers For National Health Services Corps [October 13, 2011]
Health People 2010: Final Review [October 12, 2011]
Achieving High Performance Health Care For Vulnerable Populations [October 11, 2011]
Race And Ethnicity Interactions In The Classroom [October 7, 2011]
Minorities In Higher Education [October 6, 2011]
Undergraduate Enrollment In Distance Education Courses And Degree Programs [October 5, 2011]
The Effect Of Racial Segregation On Health Inequalities [October 4, 2011]
Patients Charting The Course: Citizen Engagement In The Learning Health System--Workshop Summary [October 3, 2011]
Health At A Glance 2011: OECD Indicators
This sixth edition of Health at a Glance provides the latest comparable data on different aspects of the performance of health systems in OECD countries. It provides striking evidence of large variations across countries in the costs, activities and results of health systems. For the first time, it also features a chapter on long-term care. This edition presents data for all OECD member countries. Where possible, it also reports data for Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, the Russian Federation and South Africa, as major non-OECD economies.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.asahp.org/ASAHP_tutorial/index.htm.
Tavenner To Replace Berwick At CMS Helm
Marilyn Tavenner was chosen on November 23 to succeed Donald Berwick as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Tavenner, who is the agency’s principal deputy administrator, will serve on an acting basis as administrator during the confirmation process. Berwick was not confirmed by the Senate and instead obtained a recess appointment from President Obama. His appointment expires December 31 and he will step down on December 2.
Additional information can be accessed by clicking http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Stories/2011/November/23/tavenner.aspx.
Employees In Postsecondary Institutions, Fall 2010, And Salaries Of Full-Time Instructional Staff, 2010-11
This First Look presents data from the Winter 2010-11 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), including data on the number of staff employed in Title IV postsecondary institutions in fall 2010 by primary function/occupational activity, length of contract/teaching period, employment status, salary class interval, faculty and tenure status, academic rank, and gender.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2012/2012276.pdf.
Top Health Industry Issues Of 2012
According to a new report from PricewaterhouseCoopers, in 2012, health industry organizations will connect in new ways with each other and their consumers as they wade through economic, regulatory, and political uncertainty. Some are stepping forward in cooperation; others are rewriting the rules of competition. Among the key issues we will see value move from theory to reality, investments ramp up in informatics, the effects of drug shortages, insurers gear up to compete in a new insurance exchange marketplace, pharmaceutical companies slim down, and healthcare increasing its social media presence.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://pwchealth.com/cgi-local/hregister.cgi?link=reg/top-health-industry-issues-of-2012.pdf.
Medical School Enrollment Reaches An All-Time High
The number of first-time applicants to medical school reached an all-time high in 2011, increasing 2.6 percent over 2010 to 32,654, according to new data released by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). This is the largest first-time applicant pool since the AAMC began tracking such information in 1989. The total number of applicants grew by 2.8 percent this year to 43,919, up from 42,741 in 2010. Medical school first-year enrollment increased by 3 percent over 2010 data, with 19,230 students entering the 2011 class. The gender breakdown was steady over last year, at 53 percent male and 47 percent female.
Additional information can be accessed by clicking https://www.aamc.org/newsroom/reporter/november2011/266832/enrollment.html.
Study Highlights The Impact Of Potential Cuts To GME Funding
The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) released a study based on survey responses from institutions representing nearly 70 percent of all U.S. ACGME accredited programs. It assesses the impact of potential GME funding cuts being discussed by the Congressional "supercommittee" on the U.S. educational pipeline for physicians. Core residency programs, such as family medicine and general internal programs, likely would see dramatic reductions in residency positions, which could leave underserved communities without access to medical care.
Additional information can be accessed by clicking http://www.acgme.org/acWebsite/home/ImpactReductionFederalGMEFundingTJN.pdf.
Over 100,000 Primary Care Providers Sign Up To Adopt Electronic Health Records Through Regional Extension Centers
The HHS Office for the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology announced today that more than 100,000 primary care providers are adopting certified Electronic Health Records (EHRs) to help improve their quality of care and ultimately lower health care costs. This commitment by more than one-third of all primary care providers nationwide to work with their Regional Extension Center (REC) to participate in the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs as a way to transition from paper records to certified EHRs, represents a major step toward broader and more meaningful use of health IT.
Health Worker Shortages And Global Justice
For a functioning health system to work, having the appropriate mix of skilled health care workers is fundamental, but what is experienced now is a global health worker shortage of staggering proportions. A paper from the Milbank Memorial Fund offers seven recommendations to the U.S. government to address the global health worker shortage, including building its own workforce with a focus on self-sufficiency and task shifting, collaborating with the international community, and reforming its global health assistance programs to help developing countries educate and retain their own workers. Such initiatives will have clear benefits for all Americans and others around the world.
The paper can be accessed by clicking http://www.milbank.org/reports/HealthWorkerShortages_Mech/HealthWorkerShortages_Mech.html.
Health Care Innovation Challenge Funding Available
Up to $1 billion dollars will be awarded to innovative projects across the country that test creative ways to deliver high quality medical care and save money. Launched yesterday by the Department of Health and Human Services, the Health Care Innovation Challenge will give preference to projects that rapidly hire, train and deploy health care workers. Funded by the Affordable Care Act, grants will be awarded in March to applicants who will implement the most compelling new ideas to deliver better health, improved care and lower costs to individuals enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, particularly those with the highest health care needs. The Challenge will support projects that can begin within six months.
Additional information can be accessed by clicking http://www.innovation.cms.gov/initiatives/innovation-challenge/index.html.
Improving Health Literacy Within A State
Nearly half of all American adults lack health literacy. In order to improve knowledge among these individuals, the Institute of Medicine’s Roundtable on Health Literacy held a workshop on November 30, 2010, to explore ways in which state-based organizations and individuals can work to make improvements. A new report summarizes the workshop.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=13185.
Health IT And Patient Safety: Building Safer Systems For Better Care
How can using health IT affect patient safety? A new Institute of Medicine (IOM) report evaluates the effects of health IT on patient safety and recommends ways to use technology to enhance care.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=13269.
Federally Qualified Health Centers Poised For Significant Role In Reform
Tracing their roots to the civil rights movement and the 1960s’ War on Poverty, federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) have grown from fringe providers to mainstays of many local health care system safety nets, according to a research brief from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC) that was released today.
The research brief can be accessed by clicking http://www.hschange.org/CONTENT/1257/1257.pdf.
Survey Of Patients With Complex Care Needs In Eleven Countries Finds That Care Is Often Poorly Coordinated
An international survey of adults living with health problems and complex care needs found that patients in the United States are much more likely than those in 10 other high-income countries to forgo needed care because of costs and to struggle with medical debt. In all the countries surveyed, patients who have a medical home reported better coordination of care, fewer medical errors, and greater satisfaction with care than those without one.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/early/2011/11/02/hlthaff.2011.0923.full.pdf+html.
State Of Health Care Quality 2011
Annual analysis from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) notes important facts about the overall quality of U.S. health care. The new State of Health Care Quality Report includes NCQA’s latest findings about the nation’s health care system.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.ncqa.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=FpMqqpADPo8%3d&tabid=836.
Blue Ribbon Panel On Global Arrangement Report Informs Next Steps For American Higher Education
U.S. colleges and universities have historically set the benchmark for excellence in higher education, but these institutions will have to adapt and collaborate with their peers abroad in the coming years to remain competitive. Assisting institutions in addressing these challenges is the centerpiece of a report issued today by the American Council on Education (ACE), which charts a new agenda for global engagement in higher education.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.acenet.edu/bookstore/pdf/2011_CIGE_BRPReport.pdf.
Accountable Care Organizations In Medicare And The Private Sector
An issue paper from the Urban Institute examines the latest developments in accountable care organizations (ACOs), including a look at the final regulations on ACOs issued in October 2011 by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). This paper provides an overview of ACOs, the key complaints about CMS' proposed regulations and their resolution in the final regulations, and the status of adoption of this new model for delivering health care by both Medicare and private health insurance plans.
The paper can be accessed by clicking http://www.urban.org/uploadedpdf/412438-Accountable-Care-Organizations-in-Medicare-and-the-Private-Sector.pdf.
Using Report Cards To Measure Racial And Ethnic Health Disparities: State Experience
State agencies identify, document, and act on data related to racial and ethnic health and health care disparities in various ways. One type of document states produce is a “report card,” or a publication that uses data from race/ethnicity-specific measures to assign letter grades that rate the state's performance. An issue brief, prepared by the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP) for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), focuses on New Mexico’s experience using report cards to measure racial and ethnic health disparities.
The issue brief can be accessed by clicking http://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov/reports/race/ReportcardsIB.pdf.
Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance: Down, But Not Out
Results described in a new Issue Brief indicate that rising costs and the lingering fallout from the great recession are altering the calculus of employer approaches to offering health benefits, according to findings from the Center for Studying Health System Change’s (HSC) 2010 site visits to 12 nationally representative metropolitan communities. Employers responded to the economic downturn by continuing to shift health care costs to employees, with the trend more pronounced in small, mid-sized and low-wage firms. At the same time, employers and health plans are dissatisfied and frustrated with their inability to influence medical cost trends by controlling utilization or negotiating more-favorable provider contracts.
The issue brief can be accessed by clicking http://www.hschange.org/CONTENT/1251/1251.pdf.
States Are Cutting Medicaid Funding
Medicaid officials in states throughout the nation are cutting medical providers' payments, turning more to managed care strategies and pushing some costs on to patients in order to compensate for the biggest one-year increase in spending in the program's history, according to a new report released by the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured. The dramatic spike in Medicaid costs to states is due in part to the loss of extra federal funding that had postponed the pain for a few years. The 2009 stimulus law (PL 111-5) contained nearly $90 billion in additional Medicaid money, but those funds expired at the end of June when the fiscal 2012 year was starting in most states. As a result, state spending is increasing 28.7 percent in fiscal 2012, after rising 10.8 percent last year.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.kff.org/medicaid/upload/8248.pdf.
State-By-State Report Card On Access To Palliative Care In Our Nation’s Hospitals
Despite the myriad benefits of palliative care, as well as its recent growth, more progress is needed. Availability varies considerably by region and by state. The 2011 State-by-State Report Card updates the 2008 Report Card. The study, America′s Care of Serious Illness: A State-by-State Report Card on Access to Palliative Care in Our Nation′s Hospitals, conducted by the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) and National Palliative Care Research Center (NPCRC), examines variation in access to palliative care at the state level in order to help both the public and policymakers increase the availability of these services for all Americans in need.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.capc.org/reportcard/pdf/state-by-state-report-card.pdf .
National Scorecard On U.S. Health System Performance
As the United States implements national health care reforms, it is instructive to take stock of how well the health system is able to provide access to high-quality, efficiently delivered care. Evidence from the new 2011 edition of the National Scorecard on U.S. Health System Performance shows substantial erosion in access to such care in the period leading up to health reform, along with rising costs that are stressing families, businesses, and all levels of government.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.commonwealthfund.org/~/media/Files/Publications/Fund%20Report/2011/Oct/1500_WNTB_Natl_Scorecard_2011_web.pdf.
Trends In College Pricing 2011
Trends in College Pricing provides information on changes over time in undergraduate tuition and fees, room and board, and other estimated expenses related to attending colleges and universities. The report, which includes data through 2011-12 from the College Board's Annual Survey of Colleges, reveals the wide variation in prices charged by institutions of different types and in different parts of the country.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://trends.collegeboard.org/downloads/College_Pricing_2011.pdf.
Physicians Need More Training On How To Use EHRs
A report released by AmericanEHR Partners highlights physicians’ experiences with the usability of EHRs to achieve some Meaningful Use requirements. Survey data, from more than 2,300 physicians, were collected from April 2010 to July 2011 on satisfaction with their use of EHR systems. It also provides strong evidence that clinicians do not receive adequate training to effectively use their EHRs.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.americanehr.com/education/research-reports.aspx.
Medicaid: A Lifeline For Blacks And Latinos With Serious Health Care Needs
A report commissioned by the Families USA, the Joint Center Health Policy Institute and other allies, describes the likely impact on African Americans and Latinos of cuts to Medicaid, the program on which millions of low-income Americans rely. It contains state-specific data for blacks and Latinos who rely on Medicaid and suffer from chronic medical conditions such as cancer, diabetes, chronic lung disease and heart disease.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://jointcenter.org/sites/default/files/upload/research/files/Medicaid-Helps-Blacks-and-Latinos.pdf.
Complexities Of National Health Care Workforce Planning
With employment growth in the health care sector expected to continue, the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Health Project examines the future of the workforce in a new report.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.bipartisanpolicy.org/sites/default/files/Workforce%20Study.pdf.
Comparative Indicators Of Education In The United States And Other G-8 Countries: 2011
A new report describes key education outcomes and contexts of education in the Group of Eight (G-8) countries—Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The report is organized into five topical areas: population and school enrollment, academic performance, contexts for learning, expenditures for education, and educational attainment and income. Results are drawn from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) ongoing Indicators of Education Systems (INES) program and the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), which is also coordinated by the OECD.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2012/2012007.pdf.
Record Numbers For National Health Services Corps
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that the number of participants in the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) has nearly tripled. Today, more than 10,000 National Corps members – doctors, nurses and other health care providers – care for Americans in communities nationwide. Thanks to investments in the National Health Service Corps through the Affordable Care Act, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and annual appropriations, the NHSC has awarded nearly $900 million in scholarships and loan repayment to health care professionals to help expand the country’s primary care workforce and meet the health care needs of communities across the country.
Healthy People 2010: Final Review
A review of the Healthy People 2010 report shows significant progress in an array of health improvement initiatives, yet health disparities and child and adult obesity remain considerable challenges for public health professionals. The review took a look at over 700 health indicators between 2000 and 2010. It’s seen as a roadmap for the country intended to galvanize state, local and federal health departments to seize new opportunities to improve health for all Americans. According to the review, the adult obesity rate has jumped to 34 percent in 2008 from 23 percent in 1994, a 50 percent increase. Cancer mortality dropped 11 percent over the past decade, but still didn’t meet its target.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hpdata2010/hp2010_final_review.pdf.
Achieving High Performance Health Care For Vulnerable Populations
A report from The Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System examines the problems facing vulnerable populations and offers a framework for moving forward. It features three overarching strategies to close the health care divide: 1) ensure that health coverage provides adequate access and financial protection, 2) strengthen the care delivery systems serving vulnerable populations, and 3) coordinate care delivery with other community resources, including public health services.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.commonwealthfund.org/~/media/Files/Publications/Fund%20Report/2011/Oct/1547_Schor_ensuring_equity_postreform_vulnerable_populations_v2.pdf.
Race And Ethnicity Interactions In The Classroom
A paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) is based on detailed administrative data from one of the largest community colleges in the United States to quantify the extent to which academic performance depends on students being of similar race or ethnicity to their instructors. The performance gap in class dropout and pass rates between white and minority students falls by roughly half when taught by a minority instructor. In models that allow for a full set of ethnic and racial interactions between students and instructors, African-American students perform particularly better when taught by African-American instructors.
The paper can be accessed by clicking http://www.nber.org/papers/w17381.
Minorities In Higher Education
Raising the education level of the overall U.S. population requires closing the educational gaps among racial/ethnic groups and by gender, according to a new report from the American Council on Education (ACE). Although members of the younger generation of some racial/ethnic groups are more likely to attain college degrees than their predecessors, that is not the case across all groups. Other findings include: the high school completion rate for young persons has not improved much and college enrollment gaps have widened among racial/ethnic groups during the past two decades.
The report can be accessed by clicking http://www.acenet.edu/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Programs_and_Services&CONTENTID=42703&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm .
Undergraduate Enrollment In Distance Education Courses And Degree Programs
A Statistics in Brief from the National Center for Education Statistics investigates undergraduates’ participation in distance education using nationally representative student-reported data collected through the three most recent administrations of the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study.
The brief can be accessed by clicking http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2012/2012154.pdf.
The Effect Of Racial Segregation On Health Inequalities
A new study looks at the relationship between the level of segregation in metro areas in the U.S. and the health of the individuals who live in these communities. Metro areas with the highest levels of segregation have the largest health inequities (e.g., people of color will live far shorter lives than whites).
The study can be accessed by clicking http://jointcenter.org/sites/default/files/upload/research/files/Segregated%20Spaces-web.pdf.
Patients Charting The Course: Citizen Engagement In The Learning Health System -- Workshop Summary
As past, current, or future patients, the public should be the health care system's unwavering focus and serve as change agents in its care. Taking this into account, the quality of health care should be judged not only by whether clinical decisions are informed by the best available scientific evidence, but also by whether care is tailored to a patient's individual needs and perspectives. Too often, however, it is provider preference and convenience, rather than those of the patient, that drive what care is delivered. As part of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) Learning Health System series of workshops, the Roundtable on Value & Science-Driven Health Care hosted a workshop to assess the prospects for improving health and lowering costs by advancing patient involvement in the elements of a learning health system.
The workshop report can be accessed by clicking http://iom.edu/Reports/2011/Patients-Charting-the-Course-Citizen-Engagement-in-the-Learning-Health-System-Workshop-Summary.aspx?utm_medium=etmail&utm_source=Institute%20of%20Medicine&utm_campaign=10.03.11+Report+-+Patients+Charting+the+Course&utm_content=New%20Reports&utm_term=Non-profit.