Health and Welfare

A new report out today provides new information about the connections between commonly-used chemicals and the prevalence of diseases. Groups that advocate for safer chemicals are using the data to lobby for updates to federal legislation.

When hospitals start getting paid based on the perceived quality of care they provide to their Medicare and Medicaid patients, so-called "safety net" hospitals, a last resort for the poor, could be the losers in the equation. That's because a main way of measuring quality will be patient experience ratings, and safety-net hospitals tend to get poorer marks from patients, according to a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Physical inactivity is such a problem worldwide it has become as deadly as smoking, a series of studies has found. Lack of exercise causes about one in 10 premature deaths worldwide, in large part because it contributes to heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, breast cancer and colon cancer.

Nationwide, the rates of infants who die, babies who are born prematurely, teens who are having babies, and the percentage of young children who live in a home where someone smokes have all decreased in the last five years. But the percentage of kids who live in poverty has gone up.

Gov. Steve Beshear said today that he would expand Kentucky's Medicaid program under the federal health-reform law if the state can afford the cost. "If there is a way that we can afford that will get more coverage for more Kentuckians, I'm for it, because if we've got a healthier Kentucky, we're all better off. Our economy's better off, and of course the individuals are better off," Beshear told Jack Pattie of WVLK Radio in an interview on Pattie's mid-morning show.

As Gov. Steve Beshear issued an executive order to establish a state insurance exchange this afternoon, lawmakers voted along party lines against a lease that would have housed employees of the exchange, once again illustrating the divisive nature of the controversial Affordable Care Act. Members of the Capital Projects and Bond Oversight Committee voted 4-3 against the nearly $300,00-per-year lease, with Sen. Tom Buford of Nicholasville, Sen. Jared Carpenter of Berea, Rep. Steven Rudy of Paducah— all Republicans — voting no, along with Independent Sen. Bob Leeper of Paducah.

Governor Steve Beshear has followed through on his promise to set up a state-run health insurance exchange in Kentucky.  The Affordable Care Act requires states to set up marketplaces in which residents can buy private insurance or sign up for Medicaid. Through an executive order, Beshear created Kentucky's exchange today. The order establishes a new executive branch office, the Office of the Kentucky Health Benefit Exchange. The office will be housed in the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

A new book discusses the health disparities that affect rural and urban Appalachians and has won the praise of a Kentucky physician, who calls its impact "profound." Appalachian Health and Well-Being was reviewed by Dr. Kevin Kavanagh, a retired physician from Somerset, for The Courier-Journal. Each chapter stands alone so readers can choose topics according to their interests. One chapter focuses on obesity and discusses issues like "food deserts" and lifestyle choices.

Dr. Nikki Stone is a dentist who works in Hazard, Ky., at a community-run clinic. A native of the mountains, she knew that children in the region weren’t getting enough dental care, but she was still "staggered by the prevalence of dental disease when she began examining them in 2004," Margot Sanger-Katz reports for the National Journal. "Large numbers of the kids had never seen a dentist. Half had untreated tooth decay, and nearly 20 percent had urgent needs -- more than six cavities or an active abscess. She and her staff 'cried a lot,' she recalls.

A new report has advocates for the nursing home industry in Kentucky saying “I told you so.” The report by Aon Global Risk Consulting ranks Kentucky as the worst state for expenses per bed and for the amount of litigation against nursing homes.

The U.S. House voted again yesterday to repeal the health-care reform law, a move that has no chance of passing in the current Senate and would be vetoed by President Obama if it did. In an op-ed piece in The Courier-Journal, which put the news of the House vote on an inside page, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, left, said a repeal of the law would have big ramifications for Kentucky because:

The work of a University of Kentucky law professor helped shape the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on the constitutionality of the federal health-care reform law. Two of the major issues in question was whether the government could be force people to buy health insurance — often referred to as the individual mandate — and if the federal government could use its fiscal powers top make states expand Medicaid eligibility to 133 percent of the federal poverty level. The mandate was upheld, as was the Medicaid expansion, though the ruling will allow states to choose whether or not they want to expand their programs.

A new law that goes into effect today will help patients with chronic health issues maintain their standard of living.  The law allows doctors to show that a long-prescribed medicine would be the best for a patient. Previously, insurance companies could deny payments for such medication until patients had first tried a cheaper alternative.

A new law that goes into effect tomorrow will help patients with chronic health issues maintain their standard of living.  The law allows doctors to show that a long-prescribed medicine would be the best for a patient. Previously, insurance companies could deny payments for such medication until patients had first tried a cheaper alternative.
“The physician knows more clearly what medications or what medication might work for this person, and that way they make sure they can get the best medication for this person as quickly as possible,” says Deb McGrath of the Epilepsy Foundation of Kentucky.