User login
AAP Seeks Limits on Sin Ads
The American Academy of Pediatrics, in a policy statement blaming the media in part for adolescent substance abuse, has called for a ban on all tobacco advertising and stiff limits on alcohol advertising. “Although parents, schools, and the federal government are trying to get children and teenagers to 'just say no' to drugs, more than $25 billion worth of cigarette, alcohol, and prescription drug advertising is effectively working to get them to “just say yes' to smoking, drinking, and other drugs,” the group said in its policy statement. The statement, which was published in the October issue of Pediatrics, also called for pediatricians to counsel parents about limiting their children's unsupervised media use.
New Rules Target CHIP Fraud
The Department of Health and Human Services has proposed new rules to fight waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The rules are authorized by the Affordable Care Act and would tighten screening of providers wishing to bill the government programs for services, for example, by using broader criminal background checks and even fingerprinting. The rules also require states to terminate from their Medicaid and CHIP programs any provider who has been thrown out of Medicare or another state's health programs. The proposed rule asked for advice on how best to ensure provider compliance. Comments are due to HHS by Nov. 16.
Head Start Funding Parameters Shift
At least one-fourth of low-performing Head Start programs will need to compete, under proposed regulations from HHS, for funding that until now has been almost automatic. The department said it will gauge classroom instruction, health and safety standards, and financial accountability and integrity to determine which programs fall short of minimum standards and will need to compete against others for their funds. To help the underperforming programs improve, HHS said it will create four training and technical assistance centers, which will identify and disseminate evidence-based best practices to local Head Start programs.
Tobacco Firms Infiltrate YouTube
Banned from many other media, tobacco companies appear to be reaching teenagers via YouTube on the Internet, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal Tobacco Control. Researchers at the University of Otago in New Zealand conducted a YouTube search using the names of five cigarette brands from around the world and then analyzed the 163 videos that were most viewed. Almost three-quarters of them had pro-tobacco content whereas less than 4% had anti-tobacco content. Most of the videos, which featured celebrity, sports, or music themes, included tobacco brand names in the title or elsewhere, and half included smoking imagery. One pro-smoking music video had been viewed more than 2 million times, according to the study's authors.
First EHR Certifying Bodies Named
A nonprofit organization that is dedicated to health information technology and a software-testing lab have been chosen as the first two bodies to officially test and certify electronic health record (EHR) systems for the federal government. The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology and the Drummond Group can immediately begin certifying EHR systems as HHS compliant, the Department of Health and Human Services announced. Now that HHS has named the certifying organizations, vendors can apply for certification of their EHR systems and physicians soon should be able to purchase certified products, the HHS said.
Insurance Status Varies by Region
Where a child lives in the United States strongly affects his or her risk of being uninsured, with children in the South and West running a much higher risk of not having health coverage than children who live in the Northeast, a report of 2008 data from the Urban Institute shows. Rates of uninsurance in children ranged from less than 2% in Massachusetts to more than 20% in Nevada, the institute reported. Forty percent of all uninsured children live in just three states: Texas, California, and Florida. In addition, in almost all states, being older, Hispanic, or in a low-income family correlated with the likelihood of being uninsured.
AAP Seeks Limits on Sin Ads
The American Academy of Pediatrics, in a policy statement blaming the media in part for adolescent substance abuse, has called for a ban on all tobacco advertising and stiff limits on alcohol advertising. “Although parents, schools, and the federal government are trying to get children and teenagers to 'just say no' to drugs, more than $25 billion worth of cigarette, alcohol, and prescription drug advertising is effectively working to get them to “just say yes' to smoking, drinking, and other drugs,” the group said in its policy statement. The statement, which was published in the October issue of Pediatrics, also called for pediatricians to counsel parents about limiting their children's unsupervised media use.
New Rules Target CHIP Fraud
The Department of Health and Human Services has proposed new rules to fight waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The rules are authorized by the Affordable Care Act and would tighten screening of providers wishing to bill the government programs for services, for example, by using broader criminal background checks and even fingerprinting. The rules also require states to terminate from their Medicaid and CHIP programs any provider who has been thrown out of Medicare or another state's health programs. The proposed rule asked for advice on how best to ensure provider compliance. Comments are due to HHS by Nov. 16.
Head Start Funding Parameters Shift
At least one-fourth of low-performing Head Start programs will need to compete, under proposed regulations from HHS, for funding that until now has been almost automatic. The department said it will gauge classroom instruction, health and safety standards, and financial accountability and integrity to determine which programs fall short of minimum standards and will need to compete against others for their funds. To help the underperforming programs improve, HHS said it will create four training and technical assistance centers, which will identify and disseminate evidence-based best practices to local Head Start programs.
Tobacco Firms Infiltrate YouTube
Banned from many other media, tobacco companies appear to be reaching teenagers via YouTube on the Internet, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal Tobacco Control. Researchers at the University of Otago in New Zealand conducted a YouTube search using the names of five cigarette brands from around the world and then analyzed the 163 videos that were most viewed. Almost three-quarters of them had pro-tobacco content whereas less than 4% had anti-tobacco content. Most of the videos, which featured celebrity, sports, or music themes, included tobacco brand names in the title or elsewhere, and half included smoking imagery. One pro-smoking music video had been viewed more than 2 million times, according to the study's authors.
First EHR Certifying Bodies Named
A nonprofit organization that is dedicated to health information technology and a software-testing lab have been chosen as the first two bodies to officially test and certify electronic health record (EHR) systems for the federal government. The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology and the Drummond Group can immediately begin certifying EHR systems as HHS compliant, the Department of Health and Human Services announced. Now that HHS has named the certifying organizations, vendors can apply for certification of their EHR systems and physicians soon should be able to purchase certified products, the HHS said.
Insurance Status Varies by Region
Where a child lives in the United States strongly affects his or her risk of being uninsured, with children in the South and West running a much higher risk of not having health coverage than children who live in the Northeast, a report of 2008 data from the Urban Institute shows. Rates of uninsurance in children ranged from less than 2% in Massachusetts to more than 20% in Nevada, the institute reported. Forty percent of all uninsured children live in just three states: Texas, California, and Florida. In addition, in almost all states, being older, Hispanic, or in a low-income family correlated with the likelihood of being uninsured.
AAP Seeks Limits on Sin Ads
The American Academy of Pediatrics, in a policy statement blaming the media in part for adolescent substance abuse, has called for a ban on all tobacco advertising and stiff limits on alcohol advertising. “Although parents, schools, and the federal government are trying to get children and teenagers to 'just say no' to drugs, more than $25 billion worth of cigarette, alcohol, and prescription drug advertising is effectively working to get them to “just say yes' to smoking, drinking, and other drugs,” the group said in its policy statement. The statement, which was published in the October issue of Pediatrics, also called for pediatricians to counsel parents about limiting their children's unsupervised media use.
New Rules Target CHIP Fraud
The Department of Health and Human Services has proposed new rules to fight waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The rules are authorized by the Affordable Care Act and would tighten screening of providers wishing to bill the government programs for services, for example, by using broader criminal background checks and even fingerprinting. The rules also require states to terminate from their Medicaid and CHIP programs any provider who has been thrown out of Medicare or another state's health programs. The proposed rule asked for advice on how best to ensure provider compliance. Comments are due to HHS by Nov. 16.
Head Start Funding Parameters Shift
At least one-fourth of low-performing Head Start programs will need to compete, under proposed regulations from HHS, for funding that until now has been almost automatic. The department said it will gauge classroom instruction, health and safety standards, and financial accountability and integrity to determine which programs fall short of minimum standards and will need to compete against others for their funds. To help the underperforming programs improve, HHS said it will create four training and technical assistance centers, which will identify and disseminate evidence-based best practices to local Head Start programs.
Tobacco Firms Infiltrate YouTube
Banned from many other media, tobacco companies appear to be reaching teenagers via YouTube on the Internet, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal Tobacco Control. Researchers at the University of Otago in New Zealand conducted a YouTube search using the names of five cigarette brands from around the world and then analyzed the 163 videos that were most viewed. Almost three-quarters of them had pro-tobacco content whereas less than 4% had anti-tobacco content. Most of the videos, which featured celebrity, sports, or music themes, included tobacco brand names in the title or elsewhere, and half included smoking imagery. One pro-smoking music video had been viewed more than 2 million times, according to the study's authors.
First EHR Certifying Bodies Named
A nonprofit organization that is dedicated to health information technology and a software-testing lab have been chosen as the first two bodies to officially test and certify electronic health record (EHR) systems for the federal government. The Certification Commission for Health Information Technology and the Drummond Group can immediately begin certifying EHR systems as HHS compliant, the Department of Health and Human Services announced. Now that HHS has named the certifying organizations, vendors can apply for certification of their EHR systems and physicians soon should be able to purchase certified products, the HHS said.
Insurance Status Varies by Region
Where a child lives in the United States strongly affects his or her risk of being uninsured, with children in the South and West running a much higher risk of not having health coverage than children who live in the Northeast, a report of 2008 data from the Urban Institute shows. Rates of uninsurance in children ranged from less than 2% in Massachusetts to more than 20% in Nevada, the institute reported. Forty percent of all uninsured children live in just three states: Texas, California, and Florida. In addition, in almost all states, being older, Hispanic, or in a low-income family correlated with the likelihood of being uninsured.