Princess Health and Princess Health andWellCare of Kentucky removes co-pays for most Medicaid members and offers to pay for GED course for many.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andWellCare of Kentucky removes co-pays for most Medicaid members and offers to pay for GED course for many.Princessiccia

education health insurance insurance coverage managed care Medicaid

Gusty 13:25 Add Comment

WellCare Health Plans Inc. is improving its Medicaid benefits in Kentucky by removing most members' co-pays and covering the cost of the General Educational Development test and its corresponding coursework for eligible members.

The co-pay and GED benefits will become available on July 1 and continue through the end of the year, except in Medicaid Region 3, comprising 16 Kentucky counties near Louisville. Region 3�s benefits will be determined in fall 2014 to align with its open enrollment. Region 3 is Breckinridge, Bullitt, Carroll, Grayson, Hardin, Henry, Jefferson, LaRue, Marion, Meade, Nelson, Oldham, Shelby, Spencer, Trimble and Washington counties.

Open enrollment for the rest of the state ends Wednesday, June 18, so WellCare is offering the new benefits as an incentive for Medicaid recipients to switch form other managed-care companies.

All WellCare of Kentucky Medicaid members will have no co-pays except for non-emergency visits to the emergency room and, only in the Louisville region, a $4 co-pay for preferred-brand medications.

Recipients  of the GED benefits must be at least 16 years old, must not be currently enrolled in high school, cannot be graduates from an accredited high school and cannot have received a high school equivalency certificate or diploma. Members need to complete the required GED coursework at an adult testing center.

For more information about these and other WellCare Medicaid benefits in Kentucky, please visit http://kentucky.wellcare.com/member or call 1-877-389-9457.

Princess Health and Princess Health andStudy finds personalized text messages helps some quit smoking.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andStudy finds personalized text messages helps some quit smoking.Princessiccia

research smoking texting

Gusty 09:59 Add Comment

Smoking is a hard habit to break. A recent study, reported in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that sending smokers personalized text messages was twice as effective as giving them self-help materials, Valerie DeBenedette writes for Health Behavior News Service.

Participants chose a date to quit smoking and received five text messages during that day and two per day for the rest of the week. Then the text messages decreased to three per week, then to one per week. "Encouraging texts included top health reasons to quit smoking and the amount of money saved by quitting," DeBenedette writes.

"Previously, phone texting programs to help people quit smoking have been shown to be effective in other countries, said Lorien C. Abroms, Sc.D., the lead author of the study and associate professor of prevention and community health at The George Washington University. "This is the first long-term study in the United States."

More than 500 smokers were placed in one of two groups: the group that received text messages and the group that received self-help materials. They were then surveyed about their experience with the program one, three and six months afterward. Researchers tested mailed saliva samples for cotinine to determine if participants had stopped smoking.

Of those who received texts, 11.1 percent stayed off tobacco, compared to 5 percent in the control group. When asked to self-report, "nearly 20 percent of the texting group said they had quit, compared to 10 percent of the control group," DeBenedette writes.

Abroms said texting is cost-effective. Some programs offer it along with telephone counseling. "The potential for reach is wide, and they are fairly low cost compared to more traditional types of therapy," she said.

Chris Bostic, J.D., deputy director for policy at Action on Smoking and Health, an advocacy group in Washington, told DeBenedette, "Even if something like texting only has a marginal effect on the quit rate, it should be added to [the] menu of options available to smokers who want to quit." (Read more)

Princess Health and#TeamMike and #TeamDave complete rosters.Princessiccia

Princess Health and#TeamMike and #TeamDave complete rosters.Princessiccia

Gusty 06:14 Add Comment

Well, the day we all have been waiting for is ALMOST here.  The Waterloo Classic is only four days away, and the team couldn't more more excited.

There is a lot riding on this race for a number of different reasons.  First, we have the epic battle of #MikeVsDave.  For those of you who don't know, there is a team component to this battle.  Here is a break down of inter-team race, and the team draft results.  Today, we are very excited to announce the complete team rosters for #TeamMike and #TeamDave.  Here they are:

H+P Team Mike
Mike Piazza

Sean Delanghe

Brendan Hancock

Luke Ehgoetz 

Pat Mulherin

Nick Burt

Sam Lalonde

Harold OKrafka

Vicki Zandbergen

Emily Hunter

Cari Rastas Howard

Mark Potvin

H+P Team Dave

Dave Rutherford

Rob Brouillette

Ahmed Ahmed

Greg Dyce

Chris Goldworthy

Daniel Cook

Manuel Jones

Jessica Kuepfer

Justin Buis

Will Spaetzel

Dragan Zubac

5K Team

With so much focus being put in this 10K, we can't forget about our 5K team.  We have a solid contingent being entered in the Open 5K Team category with heavy reliance on some of our fastest female runners.  Here's how the team shapes up:

Kailey Haddock

Payton Thiel

Aron Mailman

Holger Kleinke

Derek Hergott

Tammy Hergott

Stephaney Hortian

Gillian Willard

Battle of Waterloo

Finally, we can't forget that the 10K is the 2nd of 3 stages of the Battle of Waterloo.  Click here to see the recap of Stage 1.    H+P has a number of runners in contention for the OA podium.  After stage one, we have six runners (Sean, Dave, Mike, Greg, Brendan, Pat) all in the top 11 OA.  Vicki Z is also in contention for the OA podium on the women's side as she now sits in 4th OA.

Princess Health and Has Obesity Research Failed?. Princessiccia

Princess Health and Has Obesity Research Failed?. Princessiccia

overweight

Gusty 04:00 Add Comment

I frequently encounter the argument that obesity research has failed because it hasn't stopped the global increase in obesity rates. According to this argument, we need to re-think our approach to obesity research because the current approach just isn't working.

Grant funding for obesity research keeps increasing in the US, and the prevalence of obesity also keeps increasing*. What gives? Maybe if we just scrapped the whole endeavor we'd be better off.

Let's take a closer look at this argument and see how it holds up.

Why Do Research?

There are two fundamental reasons why we do research:

1. To gather accurate information about the natural world. This information is intrinsically valuable because we like knowing how the world works, and it may eventually have practical value that's not immediately obvious.
2. Practical applications. We want to solve problems and improve our lives.

If we want to determine whether or not obesity research has failed, we should evaluate it using those two metrics.

Has Obesity Research Gathered Accurate Information?

Read more �

Princess Health and Princess Health andSteven J. Stack will be second Lexington physician in three years to lead the American Medical Association.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andSteven J. Stack will be second Lexington physician in three years to lead the American Medical Association.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act physicians

Gusty 11:05 Add Comment

Dr. Steven J. Stack, an emergency physician in Lexington, is the new president-elect of the American Medical Association, the nation�s largest organization for physicians

Stack, at 43, is the youngest president of the organization in a century, Laura Ungar reports for The Courier-Journal. He is the first board-certified emergency physician elected to the post, which he will fill in June 2015.

�It�s an immense honor and a total joy and a thrill,� Stack told Ungar.

Stack will be the second Lexington doctor in three years to hold the office. AMA's immdiate past president is Dr. Ardis Dee Hoven, an infectious disease specialist.

�It�s a fluke of history,� Stack told Ungar.

Stack is a practicing physician and former medical director for emergency departments at St. Joseph East in Lexington and St. Joseph Mt. Sterling.

Stack's experience as the chair of the AMA�s Health Information Technology Advisory Group from 2007 to 2013 and also as a member of the federal advisory groups for the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology puts him in a position to help further one of the many goals of the Affordable Care Act�to expand information technology.

Stack told Ungar he also plans "to work on improving medical education, reducing diabetes and pre-diabetes in the population and helping ensure doctors are satisfied with their jobs so they can better help patients."

Stack came to Lexington with his wife Tracie, a pediatric allergist, and their 9-year-old daughter in 2006, Ungar writes. He has been active in the AMA for years and has held several offices. He has also been a legislative voice for local Kentucky issues, such as prescription drug abuse and medical liability reform. (Read more)

Princess Health and Princess Health andNational poll finds many who need health coverage didn't even shop for it because they didn't think they could afford it.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andNational poll finds many who need health coverage didn't even shop for it because they didn't think they could afford it.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act health insurance health reform insurance exchange Medicaid Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act state government

Gusty 12:58 Add Comment

By Melissa PatrickKentucky Health News

The top two reasons people gave for getting health insurance under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act were compliance with the law and a desire to see a doctor, according to a recent survey by PerryUndem Research/Communication for Enroll America, a group promoting the law.

The poll also found that many people needed health coverage but didn't even shop for it because they thought they couldn't afford it. UPDATE, June 14: "Convincing Americans that they could afford insurance was the White House's biggest challenge in making Obamacare work," Ezra Klein reports on Vox.

Four in 10 of those surveyed who did enroll that they might not have signed up if the 2010 law hadn't required them to do so. Mike Perry of PerryUndem told Louise Radnofsky of The Wall Street Journal that the poll suggested that "The mandate was a big factor even if it wasn't politically popular."

The survey also found there was a high demand for health insurance during the first open enrollment period, which ended in April. Kentucky also found this to be true, said Gwenda Bond, assistant communications director for the Cabinet For Health and Family Services.

"In Kentucky, we definitely experienced high demand from the beginning of open enrollment Oct. 1, which continued to increase right up through the end of the open enrollment period," Bond said in an e-mail.

Kentucky ended up providing coverage to about 420,000 people in the state, with about three-fourths reporting they did not have insurance before signing up through Kynect, the state's health-insurance exchange.

Despite the demand,the national poll found that 61 percent of those who did not enroll still wanted coverage and the main reason they did not even look for it was because they thought they couldn't afford it.

Some of these people may not have been aware that they could qualify for free coverage through Medicaid. Almost 25 percent of the newly enrolled cited "I qualified for Medicaid" as a reason they enrolled, and over half of that population said it was the main reason.

Kentucky is working on this issue of affordability perception, Bond said. "We will be working to make it easier for individuals and small businesses to get information or a quote up front that estimates the amount of subsidies or discounts they may qualify for, before they ever begin an application,"she said in the email.

More than eight out of 10 surveyed nationally said they will consider enrolling next time.

The poll surveyed 671 newly enrolled people and 853 who remained uninsured. It was conducted April 10-28. The margin of error for the total sample is plus or minus 2.9 percentage points.

Other key findings in the poll included: 69 percent of the newly enrolled thought the process was "easy," especially if they enrolled in person instead of the phone; 74 percent of those in private plans felt confident they can afford their premiums, and many more think their plans have enough doctors than not (56 percent vs. 13 percent). The self-reported health status of those who enrolled and those who didn't was similar.

Princess Health and Princess Health andDoctors in emergency rooms say they are busier since Obamacare began; hospitals struggle to handle extra patients.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andDoctors in emergency rooms say they are busier since Obamacare began; hospitals struggle to handle extra patients.Princessiccia

Affordable Care Act emergency rooms health insurance hospitals Medicaid obamacare Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act state governments

Gusty 12:38 Add Comment

Nearly half of emergency-room doctors say their ERs have seen an increase in patients since health reform went into effect, and 86 percent say they expect the increase to continue, according to a poll by the American College of Emergency Physicians. Of the 1,845 completed surveys, 9 percent said ER visits had increased greatly and 37 percent said they had increased slightly. When asked what they think will happen over the next three years, 41 percent said visits will increase greatly and 45 percent said they will increase slightly. (ACEP graphic)

"Dr. Jay Kaplan, a member of ACEP's board of directors, said he wasn't surprised by the findings given the large influx or Medicaid enrollees and the difficulty in locating primary-care doctors who will see those patients," Paul Demko reports for Modern Healthcare. Kaplan told him, �When people get insurance, they feel like they deserve healthcare. When they deserve health care, and there's nobody else they can see, they come to us.�

77 percent of respondents
said their ER is not prepared
for an increase in patients

But some hospitals say many patients are going to the ER for ailments that are not emergencies, Laura Ungar reports for The Courier-Journal. Lewis Perkins, vice president of patient care and chief nursing officer at Louisville's Norton Hospital, said the emergency room is seeing 100 more patients per month, an increase of 12 percent. "We're seeing patients who probably should be seen at our (immediate-care centers)," he told Ungar. "And we're seeing this across the system."

ER visits at the University of Louisville Hospital are up 18 percent, while Dr. Ryan Stanton of Lexington, president of the Kentucky chapter of the ER physicians' group, said ER services are up 7.5 percent in that city. He told Ungar, "It's a perfect storm here. We've given people an ATM card in a town with no ATMs." (Read more)

Phil Galewitz of Kaiser Health News reports that a study in Massachusetts following its Obamacare-like expansion showed an initial surge in ER use followed by a decline over several years. Hospital officials around the country told him that the biggest impact of the expansion of Medicaid is that patients can now go to a primary-care doctor instead of the emergency room for routine care.