Highlighted Studies of the Week

News At A Glance

National Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to add service for cancer physicians to receive direct access to unapproved treatments– The program entails a call center that physicians can utilize to learn how to complete and submit an Expanded Access request for patients, allowing them to receive investigational medical products outside of clinical trials. In other FDA news, the department’s researchers found excess levels of industrial compounds in grocery store meats and other food products. No recalls were issued. Supreme Court reverses 2014 Affordable Care Act (ACA) rule change on Medicare reimbursements– Seven of the judges decided that the rule, which ultimately reduced Medicare payments to hospitals serving a large number of low-income patients, did not go through the full notice and commitment procedure. In other ACA news, state reports indicate that premium rate increases for the ACA may have stabilized. Senate report releases list of 400 nursing homes that were cited for health code violations– Every year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) releases only the names of 80 nursing homes that are categorized under the Special Focus Facility program where they are subject to greater scrutiny. The CMS secretary stated that the number of facilities in the program is only dependent on the availability of federal funding. The new Senate report lists all 400 of the facilities to bring transparency to consumers. New rule could provide consumer protection against debt collectors, including medical debt– The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s rule would limit the number of times consumers could be contacted. It would also create a platform for addressing or disputing the debt. In other news, Blue Cross Blue Shield has called on Congress to create federal protections for patients from surprise, out-of-network billing practices that can cause medical debt. E-cigarette company JUUL may open storefront in the US–Two cities in Texas have been named as potential candidates for the new store.

June 5, 2019 | Issue 63

1. Study from Health Affairs finds thatwhile immigrants make up 15.5 percentof the population, they represent 18.2percent of the healthcare workforce.

2. Study from Annals of Internal Medicinefinds that approximately 46 percent ofthe providers in the study said they werenot taking new patients when contactedabout providing an appointment for aMedicaid patient with an opioid abuseproblem.

3. Study from Nature Human Behaviourfinds that participants who used thedigital meditation training programMediTrain were able to increase theaverage amount of time they could focuson their breathing by 340 seconds in sixweeks.

4. Study from the Journal of the AmericanMedical Association (JAMA) Network findsthat a higher percentage of safety-nethospitals (37 percent) suffered penaltiesfrom the Comprehensive Care for JointReplacement model than non-safety-nethospitals (14 percent) and safety-nethospitals had a $679 greater medianpenalty.

5. Study from Health Communications findsthat 68 percent of Pinterest posts thatfeature do-it-yourself homemadesunscreen have recipes that do notadequately protect the skin fromharmful sun rays.

6. Study from BMJ Open Diabetes Researchand Care finds that the rate of newdiabetes cases decreased by 35 percentfrom 2009 to 2017 while obesityprevalence increased.

Healthcare

California

Other StatesSupreme Court upholds Indiana’s fetal remains law from 2016– The law requires that fetal remains fromabortions be buried or cremated. The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the law. The Supreme Court overturned that ruling but did not take up another challenge by the state of the Court of Appeals’ invalidation of a provision that banned abortions based on sex, race, or disability. Texas Governor signs bill prohibiting people under the age of 18 from purchasing over-the-counter cough medicines– A 2017 study indicated that a small percentage of 12th graders were using cough medicines to get high. Currently, 18 other states have similar laws in place. Teens will still be allowed to purchase cough medicines that do not contain dextromethorphan, the ingredient that causes intoxication. The law will go into effect in September. In other Texas news, a high school program in Houston provides students with the opportunity to take dual-credit courses through a local community college from which they can receive an associate’s degree in healthcare-related fields as they earn their high school diploma. The program has been shown to decrease the risk of student dropouts. Finally, Texas will be creating its first statewide Accountable Care Organization through a partnership between the Texas Hospital Association and Caravan Health. The hospital plans to serve a minimum of 100,000 Medicare beneficiaries and join the Medicare Shared Savings Program. Utah lawmakers looking to propose Medicaid spending cap– The president’s administration will have to approve this proposal to set a per capita spending limit on the people who will be covered under the newly expanded Medicaid in the state. The current proposal is a 4.2 percent growth rate cap for the first two years with the ability to subsequently rebase the per capita caps. Additionally, the state is asking for an enhanced federal match for people who are newly covered, despite only providing the expanded coverage to people who have incomes of up to 100 percent of the federal poverty level rather than the 138 percent that is required by the ACA. Arizona State University study finds that nearly 33 percent ofhomeless youth are subject to sex and labor trafficking in the state– Approximately one in four of the homeless youth (18 to 25 years) surveyed reported experiencing both sex and labor trafficking. Youth are coerced into labor trafficking through violence and threats. Agencies that provide services to homeless youth are training staff on discussing trafficking with the victims and providing appropriate services to address their needs.

Oakland City Council to decide on Public Safety Committee resolution to decriminalize some natural psychedelics– The decriminalization does not apply to synthetic drugs. The chairman of the committee said that while such cases rarely end in arrests, this resolution would be a step towards “legitimizing” the use of natural psychedelics for medicinal purposes. California rule declaring coffee shops need not display cancer warnings goes into effect– The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment found that the studies did not provide adequate evidence that coffee causes cancer. The rule was introduced last year and went into effect this week.

San Francisco Board of Supervis ors considering universal mental health care coverage– The Supervisors are expected to introduce the proposal to be placed as a ballot initiative for this November. The initiative would form the Mental Health SF program with the creation of a treatment center that would be open to all city residents in need of mental health care services, including substance abuse treatment.

Formal partnership plans between University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Medical Center and Catholic health care system Dignity Health fall through– UCSF leaders said they decided to end

negotiations after hundreds of faculty and staff at UCSF protested the affiliation saying that it would compromise their ability to provide unbiased care, specifically in regard to reproduction services for women, end-of-life care, and LGBTQ+ care.

Oral Health

Hunger as a Health

Issue

Mental/Behavioral

Health

If you would like to subscribe to our weekly newsletter, please email Ihpl@llu.edu

Newsbytes Relevant to Our Strategic Priorities

Healthcare Polls and Surveys

To bring focus to our work, the Institute for Health Policy and Leadership has identified three strategic priorities: oral health, mental health and hunger as a health issue. This segment highlights news articles relevant to these priorities.

31% Percentage of medical leaders who reported that they had difficulty in accommodating providers who wanted to take time off during the summer according to a poll by the Medical Group Management Association poll.

17% Percentage of adults who reported that healthcare was a top family financial concern according to a Gallup poll. This represents a five percentage point increase from last year.

57% Percentage of respondents who said that they would be more likely to use fitness apps that included a social component according to a survey by UnitedHealthcare.

Oregon State University study finds that dentists may be over-prescribing antibiotics in eight out of ten cases– The study found that approximately 21 percent of the antibiotics prescriptions that were written by dentists between 2011 and 2015 was warranted. Dentists' antibiotic prescriptions make up 10 percent of the total antibiotic prescriptions written. Over-prescription of antibiotics is a concern due to the rise in antibiotic resistance. Dentists often prescribed antibiotics for dental implants ahead of time.

Missouri Coalition for the Environment rolls out program to focus on responsible farming– Known and Grown Saint Louis will focus on educating the public about the ways that sustainable farming can impact the environment and how to identify fresh foods. Creating a demand for foods without chemicals may, in turn, lead to better growing practices.

World Health Organization (WHO) updates definition of burnout in International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11)– The WHO has updated the ICD-11 code to reflect burnout as a syndrome that is caused explicitly from chronic workplace stress. It has three symptoms: exhaustion, reduced work efficacy, and feelings of cynicism towards one’s job. Burnout affects approximately one in four employees on a regular basis and nearly half of all employees on an occasional basis.