Month: August 2020

Threatening to expel hospitals from the Medicare and Medicaid programs if they don’t report COVID-19 data to the federal government, which was outlined in a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services interim final rule released this week, “is ridiculous and should be rescinded,” according to a Washington Times editorial published yesterday. “Hospitals know data collection

If you missed the Aug. 27 livestream, you can watch a replay of the latest episode of Leadership Rounds – short conversations on a range of key issues AHA Board Chair Melinda Estes, M.D., is having with hospital and health system leaders from across the country. Dr. Estes and Rachelle Schultz, president and CEO of

The National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases yesterday announced $17 million in grants to establish the Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases, which will support multidisciplinary investigations into how and where viruses and other pathogens emerge from wildlife and spillover to cause disease in people. NIAID intends to provide

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today credited universal testing of residents and staff of all 123 West Virginia nursing homes for SARS-CoV-2, irrespective of symptoms, as a key factor for limiting COVID-19 transmissions and reducing the pandemic’s impact on the state’s vulnerable populations. West Virginia conducted universal testing from April 21 to May

Those with intellectual and developmental disabilities who require in-person care, including in-classroom settings, are disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the directors of the National Institutes of Health-funded Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Centers Network said today in an American Journal of Psychiatry article. Researchers said care staff must use techniques and procedures to protect

The federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., should overturn a lower court ruling upholding a Department of Health and Human Services final rule requiring hospitals to disclose the rates they agree to accept from insurers, the AHA told the court today, joined by the Association of American Medical Colleges, Children’s Hospital Association, Federation of American

Clinicians who may see patients from areas affected by Hurricane Laura should maintain a high level of suspicion for carbon monoxide poisoning, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said yesterday in new guidance. CDC said that many who lost electricity will rely on gasoline or charcoal for power and cooking, the improper placement of

State Opioid Response and Tribal Opioid Response grant programs are receiving the first of two rounds of funds totaling $1.5 billion, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration yesterday announced. In total, the two programs, meant to provide community-level opioid prevention, treatment and recovery resources, will receive nearly

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study released today shows an increase between 2018 and 2019 in rates of suspected nonfatal drug overdoses involving opioids, cocaine and amphetamines, and of polydrug overdoses co-involving opioids and amphetamines that were treated in the emergency department. The study, using data from EDs in 29 states, indicates that

Two new case studies highlight how hospitals and health systems are customizing care for older adult patients. Working to become an age-friendly health system, Kent Hospital, a member of Care New England, in Rhode Island has decreased length of stay, readmissions and falls with injury among older adults. Rush University Medical Center in Chicago has

A century ago, nominating a presidential ticket during political conventions was an arduous marathon. The Democrats opened their convention with 14 names in serious contention, while the Republicans had to whittle down their list from a dozen hopefuls.   That era is long gone. In fact, suffragette Susan B. Anthony — who prevailed 100 years ago