Scranton, PA (PRWEB) September 30, 2012

Stratford Career Institute has added four new modules to their Health Care Aide distance learning course. The newly updated course is now available to students.

The Health Care Aide course curriculum covers biological and technical studies, as well as career tips for those new to the healthcare industry. Coursework includes learning about medical terminology, structure and function of the human body, patient care and safety, current healthcare trends, technology, communications and more.

Each new module also contains a section on how this particular area of study translates in a career as a health care aide. Certain sections also include employment strategies, professionalism, ethical considerations, and resume pointers. The course also takes special consideration regarding the importance of self-care in a career as an aide in a health service profession.

The Health Care Aide course is one of eleven medical career training courses offered by Stratford that focuses on the fundamental components involved in an entry level career in healthcare.

According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job growth rate for personal care aide jobs is 70%. Stratfords course is an excellent opportunity for individuals to get an education that could help them take the first step toward gaining solid employment in the rapidly growing healthcare industry, said Dr. Claude Major, Director of Education for Stratford Career Institute.

Stratford officials said that upon graduating from this course, students are well-prepared to take the first step toward a number of health care aide jobs in a variety of healthcare offices and facilities.

Individuals interested in learning more about the Stratford Career Institutes Health Care Aide course can request a free career information packet by calling 1-800-254-4070 ext 9980 or by visiting the schools website scitraining.com.

Similar to Stratfords popular high school diploma program, the Health Care Aide course is completed through guided, independent study. Students complete lessons at home on their own time, and submit exams online, through the mail, or in combination. Instructors are available via e-mail and toll-free phone and students have access to an online student center.

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Statford Career Institute Helping Students Prepare for Growing Careers in Healthcare

(Editor's Note: This is third of a 4-part special report on sin taxes.)

MANILA, Philippines - When the sin tax reform bill is compromised, so are health care plans for the poor.

This is because under the proposed bill, about 85% of annual incremental revenues from excise taxes on so-called sin productstobacco and alcoholwill go the government's universal health care (UHC) program.

If lower taxes on the products are adopted, a large portion of the investment the program planned for the upgrade of public hospitals, which cater primarily to the poor, will not push through.

Worse, it's possible that the number of poor families that were promised health insurance under the program will not be fully covered.

The Senate, through the ways and means committee chaired by Ralph Recto, appears bent on further watering down the measure that had already accommodated compromises in the House of Representatives.

The original version of House Bill (HB) 5727, authored by House appropriations committee chair Joseph Emilio Abaya, was projected to generate for government P60 billion in the first year of implementation. But what the House eventually passed cut the revenues to practically half, at P31 billion.

With lower revenues, funds for the UHC will also be reduced.

What we plan to spend on UHC will be reduced significantly, said Department of Finance (DoF) Assistant Secretary Teresa Habitan.

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Lower sin tax, less health care for poor

Massachusetts health care scholars who worked on the groundbreaking state and federal health reform laws released findings on Thursday that they say show Republican candidate Mitt Romneys health care policies would raise costs and lower the number of people insured.

Middle class families would pay substantially more out of pocket, Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA, said in a conference call.

Pollack began the call by saying the group is a 501 (c) 4 and non-partisan. However, the studys numbers were broken out for three battleground states Ohio, Florida and Virginia. Pollack said the breakdown was made due to the number or reporters listening in from those states.

Josh Archambault, director of health care policy at the Pioneer Institute, was skeptical of the groups conclusions and said the organization has not laid out the models developed by MIT professor Jonathan Gruber that were used to arrive at the conclusions.

Obviously Grubers model is a black box. Hes never fully explained the assumptions that hes making, said Archambault. Pioneer has Romney ties including former Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey and campaign adviser Beth Myers, who both serve on Pioneers board.

While the scholars that wrote the study acknowledged they were basing their conclusions on a composite of Romneys public statements rather than a detailed health care plan endorsed by Romney, they said the major factors such as repeal of the Affordable Care Act have been addressed in the candidates statements.

The most important things Romney has talked about you can model, said Pollack.

The conclusions of the Families USA study were not flattering toward Romney as the former Massachusetts governor aims to defeat President Barack Obama.

Pollack said that by the end of the next presidents term, in 2016, Romneys health care policies would result in out-of-pocket annual health care payments of $11,481 for families buying non-group health care insurance, which they say is nearly twice the payments under Obamacare. According to the study, the number of uninsured across the country will fall to 25.3 million under Obamacare but would rise to 67.2 million their interpretation of Romneys plan.

Archambault raised potential health cost drivers under Obamacare, which he said the Families USA study did not address. Archambault said under the ACA, employers might be tempted to drop their employees from company plans, telling them that they will receive a raise but will have to use a health connector plan.

Continued here:

Health care scholars critique Romney, draw skepticism

WASHINGTON Employers will soon be offering workers their yearly opportunity to make changes to their health care benefits. All too often this open-enrollment period has required combing through pages and pages of confusing insurance terms.

But this year workers will receive help translating that jargon thanks to a new requirement that insurers provide a user-friendly coverage summary of all health plans. Combined with innovative wellness plans that reward employees for staying health, experts say millions of workers should be able to make smarter benefit decisions and save money in the process.

More than 55 percent of insured workers estimate they waste up to $750 each year because of mistakes during open enrollment, according to a recent survey by insurance provider Aflac. Here are ways to make sure you're getting every dollar's worth from your health benefits:

Make time. "I think people spend less than an hour on (open enrollment) not because they don't want to but because they feel it's overwhelming and complicated," says Rebecca Madsen, a senior vice president with UnitedHealth Group. Open enrollment generally starts in October or November for plans that begin Jan. 1.

Many insurers are trying to present benefit information in interesting, more user-friendly ways. UnitedHealth runs the website healthcarelane.com, which lets visitors explore a virtual town, where each person they encounter offers information and advice about a different health plan offering. The Department of Health and Human Services offers a more straightforward website designed to demystify health care topics: healthcare.gov .

This year's open enrollment should be easier to navigate even for those who get their information from paper and ink sources. Starting this month insurers are required to provide standardized eight-page summaries that explain key terms and cost details of their plans. The rule was passed as part of the Obama administration's health care overhaul and is intended to make it easier to compare policies and the costs and benefits of various plans.

Stay fit, save money. Most large employers now offer wellness programs designed to keep employees healthy and, ultimately, cut medical expenses. These programs often come with financial perks to increase participation. More than 81 percent of businesses with 50 or more employees offer at least one wellness benefit, such as gym memberships, quit-smoking programs and stress management classes, according to the Wellness Council of America, an insurance industry group.

These companies are trying to curb health insurance costs that have climbed more than 25 percent over the last five years, outpacing inflation.

For several years now, many companies have offered cash or gift certificates to encourage employees to participate in their programs. Some still do, but low participation rates have prompted an increasing number to offer insurance cost breaks instead.

For instance, employees enrolled in UnitedHealth's personal rewards program can cut their premiums by $1,000 per year for meeting basic health benchmarks for cholesterol, blood pressure and other measures.

Link:

Save money with smart open-enrollment changes

Published: Saturday, September 29, 2012 at 2:45 p.m. Last Modified: Saturday, September 29, 2012 at 2:45 p.m.

In the aftermath of the 2001 collapse of Health Plan of the Redwoods, the countys largest HMO, many local hospitals and doctors battled each other for insured patients who had not yet been swallowed by fast-growing Kaiser Permanente.

Shrinking government reimbursements were forcing doctors to abandon their private practices and sign up for an employees paycheck from Kaiser or Sutter Health. District hospitals searched for a lifeline that could help them stay afloat.

To be sure, many of these problems still exist, but health care experts say a new era is about to begin one of greater competition among the local health care giants and more choices for individuals.

Two weeks ago, a Sacramento-based HMO known as Western Health Advantage announced that was entering the North Bay market by partnering with a regional network of hospitals and physicians in Sonoma, Napa and Marin counties. The insurance plan is expected to compete head-to-head with Kaiser on cost and quality when it begins selling coverage plans in the North Bay next year.

At the same time, Sutter Health, which runs Sutter Medical Center of Santa Rosa, announced that it had filed for a state license that would allow it to sell its own health plan.

These moves most immediately the arrival of Western Health Advantage take place on the eve of full implementation of President Barack Obamas health care overhaul.

While the verdict is still out on whether Obamas Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will solve the countrys health care crisis, the medical industry is nevertheless gearing up for major changes in 2014. These include launching health insurance exchanges, the expansion of Medicaid, individual and employer mandates and the prohibition of insurance discrimination based on pre-existing conditions.

Dr. Walt Mills, a Kaiser family practice doctor and the new president of the Sonoma County Medical Association, said the presidents health care overhaul and health care economics are combining to drive the system toward a more vertically integrated and patient-centered model. That means both medical providers and health plans are increasingly expected to produce results: healthier patients.

If somebody ends up in the emergency room because they didnt have access to high-quality primary care in a medical home, thats of no value to the local community, Mills said.

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Health care experts see more choice, competition for Sonoma County patients