Pharmaceutical companies are improving how they engage with healthcare providers during the COVID-19 pandemic – Healthcare Finance News

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, pharmaceutical companies are changing how they engage with healthcare providers, which in turn is helping providers better serve patients, according to findings of a global Accenture survey of 720 general practitioners, oncologists, cardiologists and immunologists.

For example, most providers said pharma companies are increasingly providing education on how to better treat patients remotely and help them manage their conditions in light of COVID-19.

Pharma companies are also helping patients understand where they can access labs, infusion centers or imaging centers, and are offering solutions to providers and their practices so they can more easily afford and keep stock of therapies. In the U.S., information on affordability programs that pharmaceutical companies offer have been particularly helpful.

The survey, which was conducted in May and June across China, France, Germany, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S., indicates that many patients and providers expect these changes are here to stay.

WHAT'S THE IMPACT

While the news is mostly good, the data suggests there's more that pharmaceutical companies could be doing to support providers and patients, who want more interactions that are virtual and self-directed. For instance, 65% of providers said they value self-administration methods for patients, including auto-injectors or wearable devices -- something that has been added to more and more wish lists as the pandemic has continued.

A clear majority, 62%, said they placed value on remote monitoring tools that can track health data from the home, a number that has increased since before the pandemic. Many patients have also said that they want to go to their providers' offices less often even after the public health crisis has abated, suggesting an opportunity for pharma companies to continue to respond to the public's changing needs.

Before COVID-19, 64% of meetings with pharma sales reps were held in person. During the pandemic, this shifted to 65% of meetings held virtually. Many providers reported they expect restrictions in access to healthcare facilities will continue for some time perhaps even permanently. Indeed, 43% said they are currently restricting who can enter the office for professional reasons (i.e.: no pharmaceutical reps). Twenty-eight percent of those with restrictions said they believe it is something they may implement permanently and another 44% said they would keep the restrictions "for the foreseeable future."

But providers also said they still want to learn about new treatments and interact with pharma sales reps -- they just want to do so in different ways. Eighty-eight percent of the providers surveyed said they want to hear about new treatments despite being in the middle of the pandemic. Four in 10 providers said the likelihood of starting a patient on a new treatment has increased, as they have a greater ability to monitor patient response, more access to information on new treatments and more time to learn about them.

And in fact, 61% said they are interacting with pharma sales reps more during COVID-19 than they did before. But they want pharma sales reps to have a better understanding of their needs and the needs of their patients. For example, 58% said they have been spammed by a pharmaceutical company.

THE LARGER TREND

Despite these positive developments, many Americans are still wary of the pharmaceutical industry, with nearly nine in 10 saying they're "very" or "somewhat" concerned the industry will try to raise drug prices during the pandemic, found a June survey by the nonprofit West Health and Gallup.

Similarly, 84% are very or somewhat concerned that the general cost of care will rise, with 79% very or somewhat concerned their health insurance premiums will go up in response to the pandemic. In each of the latter two scenarios, 41% of Americans are "very" concerned.

Twitter:@JELagasseEmail the writer:jeff.lagasse@himssmedia.com

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Pharmaceutical companies are improving how they engage with healthcare providers during the COVID-19 pandemic - Healthcare Finance News

Global Outlook for Augmented Reality & Virtual Reality in the Healthcare Market 2020-2025 – ResearchAndMarkets.com – Business Wire

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The "Augmented Reality & Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - Forecast (2020 - 2025)" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality market was valued at $543.23 million in 2017 and is projected to grow to $1467.83 million by 2023, at a CAGR of 18.02%.

The major drivers for Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in the healthcare market are the increasing demand for robotic surgeries instead of by-pass surgeries. Rising demand for cardiovascular surgeries is another major driver. The recovery time with these technologies is much less compared to other surgeries. The improvement in the skills of trainees by learning surgical procedures using this technology is also a driver for Augmented and Virtual reality in the medical field.

The major challenge for Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in the healthcare market is the lack of visualizing the depth, where there is a chance of making mistakes in the surgeries. The other challenge is the strain that is caused to eyes due to watching screens continuously for longer durations. The low battery capacity, that is the battery lasts only for five hours where the battery has to be charged again, when the surgery takes a long time which is also a challenge in this market. The other major challenge is the equipment cost which is very high.

The base year of this study is 2017, with forecasts up to 2023. The study presents a thorough analysis of the competitive landscape, taking into account the market shares of the leading companies. It also provides information on unit shipments. These provide the key market participants with the necessary business intelligence and help them understand the future of the market. The assessment includes the forecast, an overview of the competitive structure, the market shares of the competitors, as well as the market trends, market demands, market drivers, market challenges, and product analysis. The market drivers and restraints have been assessed to fathom their impact over the forecast period. This report further identifies the key opportunities for growth while also detailing the key challenges and possible threats.

Some of the Key players in this market that have been studied for this report include: CAE Health Care, Intuitive Surgical, Hologic Inc., Philips Health care, Microsoft, Siemens Health Care, Atheer, Augmedix and many more.

Market Research and Market Trends of Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in the Healthcare Market

Key Topics Covered:

1. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - Overview

2. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - Executive summary

3. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - Comparative Analysis

4. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - Forces

5. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - Strategic analysis

6. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - By Build-up system (Market Size -$Million / $Billion)

7. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - By Type (Market Size -$Million / $Billion)

8. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - By Application (Market Size -$Million / $Billion)

9. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - By End-user industry (Market Size -$Million / $Billion)

10. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - By Geography (Market Size -$Million / $Billion)

11. Augmented Realty and Virtual Reality in Healthcare Market - Entropy

12. Company Analysis

13. Appendix

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/agzw8

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

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Global Outlook for Augmented Reality & Virtual Reality in the Healthcare Market 2020-2025 - ResearchAndMarkets.com - Business Wire

Unions’ big lie to Quebec health care workers battling the pandemic: The government will protect you – WSWS

By Richard Dufour 10 August 2020

Nurses at the Cit-de-la-Sant Hospital in Laval, Montreals largest suburb, staged a sit-in Friday, July 31. They were protesting dire working conditionsincluding chronic understaffing and forced overtimethat have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The sit-in was part of a growing series of demonstrations and work stoppages that have taken place at health care institutions in Quebec and throughout Canada in recent months.

Many of these protest actions have been organized on Facebook by rank-and-file workers, acting independently of the unions. Like their counterparts in the United States and internationally, these workers have been impelled to act by unsafe working conditions, in particular the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE).

The palpable anger of health care workers is bound up with growing opposition among all sections of the working class to the ruling elites disastrous response to the health emergency and the economic fallout from the pandemic. But far from channelling this combative sentiment into a working class counteroffensive after decades of capitalist austerity, the unions are doing all they can to stifle and politically neuter it.

This was purpose of an op-ed column written by Jeff Begley, president of the FSSS-CSN, Quebecs largest health care workers union. Published last Tuesday in Le Devoir, a Montreal daily, the article was co-signed by many local FSSS-CSN union presidents.

It made extremely limited criticisms of the actions of the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ)-led provincial government with the aim of pacifying the scorching anger of rank-and-file hospital and CHSLD (nursing home) workers over the governments criminally negligent response to the COVID-19 pandemic. But a careful examination of the letters contents can only fuel the growing rank-and-file rebellion against the unions impotence and misleadership.

Under the title Repeating the mistakes of the first wave is not an option, the article echoes the lie that the pandemic took Canadian authorities by surprise and that their catastrophic handling of the crisis is simply due to mistakes. In reality, it is the result of a deliberate policy of putting profit before human lives.

For years, the various levels of government in Canada and Quebec ignored the repeated warnings of public health experts, epidemiologists and other scientists about the dangers from, and growing risk of, a global pandemic, and continued and intensified the budget cuts that have ravaged the health care system for decades. This was all the more criminal given that outside of East Asia, Canada was the country to experience the worst outbreak of the 2002-3 SARS epidemic, thereby exposing the devastating consequences of austerity and health care privatizations

For two critical months after the novel coronavirus had been identified at the beginning of 2020 as a major health threat, the federal Liberal and provincial governments did nothing to protect the population and front-line health care workers. Although the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a global health emergency on January 31 for the coronavirus, the federal Liberal government waited until March 10 to even request the provinces to identify potential shortages of key medical supplies, such as ventilators and PPE.

In their Le Devoir column, Begley and the other FSSS-CSN officials attempt to sow illusions in the CNESST (Quebecs Health and Safety Commission), calling on it to force employers to increase protective measures at work. The CNESST is an integral part of the capitalist state. Its role is to protect employers from heavy lawsuits in the event of workplace accidents, and provide injured and even permanently maimed workers with meagre compensation. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the CNESST has rejected the vast majority of complaints from workers who have invoked their right to refuse to work in unsafe conditions. Half of its board of directors is made up of senior union officials, such as CSN (Confederation of National Trades Unions) Vice President Caroline Senneville and QFL (Quebec Federation of Labour) President Daniel Boyer.

Begleys letter also promotes the lie that the CAQ government, which combines anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim chauvinism with an agenda of privatization and austerity, can be relied on, or at least pressured into, prioritizing working peoples lives and livelihoods over the profits of Quebecs capitalist elite. The government, public health authorities and CNESST must take responsibility, declares Begley.

Begley makes no specific demands to address workers concernsnot even for the provision of N95 masks and other vital PPE to all hospital and CHSLD workers, or for the lifting of the emergency decrees under which the government, in the name of fighting COVID-19, has given itself the power to override all collective agreements in the health care sector and effectively conscript workers.

This only underscores that the unions will not lift a finger to protect the workers they purport to represent in the face of a pandemic that has already killed almost 9,000 people in Canada, including 5,695 in Quebec; infected more than 13,500 Quebec health care workers; and caused a global health, economic and social disaster.

Instead, Quebecs unionsand this is as true for the QFL and CSQ (Centrale des syndicats du Qubec) as it is for the CSN intend to continue and deepen the policy of close collaboration with the CAQ government that they have followed since the beginning of the pandemic.

The unions immediate response to the eruption of COVID-19 in Quebec was to proclaim their readiness to work closely with the government, and agree to an indefinite suspension of negotiations to renew collective agreements for 550,000 Quebec public sector workers. Later, when the government reversed course, on the calculation it could exploit the crisis to impose further contractual rollbacks, the unions agreed to work toward three-year interim agreements in which all questions pertaining to staffing, workloads and work rules are set aside, thereby locking in the existing ruinous working conditions for a further three years. For the past four months, the unions have kept their members in the dark, while they negotiate behind closed doors with the CAQ government on this basis.

In his article, Begley did not so much as mention the ministerial emergency orders (decrees) the government has used to reorganize workplace tasks, eliminate summer vacations, and otherwise abrogate health workers rights. That is because the unions have no intention of opposing, let alone organizing defiance of these orders, just as they have done nothing against the steady deterioration in working conditions over the past decades and the repeated use, under Liberal and Parti Quebecois governments, of emergency anti-strike laws to impose concession contracts.

Canadas union leaders have backed Justin Trudeaus federal Liberal government in its bailing out of big business and the financial aristocracy with hundreds of billions of dollars, while providing working people who have lost their jobs and income because of the pandemic with a mere $2,000 per month. The unions are also supporting the reckless back-to-work campaign being mounted by all levels of government even as the pandemic continues to spread.

The treacherous role that the unions have played during the pandemic is the continuation of their decades-long suppression of the class struggle. Since the 1980s, they have systematically isolated and sabotaged workers struggles, while politically tying them to pro-austerity and pro-war parties, from the Parti Quebecois, Bloc Quebecois and Trudeaus Liberals, to the NDP.

With the pro-capitalist unions unable and unwilling to defend their interests, health care workers must take matters into their own hands to protect their own health and lives and those of the public. The fight against a resurgence of the deadly COVID-19 virus depends on workers own initiativethe formation of workplace safety committees, entirely independent of the unions.

These rank-and-file committees must establish and enforce measures to protect workers, patients and their families in health care facilities (including ensuring adequate PPE and staffing levels and humane scheduling) on the basis of what is necessary from the standpoint of health and safetynot what the government and management claim is financially affordable. They must demand a massive reinvestment of resources in health care and the protection of all workers from the economic consequences of the pandemic as part of a broader political struggle for a workers government committed to socialist policies.

Through these committees, health care workers will be able to forge close ties with working people throughout the public sector and industrynot only in Quebec, but in the rest of Canada, the US and internationallywho are facing the same big business assault on jobs, working conditions and their lives.

We urge workers who want to establish such rank-and-file health and safety committees to contact the World Socialist Web Site.

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Unions' big lie to Quebec health care workers battling the pandemic: The government will protect you - WSWS

Anthem Foundation and March of Dimes Address Health Inequity in Maternal Healthcare – PRNewswire

ARLINGTON, Va., Aug. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --March of Dimes, the leader in the fight for the health of all moms and babies, and longtime partner Anthem Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Anthem, Inc., today announced a $1.1 million grant with their latest plans to tackle America's maternal and infant health crisis, which is particularly devastating for communities of color. The partnership aims to close the health equity gap by addressing the racial disparities and social determinants of health that have disproportionally impacted Black mothers who are more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes and have premature babies compared to all other women.

The new grant will support programs in 16 states and Washington D.C with a core component of the grant focusing on health equity partnerships with more than 20 hospitals, which includes Breaking Through Implicit Bias in Maternal Healthcare training. According to the 2003 National Academies for Science, Engineering and Medicine, "racial and ethnic minorities tend to receive a lower quality of healthcare than non-minorities, even when access-related factors, such as patients' insurance status and income, are controlled." In response, March of Dimes developed this training, in collaboration with Quality Interactions, to improve patient-provider communications and treatment decisions, contributing to improved quality of care at a critical intervention point. The course provides an overview of implicit bias, its impact on the maternal infant health crisis, history of structural racism in the United States, strategies for providers to both mitigate racial bias in maternity care and to commit to a culture of equity.

The grant will also support programs for moms and babies, such as Supportive Pregnancy Care and interconception care. Through Supportive Pregnancy Care, pregnant women receive their clinical care, share support with other women at a similar stage in pregnancy, and gain knowledge and skills related to pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting. Interconception care programs help new moms to get information and services that promote birth spacing, smoking cessation, and mental health.

"The U.S. is in the midst of a maternal and infant health crisis, which is particularly devastating to women and babies of color. Data show that the U.S. remains among the most dangerous developed nations in the world for childbirth," said Dr. Rahul Gupta, Chief Medical and Health Officer, Senior Vice President and Interim Chief Scientific Officer at March of Dimes. "Roughly every 12 hours a woman dies from pregnancy-related causes, and the CDC reports that 60 percent are preventable. Programs like these, supported by the Anthem Foundation, are invaluable in making a positive impact for moms and babies."

In the U.S. Black women are three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causesi and Black babies are twice as likely to die before their first birthdaysii compared to their White counterparts. Systemic racial injustice has affected not only health care, but also social determinants of health, such as access to food, education, housing and jobs. These factors, together with the direct experience of racial discrimination and unequal treatment, have built a health equity gap that is directly and negatively impacting moms and babies of color.

"Anthem and its Foundation continue to lead with our commitment to improving lives and communities across our nation," said Razia Hashmi, MD, MPH, Vice President for Commercial Clinical Operations at Anthem. "For over 10 years, our partnership with March of Dimes has provided over 47,000 individuals with access to care. We are working tirelessly to create enduring change in communities across the country, and addressing the factors driving disparities in our health system and in society as a whole."

Over the past decade, Anthem Foundation has contributed close to $8 million to support March of Dimes programs aimed at reducing premature birth across the country. These programs have had a significant impact with only 7.3 percent of participants in group prenatal care delivering prematurely, compared to a national average of 10 percent.

About March of DimesMarch of Dimes leads the fight for the health of all moms and babies. We support research, lead programs and provide education and advocacy so that every baby can have the best possible start. Building on a successful 80-year legacy of impact and innovation, we empower every mom and every family. Visit marchofdimes.org or nacersano.org for more information. Visit shareyourstory.org for comfort and support. Find us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram and Twitter.

About Anthem FoundationThe Anthem Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Anthem, Inc. and through charitable contributions and programs, the Foundation promotes the organization's commitment to improving lives and communities. Through strategic partnerships and programs, the Foundation addresses the social drivers that will help create a healthier generation of Americans in communities that Anthem, Inc. and its affiliated health plans serve. The Foundation focuses its funding on critical initiatives that make up its Healthy Generations Program, a multi-generational initiative that targets: maternal health, diabetes prevention, cancer prevention, heart health and healthy, active lifestyles, behavioral health efforts and programs that benefit people with disabilities. The Foundation also coordinates the company's year-round Dollars for Dollars program which provides a 100 percent match of associates' donations, as well as its Volunteer Time Off and Dollars for Doers community service programs. To learn more about the Anthem Foundation, please visit http://www.anthem.foundation and its blog at https://medium.com/anthemfoundation.

i [Petersen EE, Davis NL, Goodman D, et al. Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Pregnancy-Related Deaths-United States, 2007-2016. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2019;68(35):762765.]ii [Ely DM, Driscoll AK. Infant mortality in the United States, 2017: Data from the period linked birth/infant death file. National Vital Statistics Reports, vol 68 no 10. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2019.]

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Anthem Foundation and March of Dimes Address Health Inequity in Maternal Healthcare - PRNewswire

Health care will cost this much in retirement but probably even more – MarketWatch

A 65-year-old couple retiring this year should expect to spend about $295,000 on health care costs alone in retirement but quite frankly, that estimate is conservative.

The figure, calculated by Fidelity Investments as part of its annual Health Care Cost Estimate, includes Medicare Part A, Part B and Part D premiums and deductibles, but it does not include over-the-counter medications, vitamin supplements and glasses. Long-term care insurance is also not included, which on its own could be an additional thousands of dollars a month. (Fidelity also didnt take COVID-19 or related costs into account when modeling its health care cost estimates.)

Long-term care insurance covers the expenses the elderly may face when theyre no longer able to conduct certain regular activities (such as bathing or feeding) or when they need to live in a nursing home or assisted living facility. The expense was not included in Fidelitys calculation because of the sheer fluctuation in prices and variables necessary to determine the proper coverage plan, said Hope Manion, chief health and welfare actuary and senior vice president of Fidelity Workplace Consulting. To try to predict what long-term care expenses you may need is tricky and depends on the individual, she said.

See: Living in retirement during COVID-19? How to keep your cool

Some people may want to enroll in long-term care insurance, especially if they have a family history of dementia or other debilitating illnesses. The cost for coverage rises the closer someone is to retirement age, which is why Manion said people in their 40s and early 50s may want to look into plans now. The average cost of living in a semiprivate room in a nursing home in the U.S. was $6,844 a month in 2016, or $7,698 a month for a private room, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. A one-bedroom unit in an assisted living facility was $3,628 a month. The cost for a health aide was $20.50 an hour.

Read: Choosing an HSA can save you money now, and make you even more later

Even without long-term care expenses, however, health-care costs are constantly increasing and future retirees will need to take that rise into account when saving and planning for their futures. The 2020 estimate of $295,000 is a 3.5% increase from last year alone, and an 18% increase from 2010. A single woman retiring at 65 in 2020 can expect to pay around $155,000 for health care during her retirement while a man at the same age may pay $140,000. This is separate from the money theyll need to pay for housing, groceries, any travel or leisure or potential inheritances they leave their loved ones (if they can or decide to do so).

Read: 5 things to know about health care in retirement

If youre thinking about your portfolio and saving strategy, you want to make sure you can take $300,000 of that depending on who you are and if youre single, half that and then look at whether or not you can live on what you saved aside from that, Manion said.

Also see: This is how much you need for retirement and how COVID-19 will change that

Along with savings strategies, Americans fortunate to have health benefits through an employer should review their offerings during open enrollment later this year. A fourth of companies said they changed employee health benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic, but 79% of employees said they dont intend to spend any extra time sorting through their options.

Its a great time for employees to be digging in, Manion said. During open enrollment, employees can see if they have a Health Savings Account available to them, which offers triple-tax benefits but can be unaffordable to some participants because of its high deductibles. They should also review deductibles, out-of-pocket maximums and what might be the impact of a major life event that occurred in 2020, such as a new baby or marriage.

There may also be benefits employees did not know existed or did not have much use for before, such as telemedicine, meditation services and wellness programs. With such a stressful and volatile year, some people and their workplaces are becoming more open to talking about mental health.

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Health care will cost this much in retirement but probably even more - MarketWatch

Tenant at Advanced Healthcare at Brownwood received $67 million in COVID-19 money – Villages-News

A major tenant at the new Center for Advanced Healthcare at Brownwood has received $67 million in COVID-19 money from the taxpayer-funded relief program.

The $67 million received by Florida Cancer Specialists makes it the largest recipient of Coronavirus relief funding in the Sunshine State.

Center For Advanced Healthcare at Brownwood

The money comes at a time when Florida Cancer Specialists continues to increase its market share in Floridas Friendliest Hometown. Florida Cancer Specialists is a headline tenant at the 240,000 square-foot state of the art healthcare facility, the Center for Advanced Healthcare at Brownwood. Gov. Rick Scott was the guest of honor in 2018 when Florida Cancer Specialists broke ground at Brownwood.

Gov. Rick Scott was the guest of honor in 2018 when Florida Cancer Specialists broke ground at Brownwood.

Florida Cancer Specialists has three other locations in The Villages.

Earlier this year, Florida Cancer Specialists agreed to pay a $100 million fine after admitting in federal court that it had worked with unnamed co-conspirators to limit cancer treatment options for patients. You can read the complete deferred prosecution agreement to which Florida Cancer Specialists agreed at this link: FLORIDA CANCER SPECIALISTS DEFERRED PROSECUTION AGREEMENT

A $20 million state fine was also leveled against Florida Cancer Specialists which is based in Fort Myers.

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has vowed that the $67 million in federal COVID-19 relief will not be used to pay the state fine.

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Tenant at Advanced Healthcare at Brownwood received $67 million in COVID-19 money - Villages-News

Consumer Assistance in Health Insurance: Evidence of Impact and Unmet Need – Kaiser Family Foundation

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) created new health coverage options and financial assistance to expand coverage and help people remain insured even when life changes, such as job loss, might otherwise disrupt coverage. The ACA also established in-person consumer assistance programs to help people identify coverage options and enroll. A variety of professionals provide consumer assistance, including Navigator programs that are funded through state and federal marketplaces, brokers who receive commissions from insurers when they enroll consumers in private health plans, local non-profit organizations, and health care providers. Recent funding cuts have reduced the availability of Navigator programs.

In the spring of 2020, KFF surveyed consumers most likely to use or benefit from consumer assistancenonelderly adults covered by marketplace health plans (also called qualified health plans, or QHPs) or Medicaid, and people who were uninsuredto learn who uses consumer assistance, why they seek help, and what difference it makes as well as who does not get help and why. The survey also explored differences in help provided by marketplace assister programs and brokers. Key findings include:

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Consumer Assistance in Health Insurance: Evidence of Impact and Unmet Need - Kaiser Family Foundation

UT incubator takes the lead in health care consortium targeting Covid-19 and future pandemics – Austin Monitor

The University of Texas Austin Technology Incubator is leading a new consortium of more than 50 health care organizations from around the state working to combat the Covid-19 pandemic and prepare for future widespread disease outbreaks.

The Texas Global Health Security Innovation Consortium (TEXGHS) has started connecting medical school, community health care agencies and health care startups to work on pilot projects with issues related to the pandemic. Funded by the Austin-based incubator PandemicTech, the consortium is intended to solve some health care needs caused by the pandemic and will likely receive state or federal funding to expand its network and improve the states health care infrastructure.

Lisa McDonald, director of health care for ATI, said an early survey to gauge interest and potential needs brought responses from 70 companies and groups and led to partnerships between researchers and companies with similar interests. On one such partnership, researchers from the Dell Medical School at UT partnered with the Texas Advanced Computing Center for work on data related to contact tracing.

We used those pilot projects to prove out the model that something like this could be useful both for the company that were assisting and also for the community, she said. From this point on, the way were selecting pilot projects is designed to align with the state of Texas, so when the state tells us that PPE contamination is top priority we go and find pilot projects and companies specifically working on that.

McDonald said the consortium is focused on the immediate need for health care innovation related to the Covid-19 pandemic, while also looking for technologies that will be relevant to future large-scale public health events.

One of our priorities is building resiliency overall, so the tech were working with isnt necessarily around developing a vaccine specific to Covid-19 but creating a vaccine delivery system that could be used in any future mass vaccination of people. Were working to support technologies that can be used to address Covid-19 but can really be used in the future.

Andrew Nerlinger, co-founder of PandemicTech and venture partner at Bill Wood Ventures, said one issue relevant to Austin that the consortium hopes to address is the disparities in infection and recovery from Covid-19 among different demographic groups.

Its been well documented that Covid-19 has really kind of attacked different racial groups or different economic groups more severely, he said. One of the things this innovation consortium is well poised to do is take on that issue of health equity and health quality, particularly with community health organizations that weve been aggressive about getting in front of.

McDonald said that early feedback from health care startups involved in the consortium showed that access to funding, potential partnerships and subject matter experts are the three biggest obstacles preventing their success. Thus far, she said member groups have found success addressing those issues by tapping into the statewide network that could make Texas a national leader in health care security.

Doug Norton, vice president of business development at Inspire Semiconductor and a founding member of the consortium, said the economic development benefits from the connections made will keep medical school graduates in the state.

For years we had too many great talents created here in Texas, whether its at the Dell Medical School or UT Southwestern, and they all end up fleeing to either coast where the biotech startups are, he said. The idea here was to form a medical innovation district its been working well and helps unify the state even more.

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UT incubator takes the lead in health care consortium targeting Covid-19 and future pandemics - Austin Monitor

Research of regions healthcare reveals several key findings – Wilkes Barre Times-Leader

Teri Ooms, executive director at The Institute for Public Policy & Economic Development.

WILKES-BARRE Recent research on the healthcare systems response and challenges in the face of COVID-19 detailed in the 2020 Indicators Report compiled by The Institute for Public Policy and Economic Development at Wilkes University, revealed a number of important findings.

According to Teri Ooms, executive director of The Institute, and Andrew Chew, senior research and policy analyst, the research showed:

Inadequate stockpiles of personal protective equipment, shortages of COVID-19 testing supplies, and a lack of coordination in allocating available resources hampered the healthcare systems ability to respond.

Shortages in stockpiles of supplies have been intensified by a decline in public health funding and the current fee for service model of the healthcare system.

Limitations in the health IT infrastructure made it difficult to collect and consolidate data on COVID-19 cases and testing results and develop a coordinated response.

Communications from federal and state authorities, including changing guidelines and sometimes contradictory messaging, led to confusion among healthcare providers and the general public.

There is an increased need for testing and contact tracing which will be managed at the state level.

The surge in unemployment is likely to increase the uninsured rate and expand the need for public health insurance as workers lose employer-sponsored health coverage.

The use of telemedicine and other methods for remote access and patient monitoring increased due to limitations on in-person care.

All health care providers, including hospitals, community health centers, and long-term care centers, have faced significant clinical and financial challenges in responding to the pandemic.

As we all know, the COVID-19 pandemic has been perhaps the most immediate public health concern this year, Ooms said. Our region has been significantly impacted.

The report shows that Luzerne County saw a significant growth of cases in early April, which were largely centered around the Hazleton area.

However, the rate of growth in new cases in Luzerne County leveled off and has been gradually flattening since.

Lackawanna County saw a steady growth in cases through May, and the rate of new cases didnt significantly slow there until late May. Lackawanna County has had a particularly large proportion of its cases in long-term care facilities.

Both counties have a higher rate of total COVID-19 cases than the state as a whole.

Health indicators

Ooms said the Health and Health Care section of the 2020 Indicators Report identifies important health indicators in Pennsylvania and Lackawanna and Luzerne counties.

These indicators include death from health conditions such as cancer and heart disease, death by suicide, infant and child mortality, childhood lead exposure, teen pregnancy, unhealthy behaviors such as cigarette smoking and excessive drinking, health insurance status, obesity, and the availability of health care facilities such as hospitals and nursing homes.

The report shows the rate of death from cancer is an indicator affected by behavior (such as smoking, which is known to cause various types of cancer) and by health care (cancer death rates decline as access to the latest treatments improve).

Demographics also complicate these statistics; cancer is more prevalent among older individuals, for instance, Ooms said. The cancer death rate in Lackawanna and Luzerne counties is significantly higher than for the Commonwealth as a whole.

According to Chew, the age-adjusted rate of death by heart disease another leading cause of death in the U.S. is similarly impacted by health-related behaviors and access to health care.

Although the rate of death by heart disease was lower in 2017 than it was in 2009 (for both counties and Pennsylvania), it increased in Lackawanna and Luzerne counties following a decline in the previous year, Chew said. The rate of death by heart disease is significantly higher in both Lackawanna and Luzerne counties than in the Commonwealth as a whole.

The reports also shows that positive test results for elevated childhood lead levels, as identified in screenings of children younger than 72 months, is more common in Lackawanna County than in Pennsylvania as a whole. Screening for childhood lead exposure is not mandated; nonetheless, there was a noticeable increase in the percentage of children tested statewide and in Luzerne County in 2018, while the percentage tested in Lackawanna declined slightly.

Effects of persona behavior

Ooms said personal behavior impacts many health conditions, including, but not limited to, heart disease and cancer. Making healthy lifestyle choices is extremely important.

However, eating healthy can be costly and access to healthy food can be limited, Ooms said. At a time when many area residents are living with low or moderate incomes, healthy choices are not always top priorities.

Ooms went on to say that issues of social determinants and the existence of food deserts in the region also complicate efforts to improve population health. She said the adult obesity rate has stood at around 30 percent regionally and statewide in recent years.

In two key health-related behaviors, this area has performed worse in recent years than the state as a whole, Chew said. Cigarette smoking has been more prevalent in Lackawanna and Luzerne counties than in Pennsylvania, and excessive drinking has been at least as frequent regionally as it is statewide.

Chew also said drug overdose deaths have risen in both counties compared with several years ago, despite drops in the opioid prescribing rate. He said fentanyl is a major factor in persistent deaths from drug overdoses.

The prevalence of these high-risk behaviors is a significant public health concern, Chew said.

Health insurance coverage

The report shows that health insurance coverage of area residents has improved between 2010 and 2018. A considerably larger proportion of individuals had coverage in 2018 than in 2010, largely due to an increase in people covered by public health insurance.

There has indeed been a strong increase in public health insurance regionally, while the percent of the population covered by private health coverage has been slowly declining regionally and statewide, Ooms said. Enrollment in federal marketplace plans has been dropping in both counties and in Pennsylvania overall.

Finally, Ooms said the cost of health care is an important concern. Though Lackawanna and Luzerne counties are homes to multiple health care resources and the number of beds available in hospitals has not declined significantly, cost could impede access for those who are under-insured or uninsured.

The report shows that between 2013 and 2018, for example, the daily private hospital room rate has increased by 29 percent in Lackawanna County and by 58 percent in Luzerne County. The semi-private daily room rate for nursing home facilities has also grown since 2012.

Furthermore, nursing home beds per 1,000 seniors have declined compared with 2012 rates, despite a recent uptick.

This is a concern because the regions growing senior population and increasing life expectancy will likely drive demand for long-term care, Ooms said.

Reach Bill OBoyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.

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Research of regions healthcare reveals several key findings - Wilkes Barre Times-Leader

Darien occupational therapy assistant marks fifth anniversary at Seneca Health Care Center – The Batavian

August 8, 2020 - 1:50pm

The McGuire Groups Seneca Health Care Center in West Seneca is pleased to announce that Mackenna Fagan, of Darien, celebrated her five-year anniversary with the company.

As a certified occupational therapy assistant --COTA, Fagan provides direct care and therapy to assist patients in regaining their independence and helping them prepare to return home or to a different level of care.

She is a graduate of Erie Community College with an associate degree in Applied Science.

She resides with her husband Joshua and son Declan.

Seneca Health Care Center provides 24-hour skilled nursing care, subacute rehabilitation, Journeys palliative care and respite/short-term services.

The facility continuously receives outstanding five-star ratings from the federal government and finished in the first quintile of New York States quality metric for six out of six years.

For more information, visitwww.mcguiregroup.comorwww.medicare.gov.

(Submitted photo)

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Darien occupational therapy assistant marks fifth anniversary at Seneca Health Care Center - The Batavian

Our view: Who will get the vaccine first? Health care community needs to make plans now – The Winchester Star

Rationing of medical treatment is viewed by many Americans as unacceptable. Making health care decisions based on anything but need is seen as immoral. That is as it should be.

But as researchers race to develop vaccines against COVID-19, the specter of rationing is being raised by some.

Among the most intelligent strategies adopted by the federal government to battle the coronavirus is that involving vaccines. Developing them safely, yet quickly is a very expensive proposition.

Private-sector researchers whose work shows promise are receiving subsidies to speed development of vaccines. In return, some companies have pledged that once they have products on the market, they will be supplied to the public on a no-profit basis.

Several potential vaccines are showing promise. Normally, decisions on production are not made until after the best candidates are identified.

That could delay getting a COVID-19 vaccine out to the public, perhaps by months. Fortunately, federal policymakers have committed enormous sums, in the billions of dollars, to begin production of the most promising vaccines in advance.

That means millions of doses of vaccine compounds that do not prove safe and effective will be thrown away, at taxpayer expense. But it also means that when good vaccines are found, millions of doses will be ready to go immediately.

Still, it will take most of 2021 to produce enough vaccine to give it to every American who wants it.

In the early stages of distribution, that will mean rationing. Decisions will have to be made about who will receive the vaccine and who will be told they have to wait.

Clearly, older people and younger ones with potentially dangerous pre-existing medical conditions should go to the front of the line.

There, unfortunately, it is likely any agreement will end. What about race? Gender? Location? Any number of other factors?

For example, will New York City residents get preference over Americans in rural areas?

If the health care community has not begun devising guidelines for vaccine distribution, it should, right away. The sooner Americans learn what those guidelines are and have an opportunity to debate them, the better.

Vaccine for COVID-19 could be one of the great public health success stories or it could drive one more spear of divisiveness into the American public. We cannot allow the latter, as dangerous in the long run as the virus itself, to occur.

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Our view: Who will get the vaccine first? Health care community needs to make plans now - The Winchester Star

David Hunter remembered as a ‘giant of healthcare’ – Modern Healthcare

David Hunter, a former hospital CEO and executive of Voluntary Hospitals of America, died Sunday at the age of 75 after a bout with pancreatic cancer.

Hunter, who started a consulting firm in the late '80s that specialized in turning around embattled academic medical centers, had a way of breaking tough news in an honest and relatable way, said Larry Scanlan, who worked for Hunter at the Hunter Group.

As a former hospital CEO and the son of two nurses, Hunter never lost sight that healthcare was about the patients, no matter the financial and operational pressure of keeping hospitals afloat, he said. That sentiment was reflected by the people he hiredformer hospital executives, doctors and nurses who could personally understand the nuance and responsibility of being part of the healthcare industry.

"Whatever few things I did right in my career I owe to him," Scanlan said. "He was bigger than life."

Hunter is survived by his wife Mary, his five sons Perry, Edward, Seth, Josh and Eli as well as his grandchildren, Charles, Molly, Becca, Anna, Paden, Meredith, Hunter, Christian, Quinn, Olivia, Ben, Lily, Kait, Colin and Charly.

The family asked those who want to offer their support to donate to A Love for Life, which funds pancreatic research in partnership with Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania, or the Hunter Group Health Policy and Management Student Scholarship Award (with the code DHUNT).

"As his son, I am personally devastated by his passing as well as incredibly proud of what he accomplished in healthcare," Seth Warren wrote in an email, noting that he followed his father as a CEO of a small health system in Indiana.

Hunter, who grew up in the Lehigh Valley area of Pennsylvania, began his career as a nursing home orderly. He moved his way up to become a hospital CEO at Nicholas H. Noyes in Dansville, N.Y. and Burlington County Memorial Hospital in Mount Holly, N.J.

He later joined the Voluntary Hospitals of America as the chief operating officer for the then-largest national network of not-for-profit hospitals in the U.S. Before starting the Hunter Group, Hunter became the chief executive of VHA Supply, a national group purchasing organization. He was selected as one of Modern Healthcare's Most Powerful People in Healthcare in 2002, the inaugural list.

From his days of teaching hospital administration at Duke University in the mid-70s to his recent affiliation with his alma mater, the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health where he earned his master's degree in healthcare administration, Hunter never stopped mentoring leaders in healthcare, Warren said.

"There are generations of healthcare executives that have benefited from David's insight, wit and friendship," he wrote.

While the Hunter Group had a tough reputation as it guided providers through cost cutting and other thorny scenarios as detailed in a 1999 New York Times profile, it saved a lot of academic medical centers and community hospitals, Scanlan said.

"(David) was a giant in the industry," he said. "He had a way of pulling people together."

Outside of work, Hunter loved fishing, taking trips with his sons and friends all over the East Coast, Florida and Costa Rica. The fishing trips he enjoyed with his grandsons to Key West, Boca Grande and other Florida fishing spot created bonds that will last for generations, Warren said.

"David was a father and grandfather to people that extended well beyond his actual family," he wrote. "His generosity knew no bounds, and if you met him, he likely bought you a beer at Ott's, Buckalew's, The Temperance House, The Black Whale, The Wharf or one of many other bars he loved. There are many bartenders that will miss him (and his large tips)!"

He would command a room, but it wasn't from a place of arrogance, Scanlan said.

"He had a way with handling difficult situations by being honest with people and taking them for what they were," he said. "He would say thingsin a direct but not offensive mannerthat other people may be fired for."

In one instance, Hunter and Scanlan traveled to the West Coast to advise a client facing a difficult turnaround situation. Hunter was speaking to room of about 200 doctors when one of them challenged him.

"What I want is loyalty," the doctor told him.

"You want loyalty?" Hunter replied. "Then go and buy yourself a cocker spaniel."

"The stunning part was everyone in the room got it," Scanlan said. "Whether it was a financial, clinical or operational issue, he had a knack for bringing people together by cutting to the chase."

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David Hunter remembered as a 'giant of healthcare' - Modern Healthcare

5 million cases of COVID in the US: Health care professionals warn we are not out of the woods – WTSP.com

Florida's case rates are shifting in the right direction, but percent positivity rates still remain too high.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. The U.S. passed an alarming milestone of 5 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 Sunday and while the country leads the world in COVID cases, that might not be entirely accurate.

Well, we're still the world leaders in terms of reported cases and deaths. But we know that many countries are not reporting accurately," said Jay Wolfson, a public health expert with USF Health. "China is not reporting accurately. Iran is certainly not reporting accurately. Brazil is barely reporting.

But either way, he says the new case milestone is alarming: "It's like, I don't really care what other people do at this point. I care about us, and 5 million is a lot of people

In Florida, public health professionals hope we are seeing a shift.

We are kind of hovering in this range of between seven (thousand) and 10,000 cases a day, something-hundred deaths plus a day. If we can push that rate down, it's very important," Wolfson said.

It's moving in the right direction, but far from being out of the woods.

So I'm delighted that the case rate has gone down a bit," Wolfson said. "This is really good news. But let's not get carried away. We're still in the midst of an extremely dangerous pandemics that is highly contagious.

With school around the corner, Wolfson encourages everyone to be flexible.

"There's not an on-off switch. It's a dimmer. So we're going to watch every day every week as we move into the school season as we move into the autumn, he said.

As we see outbreaks in specific areas, experts recommend scaling back movement in those places to prevent our percent positive rate from climbing.

Weve been between eight to twelve percent in Hillsborough County, and we need to be below 5 percent," Wolfson said. "Because that demonstrates that it remains stable below that World Health Organization ceiling level.

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5 million cases of COVID in the US: Health care professionals warn we are not out of the woods - WTSP.com

Sanders introduces tax on billionaire wealth gains to provide health care for all – Vermont Biz

Vermont Business Magazine Today, Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) introduced a 60-percent tax on the windfall wealth increases of billionaires during this pandemic in order to pay for all out-of-pocket medical expenses for every person in America for a year.

The Make Billionaires Pay Act would tax the $731 billion in wealth accumulated by 467 billionairesthe richest 0.001% of Americaa from March 18th until August 5th, a period in which 5.4 million Americans recently lost their health insurance and 50 million applied for unemployment insurance. The funds from this emergency tax would be used to cover all necessary healthcare expenses of the uninsured and underinsured, including prescription drugs, for one year.

"The legislation I am introducing today willtax theobscene wealth gains billionaires have made during this extraordinary crisis to guarantee healthcare as a right to all for an entire year, said Sanders."At a time of enormous economic pain and suffering, we have a fundamental choice to make.We can continue to allow the very rich to get much richer while everyone else gets poorer and poorer. Or we can tax the winnings a handful of billionaires made during the pandemic to improve the health and well-being of tens of millions of Americans. In my view, it is time for the Senate to act on behalf of the working class who are hurting like they have never hurt before, not the billionaire class who are doing phenomenally well and have never had it so good."

"As more than 160,000 Americans have lost their lives and millions more have lost their jobs, it is unconscionable that the super-wealthy are getting even richer in the midst of this crisis,"said Markey."Despite overwhelming need, Republicans continue to look for any excuse under the guise of deficit reduction to cut vital support programs like jobless aid and health insurance for the most vulnerable. The American people pay with their lives every day for the criminal negligence of the Trump administration to combat the coronavirus. It is time the countrys wealthiest do the same off with their profits."

"During this unprecedented economic and public health crisis, millions of Americans are out of work and struggling to put food on the table while billionaires are getting even wealthier, said Gillibrand. Requiring billionaires to pay their fair share will help support workers and families dealing with job losses, food insecurity, housing instability and health care. Not only is this a common-sense proposal, but its a moral one and Congress should be doing all we can to assist Americans struggling right now."

According to Americans for Tax Fairness and the Institute for Policy Studies, a tax of 60 percent on the windfall wealth gains among fewer than 500 billionaires from March until August would raise $421.7 billionenough to empower Medicare to pay all of the out-of-pocket healthcare expenses for everyone in America over the next 12 months, according to estimates from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. The wealth tax would remain in effect until January 1, 2021.

The Make Billionaires Pay Act would still leave Americasbillionaires with more than $310.1 billion in wealth gains during the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. However, under the legislation:

As a result of Trumps tax giveaway to the rich, these billionaires currently pay a lower effective tax rate on average than teachers or truck drivers.

"Everyone has suffered during the pandemicfrom lost lives, lost jobs, lost chanceseveryone, that is, except Americas billionaires,"said Frank Clemente, executive director of Americans for Tax Fairness."Senator Sanderss bill recognizes that a good chunk of the obscene growth in wealth by the richest Americans during a national emergency should be used to help us all survive and recover."

"The Covid-19 crisis further worsens inequality. While the working class struggles with job and income loss, billionaires wealth has already fully bounced back and sometimes greatly surpassed pre-Covid levels,"said Emmanuel Saez,Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley. So far, the US government has borrowed from the rich to provide relief. It is only fair to also ask for direct contributions from the richest to the Covid-19 relief effort. Senator Sandersbill takes a bold and innovative step in this direction, paving the way to make billionaires finally pay a fair share of their enormous gains."

"As our country faces vast economic and health needs, billionaires continue to display their appetite for greed,"said Susan Harley, Managing Director of Public Citizens Congress Watch division. The Make Billionaires Pay Act smartly uses our tax code to take on the co-crises of COVID-19 health care disparities and the gaping income inequalities in our nation."

"What makes nations prosperous is not the sanctification of a tiny number of ultra-wealthy individuals; it is investment in health care and education for all, said Gabriel Zucman, Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley. With the wealth of billionaires at a record high, their effective tax rate at a record low, and tens of millions of Americans lacking good health care, the Make Billionaires Pay Act is a commonsense piece of legislation a much-needed step if America is to emerge stronger from this pandemic."

Read the bill text here.

Read a fact sheet on the legislation here.

See an analysis of the top 467 billionaires pandemic wealth gains and revenues from Sanders tax here.

Source: WASHINGTON, August 6 Sanders

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Sanders introduces tax on billionaire wealth gains to provide health care for all - Vermont Biz

A wave of Post Traumatic Stress may await health care workers and first responders on the COVID fron – Tampa Bay Times

It has been more than a decade since I shared my diary in these pages about my experiences visiting military troops around the world, counseling them about how to handle the trauma they faced daily in the line of duty. All these years later, one moment I chronicled still stands out vividly. During the summer 2009, I was embedded with the 25th Infantry Division, Camp Marez, Mosul, Iraq led by then one-star (and now retired four-star) Gen. Robert Brooks Brown.

Gen. Brown would have me visit soldiers throughout Iraq and one such visit was to the Camp Diamondback base hospital. While on a tour conducted by a medical staff member, we entered the emergency room. I was introduced to the attending doctor and after a short conversation I asked: 'Who is taking care of you? He responded with a smile and had me follow him to the rear of the hospital. We walked through a back door and there in the middle of the desert was a Zen garden, complete with a small patch of grass and a fountain.

It was a place of solitude, a place where doctors and nurses could clear their heads and emotions, a place that made the ugly facts of war the traumatic events they were facing everyday fade away for a period of time. The garden gave the doctors and nurses an inner peace that rejuvenated them. It was a crucial part of the healing process.

Not all wounds bleed and, at times, invisible wounds cut as deep as the wounds we see. That is certainly the case with a new kind of warrior on the front lines of a brutal fight against COVID-19. The health care workers doctors, nurses, EMTs, paramedics, police and more are heroes, dealing with a constant drumbeat of death while we are asked to sit on a couch, or social distance during a driveway happy hour.

It reminds me of soldiers handmade signs I saw in Iraq and Afghanistan, We are at war while America is at the mall. The battle against COVID-19, like all past wars, carries the potential for the same kind of post-traumatic experiences faced by our combat troops. My good friend, and a true American hero, former Army Ranger Nate Self, shared the 2002 Afghanistan battle of Roberts Ridge in his book titled Two Wars, The One Abroad And The One Within. All wars are different, and all wars are the same, he explained. The COVID-19 battle against an invisible enemy will undoubtedly cause trauma for those on the front lines.

Being aware of the potential war within is vital for self-care. For those who have been waging this new war with the coronavirus, trauma is inescapable, according to Dr. Richard Mollica, director of Harvard Global Mental Health and one of the worlds leading psychological trauma experts.

This past year, I had the good fortune of getting to know Dr. Mollica while participating in the Harvard Global Mental Health Trauma and Recovery Program; I spent two weeks in Italy and had six months of collaborative learning. We studied with trauma experts and learned from their experiences, knowledge and leadership skills on a global stage.

Dr. Mollica, the director of Harvards Program in Refugee Trauma, has received many awards for his work, published more than 160 articles on trauma over 30 years, and is the author of Healing Invisible Wounds: Paths To Hope And Recovery In A Violent World. Dr. Mollica and his Harvard Global Mental Health staff offer a Self-Care Pocket Card for the tool kits of all those serving in the COVID-19 fight.

The truth is that we are all susceptible to post-traumatic stress. It is a human condition that can be triggered by hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, accidents and horrific crimes. However, those who serve are in the higher risk group because they go where trauma is. Military, law enforcement, firefighters, first responders and health care workers see what the rest of the world does not.

Post-traumatic stress has been with us forever. Sophocles wrote about the warrior not understanding emotions after coming home from battle. After the Civil War, we called it Soldiers Heart. Then came World War I, when it was known as Shell Shock. The World War II term was Battle Fatigue, while the Korean and Vietnam wars had the flashback terminology. Today, it is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. It became a diagnosis in 1980 and, from my view, we have over-medicalized the issue ever since, pushing people away from the conversation due to the stigma attached.

The COVID-19 pandemic will create similar post-traumatic stress experiences for front-line medical workers. Allow me to share the similarities between them and our amazing men and women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In presenting to members of the military, I quickly came to realize that the title of PTSD Education and Awareness caused some in the audience to react defensively because of the stigma associated with the term Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. So I decided to rename it Operational Stress Education and Awareness. Words matter. Military, law enforcement, firefighters and first responders relate to operational responsibilities, and using a term that sounded less medical allowed for more honest discussions.

Those in military uniforms like to think they can leap tall buildings in a single bound. But we can never lose sight of the fact there is a human being wearing it.

The uniform called scrubs does the same for the health care professionals. They also serve, protect and save lives. Similar to soldiers, they see death, however, not at the rate they are witnessing due to COVID-19. They are in a fight where they can feel helpless at times yet steel their personal emotions in order to do their job. They have learned to repress feelings and emotions, and being immersed into their work protects them for a period of time.

I share this analogy regarding emotions. I ask folks to imagine I am holding a large balloon in front of the room and ask how can we get the air out. More often than not the words pop it are said and yes, we can take a pin and pop it to get the air out, but we no longer have a balloon. We can let it go and it flies all over the room and goes out the door never to see the balloon again. Or we can turn the balloon upside down and let a little air out at a time it will make a noise we may not want to hear, a noise that hurts our ears, yet at some point we will get the air out and we will have a full balloon we can use again one day. We need to get the air out of our balloons. However, more often than not, we push things down, one after another, and if you take that analogy to its fruition at some point the balloon will burst.

The largest window in a car is the windshield because it allows us to see where we are going, and the small rear-view mirror gives us the opportunity to see where we have been. We need both to navigate the paths we take, and it is no different with COVID-19. We have learned trauma lessons from past battlefields, and we need to prepare for the future care of COVID-19 front line health care warriors. This pandemic shadow will be with us for a time; however, we should never fear a shadow because if there is a shadow that means there is light nearby. It is our responsibility to ourselves, and each other, to get to that light and it starts with self-care because heroes are human.

Bob Delaney is an author and has been a post trauma advocate for more than four decades who presents worldwide. He is a former New Jersey state trooper who went undercover and infiltrated the Mafia in the 1970s. His healing journey with PTS brought him back to the game of his youth, basketball leading to a 30-year career as a referee in the National Basketball Association. He is an NBA Cares Ambassador and advisor to the Southeastern Conference. He has received numerous national awards, including the Presidents Volunteer Service Award from President Barack Obama and the NCAAs highest award named after President Theodore Roosevelt. His story has been told by numerous media outlets and has been a guest of Dr. Sanjay Gupta on CNN.

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A wave of Post Traumatic Stress may await health care workers and first responders on the COVID fron - Tampa Bay Times

Industry VoicesSimple steps will make a big difference in COVID fight. Yes, that means wearing a mask. – FierceHealthcare

First, do no harm.

These wordsin some form or fashionare etched in the memory of every individual who pursues a profession in health care.We knowits not a normal workplace mantra.But as health care workers, we dont have a normal workplace.

Health care workers are waging war against an invisible enemy inside the walls of almost every hospital across America. Fortunately, we have a track record of treating highly infectious diseases like measles, diphtheria and polioto name a few.

Coronavirus might be unlike anything we have ever treated before, but the principles that define infection prevention, and the tools we use to protect patients and health care workers, remain the same.

To defeat the coronavirus, we need all Americans to think like health care workers and use those same principles and tools.

Today, that means wearing a mask.

RELATED:American College of Physicians issues new guidance on effectiveness of masks

Since early April, the CDC and other public health experts have urged Americans to wear masks while in publicand still less than half are wearing them regularly.

A new Gallup poll found that 44 percent of Americans always wear a mask outside their homes and 28 percent wear one very often. People who rarely, sometimes or never wear masks make up 29 percent of the population.

Imagine if a third of the people who worked in hospitals decided they would prefer only to follow infection prevention guidance sometimes.

Throughout the country, hospitals and health care workers continue to do their part. The American Hospital Association joined the American Medical Association and the American Nurses Association in a nationwide call, an open letter, asking the public to follow three simple steps: wear a mask, practice physical distancing and engage in good hand hygiene.

Hospitals and health systems have implemented social distancing in waiting rooms, required mask use in common areas and limited entrance and exit points. Maintenance staff regularly conduct deep-cleaning throughout hospital buildings. In alignment with CDC guidance, hospitals have also made the painful but necessary decision to place restrictions on visitors.

But in order to defeat the coronavirus, we need our fellow Americans to take a page out of the health care workers handbook and do no harm.

Im a nurse. When I joined the American Hospital Association, I became the spokesperson for thousands of nurses and nurse leaders across the country. I represent the caregivers who provide direct patient care.

RELATED:CVS, Walmart lead retailers adding requirements for face masks in all stores

In this role, I have helped health care providersfrom nurses and doctors to infection prevention experts, supply chain professionals and hospital administratorscome together to leverage every ounce of training and experience among them to care for patients as they fight this pandemic.

But we cant do it alone. If were going to beat this pandemic, everyone must play a role.

We again joined the AMA and ANA to launch a Wear A Mask campaign including Public Service Announcements asking all Americans to think like a health care worker and let science shape your decisions during this time: Wear a mask, keep your distance from others in public and wash your hands frequently.

Taking these three simple steps will alleviate some of the pressure on our health care system. Everyone has a critical role to play and working together we can ease the surge of patients that need to be cared for and to ensure our brave front-line caregivers can win the fight against this virus.

Not taking them will do considerable harm.

Robyn Begley is theAmerican Hospital Association's Chief Nursing Officer and Chief Executive Officer of theAmerican Organization for Nursing Leadership.

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Industry VoicesSimple steps will make a big difference in COVID fight. Yes, that means wearing a mask. - FierceHealthcare

FROM THE OPINION PAGE Health care transition: Emergency room still available in Bluefield – Bluefield Daily Telegraph

Rural hospitals across America have been struggling in recent years, and those challenges were furtherexacerbatedwith the onset of the coronavirus pandemic last March.

The Stay at Home orders issued by West Virginia Governor Jim Justice and Virginia Governor Ralph Northamearlier this yearfurther added to the challenges faced by rural medical centers. The state-ordered closures included a moratorium on all elective surgeries at hospitals like Princeton Community Hospital and Bluefield Regional Medical Center. At the time, we didnt know a lot about COVID-19, so folks were naturally worried about this global pandemic. So worried, in fact, that many citizens made it a point to stay away from hospitals, with others opting to delay important medical procedures and routine medical treatment. All of this led toa significant decline in patient volume and services at rural hospitals across the nation, including right here in southern West Virginia and Southwest Virginia.

This brings us to where we are today. All in-patient and ancillary services have ceased at Bluefield Regional Medical Center, a tremendous loss for the region.

We know many area residents are concerned some are downright alarmed by this development. We have read, and published,many letters from our readers over the past couple of weeks where you have expressed your concerns about the closure of Bluefield Regional Medical Center.

We understand your concerns. However, it should be noted that all of the news isnt bad.

The newly renamedPCHBluefield Emergency Department is now operational at the same location where Bluefield Regional Medical Centers emergency room was.And thePCH Bluefield Emergency Department will be open24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, to help meet the emergency needs of residents in Bluefield and surrounding communities. It is staffed by a team ofexperienced and highly qualified emergency physicians and nurses who are ready to provide care to area residents during an emergency.

Services provided by the newPCHBluefield Emergency Department include:

Emergent treatment/stabilization for all illnesses and injuries, including cardiac, stroke, respiratory and traumatic injuries

A full array of laboratory services

A decontamination room

Imaging services with low-dose CT scan, Digital X-Ray and CT scans

Helicopter transport to other facilities

Ambulance transport

Keeping the Bluefieldemergencydepartment open on a full-time basisand fullystaffedis an absolute necessity. This is a good, first step in ensuring that medical services are available to residents in the Bluefield area when they experience an emergency.

But there is still much more work to be done. The city of Bluefield, working in conjunction with Princeton Community Hospital and other community stakeholders, must continuesearchingfor a way to provide expanded health care services to the residents of the two Bluefields. Finding new uses for the Bluefield Regional Medical Centercampus also is a necessity, and already potential partnerships are being discussed with entities such as Bluefield State College.With more than 90 inpatient rooms that could serve as dorm rooms and the possibility of expanding BSCs medical field programs,the educational option is absolutely on the table,according to Princeton Community HospitalChief Executive Officer Jeffrey Lilley.

Lilley says a possible cancer treatment center also is an idea under consideration for the Bluefield facility.

We look forward to learningmoredetailsabout such plans and partnerships in the weeks and months ahead.

But for now the immediate focus must be on health care, particularly in light of the continuing pandemic.

Ensuring the health and well-being of the citizens of Mercer County and surrounding areas should be the priority of all parties involved as we transition through this difficult period.

We are making critical coverage of the coronavirus available for free. Please consider subscribing so we can continue to bring you the latest news and information on this developing story.

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FROM THE OPINION PAGE Health care transition: Emergency room still available in Bluefield - Bluefield Daily Telegraph

Four healthcare security lessons learned during the initial COVID-19 surge – Security Magazine

Four healthcare security lessons learned during the initial COVID-19 surge | 2020-08-10 | Security Magazine This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more. This Website Uses CookiesBy closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Learn MoreThis website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more.

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Four healthcare security lessons learned during the initial COVID-19 surge - Security Magazine

COVID-19 Underscores Why Certain Aspects of the American Healthcare System Should Change Forever – – HIT Consultant

Irv Lichtenwald, President & CEO of Medsphere Systems Corporation

In the late 1940s, the United Kingdom was busily reassembling country and what remained of the empire in the aftermath of World War II. Among many revelations, the war had convinced Britains leaders of the need to provide healthcare for all in the event of calamity upending the basic functions of a civilized society. With that, the UKs National Health Service (NHS) was born.

In 2020, all perspectives about quality and the time it takes to see a provider aside, the NHS remains quite popular among UK citizens and is an enduring source of national pride.

With the United States in the midst of its own upheaval, its for a related question: Might the current COVID-19 situation give rise to significant changes to the American healthcare system?

Virtually no one thinks the correct answer is No. Things will change. The question is how and to what extent. The healthcare system in place in the United States now is dramatically more complex than that in use by Britons after WW II. There are so many moving parts, so many things that can break.

So, in which aspects of the current American healthcare system are we likely to see changes after COVID-19 is dealt with?

Telehealth: Someone always benefits in a catastrophe. In this case, that someone may be Zoom shareholders.

From 10 million daily users in December, Zoom rocketed to 200 million in March and nearly 300 million a month later. Much of that was healthcare related.

Of course, Zoom is not the only direct beneficiary of coronavirus as venerable meeting platforms like WebEx and Skype, among others, have also experienced dramatic growth.

Hospitals and health systems were incrementally implementing telehealth services prior to the coronavirus outbreak, but there was no sense of urgency that accompanies a rapidly spreading virus. Since then, the federal government, states and insurance companies have allocated funds and rewritten regulation to expand the use of telehealth.

But there are more telehealth related-issues to address, some of which have thorns. Service and payment parity across insurance companies is an issue. If telehealth is going to be a regular component of healthcare, technology gaps will have to be addressed, especially in rural areas.

This is something the federal government recognizes. The White House recently drafted an executive order oriented around improving rural health by expanding technology access, developing new payment models and reducing regulatory burdens. The EO tasks the secretaries of health and human services and agriculture to work with the Federal Communications Commission to develop and implement a strategy to improve rural health by improving the physical and communications healthcare infrastructure available to rural Americans. But until Congress gets involved and provides funding for something like this, it will probably never get out of the proposal phase.

In fact, there are enough concernsparity, technology gaps, added costsassociated with telehealth to wonder if it will endure after coronavirus is in the rear view. Enough about telehealth benefits both providers and patients for it to stick and proliferate, but that could also be said about any number of healthcare initiatives that seem to languish for lack of coordination and political will.

Health Insurance: This is where the NHS analogy is the most relevant. Many millions of workers are furloughed or simply laid off with the impact of COVID-19 on frontline jobs like restaurant worker, massage therapist and barista. Those who had insurance through work may not have it anymore, leaving them doubly vulnerableno coverage, no incometo illness or accident.

Mass unemployment episodes reveal, each time, the weakness in the patchwork employment-based healthcare insurance system weve sort of made peace with for decades. Sure, Medicaid exists to fill the gaps, but it may make sense to render Medicaid unnecessary, especially since its value is questionable in particular states.

You notice the number of band-aids that Congress is having to apply to help people who have lost their jobs, said former CMS Administrator Don Berwick, MD. What we have now is a whole series of band-aids and special measures. What if instead, we just had universal health insurance?

What if, indeed. Will COVID-19 be the straw that burns the bridge of employer-based health insurance, to mangle a metaphor? That may depend on how long the pandemic lasts, who is president sometime after November 3 and how much damage is done to the national fabric before economy and society start a process of repair.

Payment Models: For years now, hospitals have been in the middle of slow shift from fee-for-service care to value-based care and alternative payment models. That transition didnt happen quickly enough to prevent most hospitals from falling into a financial chasm. If elective procedures are a big part of revenue, it follows that revenue will fall if those procedures disappear.

To be fair, the hit to hospital finances has been catastrophic enoughmore than $200 billion in losses over four months, according to the American Hospital Associationthat federal government support would have been necessary even if a full pay-for-quality model had been in place.

But the pandemic spotlights the downside of treating essential services like healthcare as though they are mere services one selects or rejects. And it exposes the folly of not making sure everyone has insurance coverage (a payer) when the individual costs for COVID-19-related hospital admission can range from $20,000 to $88,000.

End-of-Life Care: According to one analysis, 42 percent of COVID-19 deaths have occurred in nursing homes or assisted living facilities. The families of those unfortunate souls whove died while in a facility have generally endured the agony of saying goodbye outside a window or over a video link. Its hard to believe, after COVID-19, that the assisted living industry will continue as before.

The crisis surely will lead nursing home administrators to reconsider the way patients are cared for, says Modern Healthcare. Among the ideas Harvards [Professor David] Grabowski believes will get a longer look in the wake of the pandemic are using telemedicine services, creating specialized Medicare Advantage plans for the homes and pursuing smaller settings.

Perhaps. And perhaps a son or daughter that remembers coronavirus will simply choose not to risk everything by putting their parent in a home. Could enough of them make such a decision that the industry contracts? Is forced to take quality care more seriously? Attracts more serious federal regulation?

As the deaths mount, its hard not to give every option serious consideration.

Supply Chain: These days were bickering in public and on social media (looking at you, maskless Karen throwing food in Trader Joes) about whether or not masks should be mandated. Look back with me to February, however, and youll fondly recall concerns about there being enough masks at all.

Back then we learned that the United States had exactly one mask manufacturer, and that all other masks are sourced from overseas. That it takes longer to get stuff from China than from Amarillo creates obvious potential problems when a crisis hits, but it also pits hospitals and government entities against one another and guarantees that the winner will pay more for supplies than they would in less-critical times.

It also creates weird, unnecessary scenarios that could be avoided using coordination and leadership. The governor of Maryland, for example, used his wifes connections to South Korea (her country of birth) to secure 500,000 coronavirus tests, which he then put in an undisclosed location and protected using national guard troops.

Whats the remedy?

Modern Healthcare has called for a national supply chain czar, which in other times may have just been the head of FEMA. The suggestion, however, highlights the need for a coordinated central clearing house where supplies can be ordered, managed and dispersed based on need.

Individual hospitals, clinics and health systems can also help themselves by using a robust supply chain software system that keeps track in real time of available supplies, covers all ordering systems and methodologies, and reacts swiftly to certain thresholds.

The uniquely unfortunate aspect of the American political system among western democracies is that, for the most part, it responds to the demands of special interests. Think about your local representative. Chances are good the shouts of specific business interests are ringing in his or her hears so loudly that little else is audible.

As such, there is a significant danger that the American healthcare system will return, post-COVID-19, to the same dynamic it had when the virus arrived, which will be unfortunate. What we need post-pandemic is not necessarily specific changes to hospitals, clinics, insurance companies, etc., though they could be part of an overall solution. What will be necessary is an examination of where every aspect of the healthcare system overall, inasmuch as there is one, didnt do its job.

Disasters are social sodium pentothal that, while active, force groups of people to take an honest look at their failures. Once the disaster is passed, however, there is a danger that Upton Sinclairs maximIt is difficult to get a manto understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding itwill rule the day.

No one hopes for more dramatic damage to the American economy and social fabric, but the irony is that necessary change sometimes only comes when reality is undeniable, as in a shellshocked Britain instituting the NHS. If COVID-19 doesnt shock us sufficiently into making substantial changes to the healthcare system, its a pretty safe bet the same disaster will occur again.

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COVID-19 Underscores Why Certain Aspects of the American Healthcare System Should Change Forever - - HIT Consultant

Health care workers of color nearly twice as likely as whites to get COVID – The CT Mirror

Cloe Poisson :: CTMirror.org

Health care workers at St. Francis Hospital who are on the front lines caring for patients with COVID-19 cheer and wave as a parade of first responders passes by to pay tribute to them.

Health care workers of color were more likely to care for patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19, more likely to report using inadequate or reused protective gear, and nearly twice as likely as white colleagues to test positive for the coronavirus, a new study from Harvard Medical School researchers found.

The study also showed that health care workers are at least three times more likely than the general public to report a positive COVID test, with risks rising for workers treating COVID patients.

Dr. Andrew Chan, a senior author and an epidemiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, said the study further highlights the problem of structural racism, this time reflected in the front-line roles and personal protective equipment provided to people of color.

If you think to yourself, Health care workers should be on equal footing in the workplace, our study really showed thats definitely not the case, said Chan, who is also a professor at Harvard Medical School.

The study was based on data from more than 2 million COVID Symptom Study app users in the U.S. and the United Kingdom from March 24 through April 23. The study, done with researchers from Kings College London, was published in the journal The Lancet Public Health.

Lost on the Frontline, a project by KHN and The Guardian, has published profiles of 164 health care workers who died of COVID-19 and identified more than 900 who reportedly fell victim to the disease. An analysis of the stories showed that 62% of the health care workers who died were people of color.

They include Roger Liddell, 64, a Black hospital supply manager in Michigan, who sought but was denied an N95 respirator when his work required him to go into COVID-positive patients rooms, according to his labor union. Sandra Oldfield, 53, a Latina, worked at a California hospital where workers sought N95s as well. She was wearing a less-protective surgical mask when she cared for a COVID-positive patient before she got the virus and died.

The study findings follow other research showing that minority health care workers are likely to care for minority patients in their own communities, often in facilities with fewer resources, said Dr. Utibe Essien, a physician and assistant professor of medicine with the University of Pittsburgh.

Those workers may also see a higher share of sick patients, as federal data shows minority patients were disproportionately testing positive and being hospitalized with the virus, Essien said.

Im not surprised by these findings, he said, but Im disappointed by the result.

Dr. Fola May, a UCLA physician and researcher, said the study also reflects the fact that Black and Latino health care workers may live or visit family in minority communities that are hardest-hit by the pandemic because so many work on the front lines of all industries.

The study showed that health care workers of color were five times more likely than the general population to test positive for COVID-19.

Their workplace experience also diverged from that of whites alone. The study found that workers of color were 20% more likely than white workers to care for suspected or confirmed-positive COVID patients. The rate went up to 30% for Black workers specifically.

Black and Latino people overall have been three times as likely as whites to get the virus, a New York Times analysis of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data shows. (Latinos can be of any race or combination of races.)

Health care workers of color were also more likely to report inadequate or reused PPE, at a rate 50% higher than what white workers reported. For Latinos, the rate was double that of white workers.

Its upsetting, said Fiana Tulip, the daughter of a Texas respiratory therapist who died of COVID-19 on July 4. Tulip said her mother, Isabelle Papadimitriou, a Latina, told her stories of facing discrimination over the years.

Jim Mangia, chief executive of St. Johns Well Child and Family Center in south Los Angeles, said his clinics care for low-income people, mostly of color. They were testing about 600 people a day and seeing a 30% positive test rate in June and July. He said they saw high positive rates at nursing homes where a mobile clinic did testing.

He said seven full-time workers scoured the U.S. and globe to secure PPE for his staff, at one point getting a shipment of N95 respirators two days before they would have run out. It was literally touch-and-go, he said.

All health care workers who reported inadequate or reused PPE saw higher risks of infection. Those with inadequate or reused gear who saw COVID patients were more than five times as likely to get the virus as workers with adequate PPE who did not see COVID patients.

The study said reuse could pose a risk of self-contamination or breakdown of materials, but noted that the findings are from March and April, before widespread efforts to decontaminate used PPE.

Chan said even health care workers reporting adequate PPE and seeing COVID patients were far more likely to get the virus than workers not seeing COVID patients nearly five times as likely. That finding suggests a need for more training in putting on and taking off protective gear safely and additional research into how health care workers are getting sick.

Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a national health policy news service. It is an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation which is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.

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Health care workers of color nearly twice as likely as whites to get COVID - The CT Mirror