Medicaid | Jotup

The tragedy of sudden unexpected infant deaths – and how bedsharing, maternal smoking and stomach sleeping all contribute

Retrieved on:

Thursday, April 18, 2024

Research, Strangling, Infant, Risk, Tobacco, Sleep, Human, American Academy, SUID, Smoke, Death, Pregnancy, City, Nicotine, Medicaid, SIDS, Parent, Pediatrics (journal), Birth control

Sudden unexpected infant death, or SUID, occurs in infants less than 1 year old who die suddenly and unexpectedly without an obvious cause before investigation, accounting for about 3,400 deaths annually in the U.S..

Key Points:

Sudden unexpected infant death, or SUID, occurs in infants less than 1 year old who die suddenly and unexpectedly without an obvious cause before investigation, accounting for about 3,400 deaths annually in the U.S..
These infants die from sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, accidental suffocation and strangulation in bed, or other ill-defined and unknown causes.
Compared with nonsharing infants in our study, bedsharing infants were more likely to have the following characteristics:

Among nonsharing infants in the study, only one-third were sleeping in the recommended back position, and three-quarters were in sleep areas that had soft bedding such as pillows, comforters or bumper pads at the time of death. Three-quarters of all the sudden unexpected infant deaths in our study were affected by multiple unsafe sleep factors.

Why it matters

Rates of sudden unexpected infant deaths overall in the U.S. have changed only minimally in the past 20 years, but racial-ethnic disparities [in these deaths are widening] due to increasing rates among non-Hispanic Black infants.
Our study suggests that the majority of these deaths are preventable by following the guidelines for safe infant sleep as outlined by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Even with knowledge of the recommended practices, many parents find it difficult to follow the recommendations.
Others may choose not to follow them or may not follow them all of the time.
Bedsharing may also be a common cultural or preferred practice, so not doing so might go against one’s beliefs or preferences.

What’s next

Much more research is needed to find the most effective ways to teach families about safe infant sleep.
There are currently a number of studies underway using innovative methods to engage and educate parents, starting in pregnancy and continuing after the baby is born.

Fern R. Hauck receives funding from NIH. She is affiliated with American Academy of Pediatrics Task Force on SIDS.

Unite Us Enables CBO Reimbursement Under Oregon's 1115 Medicaid Waiver

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Andrew Kohut, Health, Organization, Workgroup, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, InterCommunity Health Network, Entrepreneurship, Culminating project, Health equity, Connect, CCO, Housing, Medicaid, Transitional care, Movement

Connect Oregon streamlines Medicaid billing for community-based organizations (CBOs) using Unite Us Payments, increasing access to vital social services for Medicaid members.

Key Points:

Launched this month, the initiative will provide qualified community members with the equipment necessary for addressing challenging climate events, under the state's 1115 Waiver demonstration.
Unite Us' Payments will play a critical role in enabling the CCOs to streamline the community reimbursement process, build capacity for community-based providers, and expand access for Medicaid members.
In addition, the standardized build in Unite Us will help the CCOs with transitional care for members who move from one CCO to another."
Unite Us has collaborated with CCOs and health systems in Oregon since 2018 to streamline Medicaid billing for community-based organizations using Unite Us Payments, which increases access to vital social services for Medicaid members.

Scilex Holding Company Announces Launching of Co-Pay Programs for Both ZTlido® and ELYXYB® for Commercially Insured Patients and the addition of ELYXYB® to a Multi-State Medicaid Pharmaceutical Purchasing Group to Its Purchasing Pool

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, April 9, 2024

Patient, PALO, Investment, Medicaid, Chronic pain, Health insurance

Additionally, on April 1, 2024, a multi-state Medicaid pharmaceutical purchasing group added ELYXYB® to its purchasing pool to make it eligible for thirteen States’ Medicaid programs.

Key Points:

Additionally, on April 1, 2024, a multi-state Medicaid pharmaceutical purchasing group added ELYXYB® to its purchasing pool to make it eligible for thirteen States’ Medicaid programs.
Scilex believes that high deductibles and co-pay programs should not prevent patients from receiving the medications they need.
Scilex co-pay programs are designed to help patients reduce their co-pay and out-of-pocket costs for their medications.
For more information on Scilex Holding Company, refer to www.scilexholding.com
For more information on ZTlido® including Full Prescribing Information, refer to www.ztlido.com .

AAFA's Advocacy for Health Equity Leads to White House Address on Asthma Inhaler Pricing

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, April 3, 2024

AAFA, Conditional sentence, AstraZeneca, Health equity, Part, GSK, Boehringer Ingelheim, Patient, Asthma, Medicare (United States), Medicaid, Medicare, Inflation, Government

The White House invited AAFA President and CEO, Kenneth Mendez, and Jenna Riemenschneider, AAFA Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy, in recognition of the advocacy group’s work to advance health equity for people with asthma.

Key Points:

The White House invited AAFA President and CEO, Kenneth Mendez, and Jenna Riemenschneider, AAFA Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy, in recognition of the advocacy group’s work to advance health equity for people with asthma.
“On behalf of the 27 million people in the United States with asthma, we appreciate the leadership of President Biden and Senator Sanders to bring down costs for asthma treatments.
Pricing announcements made in March by some manufacturers of inhalers will mean lower costs and improved access to asthma medicine for many people with asthma starting this June,” stated Mendez.
“Lower out-of-pocket costs have the potential to drastically improve asthma health outcomes.

Benevis Observes National Minority Health Month by Highlighting the Need for Equitable Access to Dental Health in the U.S.

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, April 2, 2024

Dental care, Dentistry, Source, Dentist, Office of Minority Health, CHIP, Education, Patient, Orthodontics, HHS, American Academy, American Academy of Pediatrics, Insurance, NIH, Medicaid, OMH, Minority group

For the April observance, Benevis is raising awareness about the importance of improving the dental health of minority communities to reduce health disparities and improve overall health outcomes.

Key Points:

For the April observance, Benevis is raising awareness about the importance of improving the dental health of minority communities to reduce health disparities and improve overall health outcomes.
Benevis recognizes that not all Americans have equitable access or financial resources to receive routine dental care and orthodontic treatment, making poor oral health a primary marker of social and economic inequality.
Benevis has positioned itself as a leader in dental healthcare and orthodontics for children and families with social, economic, and environmental barriers to dental care.
Committed to breaking down barriers to high-quality, affordable dental care for children, Benevis has provided the following educational resources:
To help spread awareness for equitable oral health, the Dental Health Disparities Greatest for Minorities infographic .

Emergent BioSolutions Continues to Broaden Access, Awareness and Availability of NARCAN® Nasal Spray to Help Save Lives from the Ongoing Opioid Crisis

Retrieved on:

Thursday, March 28, 2024

FSA, U.S. FDA, Arm, Heroin, Risk, Education, Pharmacy, School, Naloxone, Policy, EBS, Flexible, House, Drug, OTC, CDC, Restaurant, Medicaid, National Safety Council, AED, HSA, FDA, Emergent BioSolutions, NSC, Medicine, Fentanyl, Pharmaceutical industry

Emergent and other stakeholders in the fight must continue raising awareness about the availability of products like NARCAN® Nasal Spray, reducing stigma and further improving access for all Americans.

Key Points:

Emergent and other stakeholders in the fight must continue raising awareness about the availability of products like NARCAN® Nasal Spray, reducing stigma and further improving access for all Americans.
Since the OTC launch, NARCAN® Nasal Spray can be purchased at more than 32,000 mass drug, grocery, online retailers and e-commerce sites.
Emergent is working with retail partners to make it easy to find and access, however each retailer ultimately determines in-store product placement.
“That’s why we remain committed to increasing awareness of NARCAN® Nasal Spray availability.

Manifest MedEx Joins NCQA’s Digital Content Services Early Adopter Program

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, April 9, 2024

Data Management, Health, Technology, Software, General Health, Networks, HealthNet, Certification, NCQA, CQL, Hospital, HL7, Human services, Elevance Health, Medicaid, Blue Shield, Medicare, CMS

Manifest MedEx, California’s largest nonprofit health data network, announced today it will participate in the NCQA Digital Content Services Early Adopter Program to advance digitized quality measurement initiatives and help shape NCQA’s framework and approach to enabling the practical and flexible use of digital quality measures across the full spectrum of value-based care use cases, including quality reporting for health plans.

Key Points:

Manifest MedEx, California’s largest nonprofit health data network, announced today it will participate in the NCQA Digital Content Services Early Adopter Program to advance digitized quality measurement initiatives and help shape NCQA’s framework and approach to enabling the practical and flexible use of digital quality measures across the full spectrum of value-based care use cases, including quality reporting for health plans.
Hosted in Manifest MedEx’s cloud environment, these digital measures take advantage of FHIR® and Clinical Quality Language (CQL), an expression language curated by HL7 that CMS, NCQA, and others have adopted for digital quality measures.
“Our participation as a pioneer and Early Adopter of NCQA’s Digital Content Services demonstrates our commitment to advancing digitized quality measurement initiatives to help streamline and reduce costs for HEDIS measure updates and certification and accelerate health care’s transition to a digital measurement ecosystem,” said Jason Buckner, Chief Information Officer, Manifest MedEx.
Manifest MedEx has participated in NCQA’s digital quality transformation programs since 2021 when it joined the first cohort of the NCQA Data Aggregator Validation program.

Federman & Sherwood Investigates Group Health Cooperative of South Central WI for Data Breach

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, April 9, 2024

Class Action Lawsuit, Professional Services, Legal, PHI, Address, Medicare, Federman, Information technology, Medicaid, Death

The law firm of Federman & Sherwood has initiated an investigation into Group Health Cooperative of South Central WI with respect to their recent data breach.

Key Points:

The law firm of Federman & Sherwood has initiated an investigation into Group Health Cooperative of South Central WI with respect to their recent data breach.
On January 25, 2024, Group Health Cooperative of South Central WI identified unauthorized access to its network.
The attacker attempted to encrypt Group Health Cooperative of South Central WI’s system but was unsuccessful.
On February 9, 2024, during its investigation, Group Health Cooperative of South Central WI discovered indications that the attacker had copied some of Group Health Cooperative of South Central WI’s data, which included protected health information (PHI).

Mark Farrah Associates Simplifies Health Insurance Data Analytics with the Health Coverage Portal

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, April 9, 2024

Mark Farrah Associates (MFA) , a leading data aggregator and publisher of health plan market data and analytics, aggregates industry metrics from statutory financial statements filed with state insurance regulators in its Health Coverage Portal™ (HCP).

Key Points:

Mark Farrah Associates (MFA) , a leading data aggregator and publisher of health plan market data and analytics, aggregates industry metrics from statutory financial statements filed with state insurance regulators in its Health Coverage Portal™ (HCP).
Mark Farrah Associates continually strives for ongoing product enhancement and development, to further simplify the analysis of health insurance business.
For companies seeking comprehensive market data, MFA offers the Health Coverage Portal™ , an online application that integrates NAIC and CA DMHC financial statements, relevant government reports and MFA self-insured datasets.
To learn more about the Health Coverage Portal™ and MFA’s other valuable health insurance analytic tools, contact Mark Farrah Associates at 724-338-4100 or visit www.markfarrah.com .

Humana Focuses on Reducing Health Disparities and Making Healthy Living Possible for All

Retrieved on:

Monday, April 8, 2024

(Graphic: Business Wire)

Key Points:

(Graphic: Business Wire)
“We’re committed to making the healthcare system more equitable, affordable and easier to navigate,” said Bruce Broussard, Humana’s Chief Executive Officer.
1.8 million Humana members across Medicare Advantage, Medicaid and commercial plans received screening for social health needs, helping to support their basic needs and address their health holistically.
CenterWell’s senior primary care, home health and pharmacy services provided more patients with integrated and differentiated experiences that improve health outcomes.
To learn more about Humana’s impact and continuing work to make it easier for people to achieve their best health, read the full 2023 Humana Impact Report .