Our Blog
all about rural
- July 12, 2013
American Way of Birth, Costliest in the World
Read moreLACONIA, N.H. — Seven months pregnant, at a time when most expectant couples are stockpiling diapers and choosing car seats, Renée Martin was struggling with bigger purchases. At a prenatal class in March, she was told about epidural anesthesia and was given the option of using a birthing...
00 - July 12, 2013
Colorado insurance commissioner Riesberg stepping down
Read moreColorado Insurance Commissioner Jim Riesberg, who led the state through arguably the biggest insurance reform in history, said Friday that he will step down from his post next month, confident his staff can push the final few changes to the state rules across the line before the end of...
- July 12, 2013
Mental health services in rural long-term care: challenges and opportunities for improvement
Read moreMental Health Services in Rural Long-Term Care: Challenges and Opportunities for Improvement Jean A. Talbot, PhD, MPH • Andrew F. Coburn, PhDOverviewTo facilitate quality improvment efforts, more research is needed on the current status of mental health services in rural long-term care. Also needed are new tools promoting the...
- July 12, 2013
Obamacare: Because Mom said so
Read moreAll those groups trying to get the “young, invincible” 20-somethings to sign up for Obamacare health insurance have identified a secret weapon. Mom. Advocacy groups from “Moms Rising” to AARP are working to reach the healthy, young adults who don’t think they need insurance — and their mothers who...
- July 12, 2013
White House delays ACA’s employer-coverage mandate for one year
Read moreThe Obama administration is delaying for one year the employer mandate requiring companies to offer their employees health insurance. Assistant Treasury Secretary for Tax Policy Mark Mazur posted a blog late Tuesday confirming that the 2014 mandate on employers with more than 51 full-time workers to offer qualifying health...
- July 12, 2013
Promise of price cut on hospital bills is in limbo
Read moreHuge list prices charged by hospitals are drawing increased attention, but a federal law meant to limit what the most financially vulnerable patients can be billed doesn’t seem to be making much difference. A provision in President Barack Obama’s healthcare overhaul says most hospitals must charge uninsured patients no...
- July 12, 2013
Is health insurance an antidepressant?
Read moreNew findings show that wider coverage has one clear effect on the population, and it’s not one that anyone is talking about. For those who support President Obama’s health care law, which has already begun to expand the number of Americans with health insurance, the rationale is a no-brainer:...
- July 12, 2013
Estes Park Medical Center budget action plan in the works
Read moreThe Estes Park Medical Center’s budget action plan is on target and in process, interim CEO Bobbi Swenson reported to the Park Hospital District board of directors at the June 19 meeting at the Timberline Conference Room. The meeting, properly noticed, occurred before its usual scheduled last Tuesday of...
- July 12, 2013
Why a Health Insurance Penalty May Look Tempting
Read moreOFTEN, when the government wants you to do something, it makes you pay if you don’t. That would seem to be the case with Obamacare, which penalizes companies for not providing health care. But in that penalty, there could be a paradoxical result: dropping health coverage could save companies...
- July 12, 2013
Reevaluating “Made in America”—Two Cost-Containment Ideas from Abroad
Read moreThe Issue…In the United States, per capita spending on health care is more than double that in most other high-income, industrialized countries, including Australia, Germany, Japan, and Sweden. Yet performance on many health outcome measures in the U.S. lags these lower-spending nations. A New England Journal of Medicine Perspective...
