Monday, November 01, 2004

NAMI Alert: Concerns being Raised about Access at the Polls on November 2
Alert at the NAMI web site - "As we all know, Tuesday is Election Day. As a result of press reports, concern is growing among national disability advocacy organizations about organized efforts to challenge voting by people with mental impairments at polling places across the nation. In particular, concerns are being raised about on-site challenges against people with mental disabilities who need assistance at polling places, i.e. individuals who need the direct assistance of a family member or close friend in voting. Such challenges are more likely in cases where consumers arrive at polling places in groups through the assistance of a community-based program such as a group home, residential program or clubhouse. In most instances, such challenges raised directly at a polling place are in violation of specific legal requirements protecting the right to vote..."  
  

Stretching State Health Care Dollars During Difficult Economic Times: Overview
Report by the Commonwealth Fund - "This study's set of four interrelated reports, prepared by health policy analysts at the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), identifies and describes many of these innovations that may help other states use their own health care dollars more productively. Each report studied a different type of model. While certainly not exhaustive, the reports do illustrate the leading mechanisms—along with specific examples—of state initiatives that are already stretching dollars through greater sharing of responsibility, more effective purchasing, better management of diseases, and promotion of cost-effective primary and preventive care." The four reports are Building on Employer-Based Coverage, Pooled and Evidence-Based Pharmaceutical Purchasing, Targeted Care Management to Enhance Cost-Effectiveness and Innovative Use of Uncompensated Care Funds.  
  

Is Kaiser the Future of American Health Care?
New York Times story on the Kaiser Permanente business model - "High-level visitors from across the political spectrum - the Bush administration and National Health Service of Britain, for example - are coming to California these days to look at Kaiser as an institution that is actually doing some of the things needed to improve health care. Obviously, there is no single model for revamping the nation's costly, disjointed health care system, and Kaiser certainly has its share of problems. But according to economists and medical experts, Kaiser is a leader in the drive both to increase the quality of care and to spend health dollars more wisely, using technology and incentives tailored to those goals." [Viewing New York Times resources requires registration, which is free].  
  

Pediatricians Fail to Recognize Teen Substance Abusers
Health Day News story - "Pediatricians may think they know whether a teenage patient is using alcohol or drugs and to what extent, but a new study finds doctors greatly misjudge the problem. More than 60 percent of the time, pediatricians knew their young patients had used alcohol or drugs, but in most cases the doctors thought the problem was less severe than it actually was, the study found. ... The study, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, appears in the November issue of Pediatrics." See also the article in Pediatrics, "Are Clinical Impressions of Adolescent Substance Use Accurate?" which is also available in Adobe Acrobat format.