Monday, December 20, 2004
Governors Enlist Advocates In Medicaid Reform Plans Psychiatric News story - "Threats of future cuts to Medicaid have brought about conciliatory gestures from long-time adversaries and new ideas about how to allocate resources. With no relief in sight for strained Medicaid budgets, both state officials and health care advocates are taking a fresh look at their disagreements about how to control costs and maintain access. The Tennessee state legislature passed changes to the Medicaid program, TennCare, in May at the urging of Gov. Phillip Bredesen (D) that would curtail the number of doctor visits and prescription drugs and increase copayments and premiums..."
Military Ratchets Up Effort To Prevent Suicides Psychiatric News story - "The Department of Defense acknowledges that young white enlisted men have the highest suicide rate in the armed forces and focuses on prevention efforts. A young enlisted man in the military is having romantic, legal, or financial troubles and commits suicide with his firearm. ... The October conference was organized by the Suicide Prevention and Risk Reduction Committee, which is chaired by Col. Thomas Burke, M.C., a psychiatrist. Burke directs the mental health policy program in the DoD Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs. He told Psychiatric News that the committee plans to establish a uniform DoD-wide system that all branches can use to track suicides, suicide gestures, and attempts."
$5 million gift will aid mentally ill children (Ohio)Story in the
Cleveland Plain Dealer - "University Hospitals of Cleveland on Friday received a $5 million foundation grant to vastly expand its mental health services for children. The five-year cash infusion from the Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Foundation arrives at Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital as money for inpatient care for kids with mental illnesses continues to dwindle..."
State grapples with providing mental health services (South Dakota)Story in
Aberdeen News - "A lack of funding and the state's geographic size are among the obstacles South Dakota faces in providing adequate mental health services, according to professionals and families who live with mental illness. Census data in 2000 shows 19,229 adults in the state suffered from serious and persistent mental illness. Additionally, 15,453 children had serious emotional disturbances - about one out of every 12 children in the state. ... In South Dakota, 54 of the 66 counties are designated as federal mental health professional shortage areas. The ranking comes because there only are 71 psychiatrists registered with the state Medical Association, including eight who work solely with children and one who works with both adults and children."
Aetna buys back its mental health divisionAmerican Medical News story - "Hartford, Conn.-based Aetna says it will spend what it expects to be more than $50 million to buy back certain assets of Magellan Health Services, including three dedicated behavioral health service centers that now serve only Aetna patients. Magellan, which emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy early this year, will lose its biggest client as a result, because Aetna will be ending a contract with Magellan under which the mental health carve-out company has provided services to most Aetna members. Aetna has been responsible for about 37% of Magellan's revenue in 2004."
