2014 Deadlines for Doctors
The new year brings new deadlines, mandated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Affordable Care Act, physicians must meet to qualify for incentives, avoid penalties, and provide care for their patients. From quality of care and use of new technologies to new coding and billing requirements, here is a list of dates doctors need to know in 2014.
Joy, Peace, Love and Good Health!
Antimicrobial Resistance: The Biggest Scare of All
The Threat
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released its “landmark” report in September 2013 on the rising and lethal threat of antibiotic resistance, titled Antibiotic Resistance Threats in the United States, 2013.
The report describes a complex problem and the steps that must be taken to prevent catastrophic consequences.
In it, experts describe “what happens when the microbes can outsmart our best antibiotics,” explained CDC Director Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, at a press conference. He elaborated by describing his hope that the report will prioritize pathogens and propel action to curb antibiotic resistance.… Continue reading
Florida to Lose $5 Billion From Not Expanding Medicaid
The 20 states that did not expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act help pay for the expanded Medicaid program in other states. This is the conclusion from a study completed by Sherry Glied and Stephanie Ma of New York University’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service who calculated the net cost to taxpayers in states turning down the Obamacare Medicaid expansion.
Texas, Florida, Georgia, and Virginia are the biggest losers because they are forgoing billions of dollars in federal funds, while residents in their states are contributing to the cost of the expansions in other states.
Federal funds that… Continue reading
Allergies, Asthma… What’s the Cost?
All of us in Florida know somebody who has allergies. Most of allergy sufferers are familiar with symptoms of asthma. Each year in the United States asthma accounts for an enormous social and economic cost. More than 25.7 million Americans — one in 12 — suffer from asthma, including 7.7 percent of adults and 9.5 percent of children.1,2 According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), this translates into more than nine million office visits, two million emergency department (ED) visits, half a million hospitalizations, and more than 3,300 deaths each year.3,4,5 The direct costs of… Continue reading
More on Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the most common chronic blood-borne disease and the leading cause of liver transplantation in the U.S., affecting an estimated 3.2 million Americans. Recent advancement in antiviral treatment options has significantly increased the response rates to anti-HCV therapy even among the difficult to treat populations.
Despite this, it is estimated that only 34–48% of chronic carriers are referred for liver specialist assessment, and less than 37% of patients receive treatment for hepatitis C.
Uninsured and under-insured patient populations with limited access to care are especially at risk. The virus can stay dormant for years, and transpire… Continue reading
Vitamin D and Fatty Liver
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become the most common form of chronic liver disease in Western countries with a prevalence as high as 30%, already exceeding viral hepatitis and alcoholic fatty liver disease. Emerging evidence suggests that vitamin D may play a role in the pathogenesis of NAFLD.
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin formed in the skin from 7-dehydrocholesterol during exposure to solar ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation. Although vitamin D can be derived from the diet, few foods naturally contain vitamin D, such as oily fish. Vitamin D from the skin or from diet is metabolised in the… Continue reading
ACA, Medical Homes, and Primary Care
One of the goals of the Affordable Care Act is to strengthen primary care and create a patient-centered medical home. Here is a presentation that outlines the basics of the concept.
Immunology in the Gut
Take a fascinating trip through a human gut. The gut mucosa hosts the body’s largest population of immune cells. Nature Immunology in collaboration with Arkitek Studios produced this animation unravelling the complexities of mucosal immunology in health and disease.
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