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“I’ve been battling this for over 20 years,” Belk, 68, said of his medical debt. The burden of medical debt has contributed to financial anxiety among voters and has become an issue in the 2024 presidential campaign. Guill, who has multiple sclerosis, lives in Aiden, North Carolina, a rural community just south of Greenville. She volunteers with a nonprofit called Down Home North Carolina to help her neighbors gain access to Medicaid. “We have a ton of people with medical debt in the state because our insurance plans didn’t cover our medical bills,” she said.

Persons: “ I’ve, ” Belk, KFF, ”, Berneta Haynes, Terry Belk's, Mike Belleme, “, it’s, don’t, Cynthia Fisher, they’ve, PatientRightsAdvocate.org, Darcy Guill, Darcy Guill Guill, Harold Miller Organizations: National Consumer Law Center, U.S, NBC, Atrium Health, Health, American, of Public Health, Nonprofit, Affordable, The Commonwealth Fund, Urban Institute, Center for Healthcare Locations: South Dakota, Mississippi, North Carolina, American, Charlotte, N.C, United States, U.S, Aiden , North Carolina, Greenville

☆ I had my first baby in Switzerland and the second after moving home to Chicago. Giving birth in the US left much to be desired.
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-02 | by ( Chantal Panozzo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

AdvertisementArrival at the delivery ward in the US vs SwitzerlandSo no, the suburban Chicago hospital had no birthing stool. In Switzerland, the standard of care is a five-day hospital stay for a vaginal birth and a 10-day hospital stay for a C-section. AdvertisementDuring my five-day hospital stay in Switzerland, in addition to constantly monitoring my baby and my health, I was taught to breastfeed, diaper, and bathe my baby. The author found giving birth in Switzerland much easier than back home in Chicago. AdvertisementChantal Panozzo is writing a book about what she wishes she'd known about American life before giving up her Swiss residency permit.

Persons: —, GYN, I'd, Chantal Panozzo, Peterson, haven't, she'd Organizations: Service, Business, Swiss, OB, Commonwealth Fund, Disease Control Locations: Chicago, Switzerland, Swiss, America

☆ US has the highest rate of maternal deaths among high-income nations. Norway has zero
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-04 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

And the rate of maternal deaths among Black women in the United States remains even higher, at nearly 50 deaths per 100,000 live births, the new report shows. Meanwhile, half of the high-income nations in the new report had fewer than 5 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, and one country recorded zero maternal deaths: Norway. The three nations with the lowest maternal death rate were Norway with zero, Switzerland with a rate of 1 death per 100,000 live births and Sweden with about 3 deaths per 100,000 live births. The US maternal mortality rate fell from 32.9 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in 2021 to 22.3 per 100,000 in 2022, according to data from the CDC. “Maternal deaths are a preventable problem, and this problem can be solved.

Persons: ”, Munira Gunja, ” Gunja, “, Dr, Laurie Zephyrin, Dimes, —, –, Tochi, Michelle Owens, ” Owens, “ ACOG, Christopher Zahn, ” Zahn, Sanjay Gupta, Roe, Wade Organizations: CNN, Commonwealth Fund, International Program, Health, ”, US Centers for Disease Control, Organisation for Economic Co, CDC, World Health Organization, “, Commonwealth, American Academy of Family Physicians, American College of Obstetricians, CNN Health Locations: United States, Norway, Australia, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland, Covid, U.S, United Kingdom, Long Island , New York, Jackson , Mississippi, States, Commonwealth

The total for the latest open enrollment period marks a 30% increase from a year ago, based on past enrollment figures published by the health policy research organization KFF. Officials said the figures include 5 million new signups and more than 16 million people with 2023 ACA plan coverage. West Virginia, which has expanded Medicaid, saw the largest percentage increase in enrollment at 80%. “Marketplace coverage is very important to those in those states whose incomes are under 138% of poverty,” says Sara Collins, vice president for health care coverage and access and tracking health system performance for The Commonwealth Fund. “It is a reflection of the lack of Medicaid expansion in those states.”An analysis by KFF notes ACA health plan enrollment has increased each year during the Biden administration.

Persons: It’s, Xavier Becerra, “, ”, Sara Collins, KFF, Biden, Donald Trump, Trump, Cynthia Cox, Cox, signups, ” Cox, Collins, ” Collin Organizations: Biden, “, Social Security, Affordable, ” Department of Health, Human Services, District of Columbia, Commonwealth Fund, American Locations: Texas, enrollees, Florida, West Virginia, signups

☆ What Long-Term Care Looks Like Around the World
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Jordan Rau | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

Provinces and territories fund long-term care services through general tax revenue. Notably, Canada’s long-term care system is separate from its national health care system, which pays for hospitals and doctors with no out-of-pocket costs to patients. on long-term care, 80 percent more than the United States spent. Britain has also taken steps to shield people from losing all of their wealth to pay for long-term care. Singapore recently instituted a system of mandatory long-term care insurance for those born in 1980 or later.

Persons: D.P., 🇸 🇬, ove, —, Kath l Organizations: Uni, pla, Citi, emi Locations: D. data, nis

☆ We Can Stop the Rise in Maternal Mortality - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-16 | by ( Veronica Gillispie-Bell | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

The Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health, or AIM, is a quality improvement initiative designed to put in place and support best practices to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality. Maternal outcomes are not determined by health care alone. What we call social determinants of health — where we live, work and play — also affect health outcomes. When we think about maternal mortality, we should also look to economic stability, education access, health care access, neighborhood and the built environment and community. There is a biased belief that Black women are overly loud and demanding and that we can take more pain than our white counterparts.

Persons: GYN, — Organizations: Alliance, Innovation, Maternal, AIM, The, Medicare, Services, Black, Commonwealth Locations: United States, Wyoming

☆ America keeps missing out on topping a list of the world's most liveable cities to Canada, Europe, and Australia
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Melbourne has topped the list seven times so far, but Vienna has come first for the past two years. Instead, the ranking has been dominated by cities in Europe, Australia, and Canada. Last year, when two cities were tied for both third and 10th place, the list consisted of six cities in Europe, three in Canada, and one each in Japan and Australia. In creating the list, the EIU looked at 173 cities across the world. Since the EIU started the ranking in 2009, Melbourne, Australia, has topped the list seven times.

Persons: —, –, isn't, San Diego – Organizations: Economist Intelligence, Service, New Zealand, Commonwealth Fund Locations: Melbourne, Vienna, Austria, Honolulu, Europe, Australia, Canada, Japan, New, Auckland , New Zealand, California, Los Angeles, San, San Francisco, New York City, Auckland, Vancouver

☆ A highly-regarded ranking of the world's most liveable cities just entered its 15th year. No US city has ever made the top 10.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Economist Intelligence Unit just published its ranking of the most liveable cities. Melbourne has topped the list seven times so far, but Vienna has come first for the past two years. The EIU has been publishing its Global Liveability Ranking annually since 2009, apart from a break in 2020 during the pandemic. Instead, the ranking has mainly been dominated by cities in Europe, Australia, and Canada. Since the EIU started the ranking in 2009, Melbourne, Australia, has topped the list seven times.

Persons: —, –, isn't, San Diego – Organizations: Economist Intelligence, Service, New Zealand, Commonwealth Fund Locations: Melbourne, Vienna, Austria, Europe, Australia, Canada, Japan, New, Auckland , New Zealand, California, Los Angeles, San, San Francisco, New York City, Auckland, Vancouver

☆ What is eclampsia, the condition that may have killed Olympian Tori Bowie?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

But it can develop in anyone, including someone who’s thin and super healthy,” said Dr. Nicole Calloway Rankins, a maternal health advocate and obstetrician-gynecologist in Richmond, Virginia. However, high blood pressure, often called the “silent killer,” does not always show signs, so the best prevention is regular checkups and blood pressure readings throughout pregnancy, experts say. That’s literally a hypertensive crisis.”For people worried about heart disease, blood pressure at those levels would be concerning, but not a crisis. What is it about pregnancy that makes high blood pressure so dangerous? “We really have to be vigilant and understand that blood pressure in pregnancy is different than outside of pregnancy.

Persons: Tori Bowie, Bowie, ”, Nicole Calloway Rankins, “, Antonia Oladipo, Eclampsia, Eleni Tsigas, Alastair Grant, Rankins, Tori, ” Tsigas, “ We’ve, Tsigas, it’s, don’t, ” Rankins, something’s, Joe Biden, Iffath Abbasi Hoskins, Gynecologists, ” Hoskins, ” CNN’s Jacqueline Howard Organizations: CNN, US Centers for Disease Control, CDC, Cleveland Clinic, Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine, Preeclampsia Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Commonwealth Fund, Dimes, Century Foundation, Data, National Center for Health Statistics, American College of Obstetricians Locations: preeclampsia, Richmond , Virginia, New Jersey, Melbourne , Florida, Florida, London, Orlando , Florida, United States

☆ Want to know why younger generations seem so pissed? Look at the housing market.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Matt Turner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

But the biggest issue is probably a housing market that simply feels unfair. From a shaky economy to student debt, to general inflation and spiking healthcare costs, there's lots to be worried about. "One was the long, weak labor market in the wake of the Great Recession, and the other is how badly the housing market functions." When you look at the housing market, it's particularly grim right now. But while Americans have different health situations (and lifestyles and levels of student debt), all of them live somewhere.

Persons: Gen Zers, —, Zers, Josée Rose, there's, Matt Yglesias, Phil Rosen, Goldman Sachs, James Rodriguez, Pew, John Myers, Ben Southwood, Sam Bowman, homebuyers Organizations: Service, Deloitte, TIAA Institute, Federal Reserve Bank of New, Mortgage, Association, Commonwealth Fund Locations: Federal Reserve Bank of New York, New York, isn't

Ontario has some private healthcare providers but they are a small part of the health system and provide relatively few public surgeries. Critics worry sharply expanding their footprint will take staff from the pool of public health workers. In 2021, the Commonwealth Fund ranked Canada's health system tenth out of 11 rich countries. Ontario's government said it is following the lead of provinces such as Alberta, which contracts with private providers and said last fall it will fund more surgeries in private clinics. No one disputes Ontario's health system faces serious challenges.

The Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company negotiates directly with drugmakers. So far, that's been the strategy for the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company. In October, Cost Plus Drug Company announced a partnership with Capital Blue Cross. Cuban said he wanted Cost Plus Drug Company to be as transparent as possible on pricing. Cost Plus Drug Company is considering a test program for insulin that would offer a 90-day supply of insulin, or a total of 12 vials, for $170.

☆ States with more abortion restrictions have higher maternal and infant mortality, report finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Doha Madani | Doha Madani Is A Senior Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News. Pronouns | She Her. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

New research released Wednesday adds to a growing body of evidence showing a link between more restrictive abortion policies and higher rates of maternal and infant mortality. According to the report, states that heavily restricted abortion access in 2020 had maternal death rates that were 62% higher than they were in states where abortion was more easily accessible. "Then, on top of all that, you're adding this variation in abortion services, reproductive health services, by states," Zephyrin said. Their report isn't the only one that has documented a correlation between abortion restrictions and higher maternal and infant mortality. And then you have these further restrictions on reproductive health care," Zephyrin said.

☆ DeSantis' latest anti-COVID-19 vaccine push puts him on a collision course with Trump over the pandemic
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Ron DeSantis intensified his attacks on the COVID-19 vaccines on Tuesday, in a move that positions the Republican governor to contrast his pandemic record with that of former President Donald Trump. It's not clear whether Trump will lean into his success on the COVID-19 vaccine through his Operation Warp Speed program. Then-President Donald Trump with then-Florida governor candidate Ron DeSantis at a July 2018 “Make America Great Again” rally in Tampa, Florida. For instance, the FDA and CDC have cleared the bivalent booster for those as young as 6 months of age depending on what COVID-19 vaccine a person has previously had. The committee will issue guidance about COVID vaccines and other healthcare matters.

DeSantis has made Covid-19 vaccine skepticism his calling card ahead of a potential run for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. The announcements Tuesday came at a roundtable focused on vaccines that DeSantis led. The risk of heart inflammation is far greater from Covid-19 than from vaccination. DeSantis last year moved to block cruise lines departing from Florida from requiring their customers to be vaccinated, and to block municipalities from imposing vaccine mandates. In June, DeSantis touted Florida’s status as the only state not to preorder vaccines for children younger than 5.

☆ Covid-19 boosters could keep thousands of kids out of hospitals, but uptake remains low
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Deidre Mcphillips | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

And if Covid-19 booster coverage reached 80% among school-age children by the end of the year, more than 50,000 hospitalizations could be averted. Preventing Covid-19 hospitalizations could help ease the strain on pediatric hospitals, which have been especially full for the past few weeks as the respiratory virus season – including flu, RSV and Covid-19 – sweeps the country earlier than usual. But more than 2,400 children were admitted to the hospital with Covid-19 last week – nearly three times higher than the week before, CDC data shows. And Covid-19 vaccination rates among children have long lagged behind those for adults. Just 32% of children ages 5 to 11 and 61% of those ages 12 to 17 have competed their initial series of Covid-19 vaccination, compared with 78% of adults.

☆ Pfizer/BioNTech say updated Covid-19 booster generates 'substantially higher' protection against Omicron subvariants than original vaccin
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Pfizer and BioNTech said Friday that the immune responses against Omicron BA.4/BA.5 subvariants were “substantially higher” in people who got its new bivalent booster compared with people who received the companies’ original Covid-19 vaccine. The bivalent booster that targets the original coronavirus strain and the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants became available in the US in early September. When someone gets any vaccine, it can take a few weeks to build up immunity and generate its full protection. The Omicron BA.5 subvariant had dominated US Covid-19 infections since July, but a mix of other Omicron subvariants have been gaining against it. So far, 26.3 million people age 5 and older in the United States have received updated Covid-19 boosters.

The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized updated Covid booster shots that target the omicron variant of the virus for young children. The decision will now go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which could issue its final recommendation on the updated shots within hours. Only about 31% of children ages 5 to 11 have received two doses of any Covid vaccine, according to CDC data. Experts say it's important for people to receive the updated shots because the nation could face yet another potential wave of Covid infections this winter. The boosters are important because data has shown that any Covid vaccine greatly decreases the risk of severe outcomes from the virus, said O’Leary.

Flu cases are already rising in parts of the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The convergence of viruses is hitting health care systems as they're forced to reckon with staffing shortages that worsened during the pandemic. Staffing deficits mean there is little wiggle room to accommodate any additional surges of patients, whether they're sick with Covid, flu or other illness. But as the cold weather sets in and people increasingly gather indoors, Covid cases are expected to rise. The vast majority of Covid cases circulating now are an omicron subvariant, BA.5.

☆ Covid-19 boosters could prevent about 90,000 US deaths this winter, but only if more people get them, analysis suggests
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-05 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Covid-19 vaccinations could save thousands of lives and billions of dollars this winter. A new analysis suggests that if more people in the United States get their booster by the end of the year, about 90,000 Covid-19 deaths could be prevented this fall and winter. But if booster vaccinations continue at their current pace, the nation could see a peak of more than 1,000 Covid-19 deaths per day this winter, according to the study, published Wednesday by The Commonwealth Fund. There are now more than 400 daily Covid-19 deaths, on average, in the United States. Federal health officials have said that Americans may need to get a single updated Covid-19 vaccination every year.

☆ The Inflation Reduction Act aims to lower drug costs — but here’s how Big Pharma could get around it
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Berkeley-Lovelace-Jr.Jpg | Berkeley Lovelace Jr. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

The Inflation Reduction Act is set to lower drug prices for millions of people in the United States — but experts fear pharmaceutical companies could exploit loopholes in the bill, ultimately keeping prescription costs high for many. The tactics may ultimately threaten the law’s ability to lower drug costs for consumers. Higher prices for new drugsOther experts are concerned about how companies might abuse the inflation rebate rule in the health law. The provision, which takes effect next year, imposes a rebate on drug manufacturers that raise the prices of their medications faster than inflation. By releasing new drugs at higher prices, drug companies will be able to make up for any lost revenue that they would normally receive from steadily raising prices each year, she said.

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