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Today's Alert
CareFirst revises some of its proposed insurance rates in D.C. for 2015
Court challenge to D.C. Health Link funding source could cause trouble as early as October
Report reveals characteristics of uninsured minorities
Who pays your doc? Coming soon to a site near you
FDA has free-speech, safety issues to weigh in review of "off-label" drug marketing rules
Combining patches, meds effective in quitting smoking
HPV vaccine doesn't raise risk of blood clots, study finds
This is our youth
EVENTS 

July 22, 2014

September 17, 2014

 

Quality Improvement MOC Learning Collaborative

October 2014

 

SAVE THE DATE - DCPCA Annual Policy Forum

November 12, 2014

HEALTH CENTER 
JOB POSTINGS

 

Grant Writer,

Providence Health Foundation
Providence Health Foundation
Catholic Charities  
Mary's Center
La Clinica Del Pueblo
La Clinica Del Pueblo

CareFirst revises some of its proposed insurance rates in D.C. for 2015

By Tina Reed, The Washington Business Journal, July 9, 2014

Following the release of competitor rates for insurance plans set to be offered through DC Health Link in 2015, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield is planning to lower proposed rates by 4%.

Court challenge to D.C. Health Link funding source could cause trouble as early as October

By Tina Reed, The Washington Business Journal, July 9, 2014

If a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a proposed 1% tax on health-related insurers is successful, the DC Health Benefit Exchange Authority may run into funding issues as early as October 2014.



Report reveals characteristics of uninsured minorities

By Stacy M. Brown, The Washington Informer, July 9, 2014

Despite advances resulting from the Affordable Care Act, according to a new report from the Office of Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Latino and African-American males between the ages of 19 and 34 are most likely to remain uninsured.  

Who pays your doc? Coming soon to a site near you

Associated Press, The Washington Examiner, July 9, 2014

Starting this September, thanks to a provision in the health care law known as the Sunshine Act, patients will be able to have more information about what gifts, meals, payments and other services their health care providers receive from pharmaceutical and medical supply companies.  "I think every patient out there should know who actually is paying their doctor," says Paul Thacker, a fellow at Harvard University's Safra Center for Ethics. "The one thing we know is that money changes behavior and people tend to respond to who is giving them money."

FDA has free-speech, safety issues to weigh in review "off-label" drug marketing rules

By Brady Dennis, The Washington Post, July 9, 2014

Looking to balance patient safety and free-speech, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is revisiting its rules and regulations regarding pharmaceutical companies' ability to conduct "off-label" marketing.    According to Michael Wilkes, a medical professor at the University of California at Davis, "It's hard to know what's legitimate and what's not.  I'd like to see [the FDA] err on the side of overregulation and making companies prove that these drugs work for off-label uses."

Combining patches, meds effective in quitting smoking

By Hoai-Tran Bui, USA Today, July 8, 2014

New research published in the journal JAMA shows that tobacco users who use a combination of cessation methods are more likely to be successful in their attempts to quit smoking.  

HPV vaccine doesn't raise risk of blood clots, study finds

By Nancy Shute, NPR, July 8, 2014

Hoping to dispel fears and increase use of the human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine, researchers conducted an expansive new study of over half a million women and girls, which showed that the vaccine is unlikely to increase the risk for developing blood clots.

This is our youth

By Gretchen Reynolds, The New York Times, July 9, 2014

According to a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, American youth are becoming increasingly more sedentary, regardless of socio-economic status.  "Really, this is not good news," said Janet Fulton, a lead epidemiologist with the C.D.C.'s Physical Activity and Health Branch, who oversaw the new study. "We're talking about a better than 1 percent per year drop in cardiorespiratory fitness" among a group for whom, she said, "physical activity should come naturally."

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