By JULIE APPLEBY
Insurers will again be able to sell short-term health insurance good for up to 12 months under final rules released Aug. 1 by the Trump administration.

This action overturns an Obama administration directive that limited such plans to 90 days. It also adds a new twist: If they wish, insurers can make the short-term plans renewable for up to three years.

The rule will “help increase choices for Americans faced with escalating premiums and dwindling options in the individual market, said James Parker, a senior adviser to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar.

But the plans could also raise premiums for those who remain in the Affordable Care Act marketplace [Read More]

Able-bodied, adult Healthy Michigan recipients would need to work 80 hours a month or be in a job training program after Jan. 1, 2020 in order to keep their Medicaid coverage unless they fall under a handful of exemptions, under legislation Gov. Rick Snyder signed June 22.

Sen. Mike Shirkey’s (R-Clarklake) SB 0897 also strips Healthy Michigan recipients who chronically lie on their monthly work reports to lose their coverage for a year. The Department of Health and Human Services would receive an extra $5 million a year under the bill for the additional auditors needed to track these recipients.

The bill also restates in law a provision that legislative Republicans didn’t get [Read More]

There should be no “discrimination of coverage” between mental health benefits and those paid out by insurance companies for physical health, says Rep. Martin Howrylak (R-Troy).

He introduced two bills in mid June,HB6109, and HB 6191, calling the mental health parity, requiring insurers to offer the same coverage for mental health services as traditional medical care.

“The big picture is that mental health treatment should be not subordinated to physical health because they are inextricably linked,” Howrylak explained. “They both represent heath care needs of individuals.”

He used the example of disorders like bulimia and anorexia. Left untreated, they obviously can lead to very significant health problems later on.

“If I were an insurance [Read More]

By EWA MATUSZEWSKI
In last month’s column, I asked the question, “Why do physicians with a career history of providing high quality care have to continue to take board re-certification examinations every six years?” I guess the topic of certifications in general has me in a bit of a huff these days. Not physician certifications, necessarily; rather, the plethora of certifications that have sprouted in recent years for healthcare roles not directly related to personal, clinical care.

I recently came across a post on LinkedIn that noted 149 patient advocates were now certified through a board I won’t name, following the inaugural national certification exam for professionals working as patient advocates. I’m [Read More]

By SARAH HILLEGONDS, ESQ
In June, a controversial bill that would impose work requirements on Medicaid recipients in the state’s expanded Healthy Michigan Plan made its way through the Legislature. It is expected that Gov. Rick Snyder will sign this bill into law, which could affect hundreds of thousands of individuals enrolled in the Healthy Michigan Plan. The House Fiscal Agency estimates that 540,000 of 670,000 individuals in the Healthy Michigan Plan would be subject to the new work requirements, and 5 percent to 10 percent of those individuals could lose coverage.

As background, the Healthy Michigan Plan was approved by the Legislature in 2013. It provides health coverage to individuals [Read More]

By Tim Gary
Electronic medical records have become vital to both hospitals and physician’s practices. They are a secure, electronic version of a patients’ medical history and often include all of the clinical data relevant to a patient’s care, including demographics, progress notes, problems, medications, vital signs, past medical history, immunizations, laboratory data and radiology reports. The EMR automates access to information and streamlines the healthcare provider’s workflow. When a hospital EMR crashes or is breached it can be catastrophic. There is a real risk of liability exposure if the clinical staff’s access to patient records is cut off and the clinician proceeds with treatment without having access to all [Read More]

There are some high-rollers out there who are being asked to kick in some big bucks to bankroll what could be a $4-$5 million ad campaign to defeat legalized pot on the statewide ballot in November.

At an unannounced and closed door meeting during the week of June 11, the Senate Majority Leader asked the lobby shops in town that have a piece of this pot issue to meet to discuss the anti-pot strategy.

The unanswered question on the table was simple: Are these interests willing to shell out the money to run an effective vote no campaign?

No one around the table had the answer, but the pledge was made to make [Read More]

By GEORGE GAINES, MSW, MPH
The morbidity data from Michigan Community Health and the Detroit Department of Health show several disease outbreaks during the last two years. Here, I offer a description of the increases and a viewpoint on the causes involved.

A theory and hypothesis are derived from data from the study by Ford Hospital1 and the morbidity data from the City Health Department 2012 thru 2017. The supporting theory is the lack of household water will affect household sanitation increasing the risk for disease.

Given the fact of thousands of water-service shuts offs, sanitation is compromised increasing risk of disease. The hypothesis is outbreaks of waterborne disease in Detroit are caustically [Read More]

By PAUL NATINSKY
IndyCar driver Charlie Kimball says he is the first diabetic to start and finish the Indy 500. Legally, that is. Diabetic racer Howdy Wilcox II competed in the Indianapolis 500, finishing second in 1932, but he was disqualified before the 1933 race when diabetic symptoms revealed his secret.

Today’s racecar drivers travel much faster—in excess of 225 mph on oval tracks—than their compatriots of yesteryear. Consequently, the slowed reactions, vision issues and decision-making deficits characteristic of unmanaged diabetes are much more dangerous.

“Charlie needs to consistently keep track of before getting on the racetrack,” Michigan State University kinesiologist David Ferguson told MSU Today in 2017. “If his blood sugar is [Read More]

Setting a building on fire and then “rescuing” its inhabitants does not make one a hero—quite the opposite.

Thwarting the intent of a law by refusing to enforce it and then using that action to further undermine the law does not make one a skilled policymaker representing the will of the people—quite the opposite.

But that is what the president and his attorney general have done in supporting a lawsuit that would eliminate the Affordable Care Act’s requirement to cover pre-existing medical conditions, leaving those who are sick and uninsured without coverage options. The suit was filed by several conservative states and the ACA is being defended against by a group of [Read More]