Hospital employees and families on Medicaid

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has an editorial this morning (11/2) about Missouri's large employers that have employees receiving Medicaid coverage. It does not distinguish between traditional medicaid and S-CHIP. The editorial is here. Hospitals are listed -- although not individually -- in the editorial.

Inside Connection - moving forward

MHA's Inside Connection newsletter has been discontinued in print form. However, we will continue to move forward with "Around the Districts" on MHAnet. Information on how to participate will be forthcoming.

Please submit information about developments at your hospital to news@mail.mhanet.com.

Reporter roundup

A reporter from the Springfield News-Leader has inquired about hospital visitation policies related to H1N1. Note: No specific guidance has been offered by the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on hospital visitation policy changes.

Robert Joiner from the St. Louis Beacon is interested in historical hospital closures in north St. Louis City and north county.

Medicaid in the news

The Missouri Department of Social Services has issued a report listing the state's employers whose workers receive Medicaid. Warning: Some Missouri hospitals are on the list.

The media has not, as of this posting, discussed hospitals inclusion on the list. Any media inquiries will be posted on the Lede.

Kudos

A round of applause for St. Mary's Health Center in Jefferson City for receiving a 2009 Missouri Quality Award.

Update: "To Err Is Human" packet

The Missouri Hospital Association will be e-mailing a media packet today to prepare hospitals for inquiries about the 10th anniversary of the Institute of Medicine's 1999 groundbreaking report on medical errors. If you do not receive the materials, please contact the flack at ddillon@mail.mhanet.com. We also will be pitching an op-ed from MHA, the Missouri Center for Patient Safety, the Missouri State Medical Association and Primaris to Missouri's major daily newspapers.

Update: The St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the St. Joseph News-Press have published the op-ed.

Visitation policies

Association PR folks around the country are buzzing about hospitals' revised visitation policies related to nH1N1 Influenza. If your hospital has adjusted its policy, e-mail the flack with information about the changes.

Evans, Hailstone elected to MHA Board

Ballots for the election of trustees in Missouri Hospital Association Districts 1 and 4 were counted on September 16. Myra L. Evans, administrator of Community Hospital - Fairfax, was elected from District 1, and Sherlyn A. Hailstone, president of SSM Cardinal Glennon Children’s Medical Center in St. Louis, was elected from District 4. The three-year terms of these trustees will begin January 1, 2010.

Two at-large trustee elections, along with the election of MHA’s 2010 chair-elect, will take place during the association’s annual business meeting Wednesday, November 4 at Tan‑Tar‑A Resort in Osage Beach.

Congratulations Tess

Tess Niehaus has been named president elect of the Society for Healthcare Strategy & Market Development, the nation's premier organization for health care planners, marketers and communications and public relations professionals. SHSMD is an American Hospital Association affiliated organization.

EMR usage

Mike Sherry of the Kansas City Business Journal has inquired about hospitals' use of electronic medical records technologies. Specifically he is interested in critical access hospital adoption rates. Apparently he also is interested in physician adoption rates.

MHAnet revised and improved

MHA has enhanced its Web site, MHAnet, to improve its aesthetics and functionality. If you are an infrequent visitor, you should click over to take a look.

Herb Kuhn, new MHA President

Herb Kuhn has officially hit the ground as MHA President and CEO. His first day was Sept. 1. He will be very busy getting to know Missouri's hospital leaders in the coming months. If you see him at your hospital, give him a warm hello.

nH1N1 talking points, information available

MHA has posted general talking points on nH1N1 Influenza here. Additional resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services are available on MHAnet.

The Flack is back, Jack

I've been on a brief sabbatical. Now the flack returns with a vengeance.

Medical errors in the news

The Hearst chain of newspapers is syndicating a story about medical errors. The link to the story in the Houston Chronicle is here.

Consumer Reports to rate hospitals

Consumer Reports Health has launched a patient satisfaction based hospital rating interface on their Web site. The new system will add Consumer Reports' familiar quality scoring system to hospitals' HCAHPS scores. Hospitals should understand that this is not new data. CR is simply repackaging the federal HCAHPS data.

Hospital IT news

David Lieb of the Associated Press has penned an article on the federal economic stimulus for rural hospitals' health information technology adoption. Sac Osage Hospital in Osceola is featured.

Bluford in line for 2011 AHA chair

Congratulations John.

From AHA News:

The AHA Board of Trustees has elected as its chair-elect designate John Bluford, president and CEO of Truman Medical Centers in Kansas City, MO. Bluford will assume the chairmanship in 2011 and become chairman-elect on Jan. 1, 2010. "Hospitals support extending coverage to millions of Americans while keeping hospitals strong to fulfill their mission of caring for communities," Bluford said. "It is an honor to be chosen to represent my colleagues in the field at this critical juncture in our nation's history. A special area of focus for me will be finding ways to create a culture of wellness among health care employees that hopefully will extend into the communities they serve."

News of the obvious?

The Institute on Aging, in conjunction with the U.S. Census Bureau has released a study indicating... wait for it... the world's population is aging quickly.

From the authors:

“Aging is affecting every country in every part of the world,” said Richard Suzman, director of NIA’s Division of Behavioral and Social Research. “While there are important differences between developed and developing countries, global aging is changing the social and economic nature of the planet and presenting difficult challenges. The fact that, within 10 years, for the first time in human history there will be more people aged 65 and older than children under 5 in the world underlines the extent of this change.”

RWJF: Consumer trends released

According to a new study from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, consumer's confidence in the health care system improved in June. The foundation indicated in its news release that the progress on federal health reform legislation may be driving an increase in positive feelings about the future of health care. The research found also:

• Americans believe health reform is an important part of addressing the nation’s economic crisis. More than 8 in 10 people (84.7%) believe that it is important for President Obama to reform the health care system as a step in solving the nation’s economic woes.
• People are worried about being able to afford future care. More than four in 10 of all Americans (43.3%) are worried that they will not be able to pay for their future health care needs in the event of a serious illness. Additionally, nearly four in 10 (39.8%) are worried that they will not be able to afford all of the routine health care services they need (39.8%).
• Americans are afraid of losing their insurance in the coming year. Nearly one in four currently insured adults (23.3%) fear losing their health insurance at some point in the next 12 months.
• Americans are having trouble paying their medical bills. One in four people (25.8%) report having had trouble paying medical bills during the past year.
• People are worried that medical bills will lead to bankruptcy. Nearly a quarter (22.9%) report being worried that they will go bankrupt from not being able to pay their medical bills.