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Telemedicine a safe, affordable solution
Albuquerque Journal, March 2, 2015
Health reform and the expansion of health care coverage for millions of Americans has dominated the news for several years now. What's been lost in all the reporting is the reality that, for hundreds of thousands of Americans, having health care coverage helps only if they have access to a physician.
For people who live in states with large rural populations, such as New Mexico, the nearest medical specialist may be hundreds of miles away. This dangerous distance leads to delayed diagnoses and treatment for preventable and treatable conditions.
Lawmakers press Veterans Affairs for improved access to rural health care
Trib Live, March 1, 2015
The Department of Veterans Affairs is failing to make enough rural health care available to veterans who live far from VA medical centers, a breakdown that violates the intent of a 2014 federal law, more than two dozen senators say.
They helped pass the Veterans Choice, Access and Accountability Act, meant in part to improve health care access for veterans who live more than 40 miles from VA facilities or who must wait more than a month for VA care.
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Bring our money back; keep rural hospitals open
Billings Gazette, March 1, 2015
Montana's Republican legislators are asking you to pay for the health care of people in other states by denying it to our fellow Montanans. That seems pretty hypocritical for these legislators who only work for 90 days every two years and have us pay for their health insurance.
The Healthy Montana Plan is the best way to bring our tax dollars back to help more than 70,000 Montanans. If legislators reject money for the Healthy Montana Plan, it is not going to lower your tax burden, and it is not going to lower the debt, because other states will get to use that money for their citizens.
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Obesity no longer urban phenomenon, now spread to rural population
New Straits Times Online, February 27, 2015
OBESITY has become a major global health problem, and the health risks substantially increases in prevalence. Not only is obesity increasing, but, no national success story has been reported in the past 33 years.
Urgent global action and leadership is needed to help countries to intervene more effectively with regular monitoring of changes in overweight and obesity prevalence in all populations.
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Largely rural states that didn't expand Medicaid have highest number of uninsured residents
The Rural Blog, February 26, 2015
Massachusetts has the lowest number of uninsured residents, while Arkansas and Kentucky-two states that expanded Medicaid under federal health reform-saw the biggest drops in the number of uninsured residents from 2013 to 2014, says a report by Gallup.
Arkansas, which expanded Medicaid under a Democratic governor-Republican incumbent Gov. Asa Hutchinson has said he wants to end it-ranked 49th in 2013 with 22.5 percent of residents uninsured, before moving up to 18th in 2013 with 11.4 percent uninsured, a national best drop of 11.1 percent. Kentucky, which has a Democratic governor but typically votes Republican in presidential elections, was ranked 40th in 2013 with 20.4 percent uninsured. In 2014 Kentucky was ranked 11th with 9.8 percent uninsured.
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Rural Hospitals Without Medicaid Expansion Struggle
NPR, February 24, 2015
Expanding who is eligible for health coverage under Medicaid has stirred a heated debate, but in states that have chosen not to expand the program, it's rural hospitals that are struggling with much of the fallout.
In many rural counties, these hospitals are the largest employers, but many say they're now facing layoffs, even closure. From Here & Now contributor KCUR in Kansas City, Alex Smith reports.
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Rural teenage girls are more likely than boys to suffer from undiagnosed asthma and depression
The Rural Blog, February 25, 2015
Rural teenage girls are more likely than boys to have undiagnosed asthma, and asthma sufferers are at a higher risk to suffer from depression, says a
study by researchers at Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Regents University. The study, which was conducted from 2010-13 using data from 2,523 Georgia adolescents, found that diagnosed and undiagnosed asthma was the same in rural and urban areas but that girls had a much higher rate than boys.
Lead author Dr. Jeana Bush theorized that boys might be more likely to have athletic physicals, which would increase the chances of catching asthma, while girls might be more likely to dismiss asthmatic symptoms as something else, like anxiety.
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Paying for telemedicine required under Minnesota bill
Duluth News Tribune, February 25, 2015
ST. PAUL - Forcing insurance companies to pay for telemedicine appointments could bring specialized health care to all parts of Minnesota, hospital officials and lawmakers say.
While some health insurance policies already pay for telemedicine, the use of technology to allow a distance health care professional to examine a patient, state legislation announced Wednesday would require all policies to provide reimbursement.
USDA Announces $14 Million in Grants Supporting Economic Growth for Rural Communities
USDA.gov, February 25, 2015
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) today announced nearly $14 million in grants to support four programs to increase prosperity in rural America through research, education, and extension programs focused on promoting rural community development, economic growth, and sustainability.
"Nearly 60 million Americans live in rural areas, and their value and impact through the agriculture industry can be felt both domestically and internationally," said Sonny Ramaswamy, NIFA director. "To help these communities remain prosperous and viable, we need to support discovery of new ways that promote economic viability among producers, small businesses, and communities in rural America."
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Debate on how to loosen rural dentist shortage opens wide
Ottawa Herald, February 23, 2015
The State of Minnesota loomed over the Kansas Statehouse on Monday as supporters and opponents of registered dental practitioners jousted for legislative approval. The experience of the northern state proved a focal point in the debate.
Registered dental practitioners are more than a dental hygienist but less than a dentist. They would be able to perform basic services such as fillings, crowns and some tooth extractions. Minnesota began licensing dental practitioners in 2011 after legislation passed in 2009. Minnesota, along with Alaska, are the first states to implement the practitioner concept.
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Georgia facing chronic medical provider shortage
Ledger-Enquirer, February 24, 2015
Two state legislative committees are taking on problems of health care in Georgia, and neither has to do, at least not directly, with the high-profile national debates on the subject.
As described by columnist Charlie Harper elsewhere on this page, and reported in considerable detail over the past few years, there's a health care crisis in rural Georgia, and it's getting worse with each passing year. Small rural hospitals are endangered, and their numbers are shrinking toward extinction. That means rural Georgia's largely poor and often indigent population is left with limited -- at best -- access even to emergency care, much less maintenance care.
Read more here!
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