Monday, November 20, 2017
Mayo Clinic Minute: Know your family health history
From: Mayo Clinic https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaeiA4TcCT4
Insurance plan networks: 5 things you need to know
Follow me on Twitter @dianewshannon
My 18-year-old daughter recently moved to a university about 1,500 miles away to study theater. Tears, texts, and several care packages later, she settled in, only to develop a hamstring injury that prevented her from participating in required dance classes. In short, she needed several months of physical therapy.
After searching for options near the university, she told me that visits would cost as much as $200 each. Our health insurance plan only covers urgent or emergency care outside of our local area, and physical therapy was not considered urgent. When she enrolled, we had assumed she would get preventive care when she was at home and use a local walk-in clinic for urgent needs. We hadn’t considered services like physical therapy. Suddenly, opting out of the university’s student health plan didn’t seem like such a smart idea.
Narrow networks are one method that health plans use to control their costs. Basically, a plan with a narrow network covers services from a smaller number of doctors and hospitals. By contracting with fewer care providers, the health plan is able to negotiate lower costs. Generally, care providers located in other states or regions of the country are out-of-network.
If you choose a narrow-network plan, it may have a lower premium but you will have less choice in care providers. And, if you obtain care outside of the plan’s network, you will pay more. In some cases, you will be responsible for paying the total cost of the services you obtain from out-of-network doctors and hospitals.
To avoid dilemmas like mine, here’s what you need to know:
1. If you have a choice of health plans, compare the costs and the care provider networks. Set aside some time to read and understand the benefits of each health plan. Make sure you clearly understand whether the plan you’re considering has a narrow network.
2. Before you choose a plan, check if the hospitals and care providers that you use are included in the plan’s network. Contact the doctor’s office, the customer service or billing department of the hospital, or your health plan to see if the hospital and your care providers are in-network. Remember to check on the care providers used by family members on your plan.
3. Take steps to protect yourself from surprise billing for out-of-network care. Sometimes consumers receive a “surprise bill” — one that is completely unexpected or far higher than expected. Often these bills relate to emergency care at an out-of-network facility or doctors who work at an in-network facility but are not in-network themselves.
What to do? Learn about your health plan benefits regarding emergency care at an out-of-network facility. If you’re visiting family in another state and need emergency care, what are the out-of-pocket costs? Knowing the costs ahead of time, you might decide to go to an urgent-care center rather than the emergency department of the hospital, if the problem is urgent but not a true emergency.
If you are planning for a non-emergency test or surgery, make sure the doctors and hospital are in-network. Contact the doctor’s office, the customer service or billing department of the hospital, or your health plan to check.
4. Communicate with family members (your spouse, college-age children) about your plan’s network. Make sure they know which care providers are in-network — and the financial consequences of obtaining care from out-of-network hospitals or care providers.
5. If you receive a surprise bill or find an error on your bill, take proactive steps immediately. If you find any errors on your bill or receive a surprise bill, contact the hospital or doctor’s office directly as soon as possible. You can correct any errors or try to negotiate a lower price and a payment plan. Contact the care provider as soon as possible to avoid having an unpaid bill turned over to a collection agency.
In the end, we decided to purchase the student health insurance — fortunately the enrollment deadline had not passed — and my daughter is working her way back to health and a career on the stage. And I learned a valuable lesson about the importance of fully understanding the network limits of our health plan.
Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH is author of the Harvard Health Publishing special report Navigating Health Insurance. This Harvard Medical School Guide will help you compare health plans, estimate your costs, understand Medicare and Medicaid benefits, decipher your hospital bill, take steps to avoid unexpected charges, and reduce prescription drug costs.
The post Insurance plan networks: 5 things you need to know appeared first on Harvard Health Blog.
From: Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/insurance-plan-networks-5-things-you-need-to-know-2017112012743
Boy with cancer dies after wish for early Christmas
Jacob Thompson battled neuroblastoma for four years, and people around the world pitched in to bring him joy in his final days
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/jacob-thompson-dies-after-public-fulfills-wish-early-christmas/
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/jacob-thompson-dies-after-public-fulfills-wish-early-christmas/
Treat Mini-Stroke Quickly To Cut Later Stroke Risk
Prompt treatment of a mini-stroke could reduce the likelihood of having a full-blown stroke by roughly 80 percent, according to a new report.
From: https://www.webmd.com/stroke/news/20171120/treat-mini-stroke-quickly-to-cut-later-stroke-risk?src=RSS_PUBLIC
Diabetes, High BP In Pregnancy Can Lead to Issues
If you develop both diabetes and high blood pressure during pregnancy, you face a much higher risk of future trouble than women who only develop one of those conditions while pregnant, researchers report.
From: https://www.webmd.com/diabetes/news/20171120/diabetes-high-bp-in-pregnancy-can-lead-to-issues?src=RSS_PUBLIC
RECALL: Trader Joe’s Packaged Salads
The company voluntarily recalled the products and said it has removed them from shelves.
From: https://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/news/20171120/recall-trader-joes-packaged-salads?src=RSS_PUBLIC
Cancer Survivors Can Develop PTSD, Too
New research shows the trauma of a cancer scare often leaves survivors with PTSD.
From: https://www.webmd.com/cancer/news/20171120/cancer-survivors-can-develop-ptsd-too?src=RSS_PUBLIC
Heavier Women May Need Mammograms More Often
Overweight or obese women are at greater risk of having breast cancer detected after the tumor has grown large -- over 2 centimeters -- than their slimmer counterparts, the study found.
From: https://www.webmd.com/breast-cancer/news/20171120/heavier-women-may-need-mammograms-more-often?src=RSS_PUBLIC
Shaming Overweight Kids Only Makes Things Worse
Overweight kids who are shamed or stigmatized are more likely to binge eat or isolate themselves than to make positive changes such as losing weight, a leading pediatricians' group says.
From: https://www.webmd.com/children/news/20171120/shaming-overweight-kids-only-makes-things-worse?src=RSS_PUBLIC
Evidence lacking that gum disease treatment prevents heart disease
Researchers found insufficient evidence to determine whether periodontal therapy in patients with chronic periodontitis prevents occurrence or recurrence of cardiovascular disease in a systematic review published online in November in the Cochrane Review Database.
From: By Michelle Manchir
http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/evidence-lacking-that-gum-disease-treatment-prevents-heart-disease
From: By Michelle Manchir
http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/evidence-lacking-that-gum-disease-treatment-prevents-heart-disease
HPI, Oral Health America: Americans over 50 want dental coverage in Medicare
The vast majority of Americans over 50 would like dental coverage included in Medicare, according to new research from Oral Health America and the ADA Health Policy Institute.
From: By Jennifer Garvin
http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/hpi-oral-health-america-americans-over-50-want-dental-coverage-in-medicare
From: By Jennifer Garvin
http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/hpi-oral-health-america-americans-over-50-want-dental-coverage-in-medicare
Chasing Diabetes' Connection To Pancreatic Cancer
Researchers want to know more about the link between pancreatic cancer and diabetes.
From: https://www.webmd.com/cancer/pancreatic-cancer/news/20171120/chasing-diabetes-connection-to-pancreatic-cancer?src=RSS_PUBLIC
Overweight women may need more frequent mammograms
New research suggests heavier women are at greater risk of having breast cancer detected after the tumor has grown large
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/overweight-women-may-need-more-frequent-mammograms/
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/overweight-women-may-need-more-frequent-mammograms/
University of the Pacific faculty, dental students provide care to Bay Area veterans
University of the Pacific’s Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry offered Nov. 4 free dental checkups for military veterans at dental clinics in San Francisco and Union City.
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/university-of-the-pacific-faculty-dental-students-provide-care-to-bay-area-veterans
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/university-of-the-pacific-faculty-dental-students-provide-care-to-bay-area-veterans
Could this brain-training program ward off dementia?
In what researchers call a first, healthy seniors who tried a specific brain-training program were less likely to develop dementia down the road
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/brainhq-brain-training-program-ward-off-dementia-alzheimers/
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/brainhq-brain-training-program-ward-off-dementia-alzheimers/
#DearDiabetes: Mara Darsow
Dear Diabetes,
How are you these days? I see you are continuing to do your thing, sneaking up on people—quietly and efficiently moving in while no one is paying much attention, bringing all your nasty baggage and getting comfortable. You are enormous, but quiet and sneaky, and complicated. You come in all kinds of different forms, sometimes you are even hard for us to recognize. You seem to be growing and getting more and more powerful all the time, spreading around the world, continuing to take your toll on people, families and communities. Do you think that we don’t see you? Or maybe that you are so big and powerful that we can’t stop you? I guess it might seem that way to you, but you are wrong. We see you, and we are powerful, too.
We are here, always watching you and your devious ways. We are the bright side to your dark, an army of thousands of brilliant scientists and researchers who work every day to understand how it is that you do what you do, and how to stop you in your tracks. We are learning new things about you all the time and constantly putting new obstacles in your path along the way—to slow you down and keep you out of our lives. I promise you that we will learn all your tricks. It might take some time, but we are never going to stop until we have figured you out completely.
In the meantime, we have millions of friends on our side—health care providers, policy makers, community workers, family and friends. We all talk and work together, and we don’t want you around. All of us are taking steps right now to make sure it gets more difficult for you to infiltrate our lives and our communities. So, if it seems like it is getting harder for you to do your thing, you are right. You are in our sights, and we are everywhere that you are, and we won’t stop until you are gone for good.
Sincerely committed to the fight,
Mara Darsow, PhD
SVP, Research and Community Programs, American Diabetes Association
From: American Diabetes Association http://diabetesstopshere.org/2017/11/20/deardiabetes-mara-darsow/
Insurance plan networks: 5 things you need to know
Follow me on Twitter @dianewshannon
My 18-year-old daughter recently moved to a university about 1,500 miles away to study theater. Tears, texts, and several care packages later, she settled in, only to develop a hamstring injury that prevented her from participating in required dance classes. In short, she needed several months of physical therapy.
After searching for options near the university, she told me that visits would cost as much as $200 each. Our health insurance plan only covers urgent or emergency care outside of our local area, and physical therapy was not considered urgent. When she enrolled, we had assumed she would get preventive care when she was at home and use a local walk-in clinic for urgent needs. We hadn’t considered services like physical therapy. Suddenly, opting out of the university’s student health plan didn’t seem like such a smart idea.
Narrow networks are one method that health plans use to control their costs. Basically, a plan with a narrow network covers services from a smaller number of doctors and hospitals. By contracting with fewer care providers, the health plan is able to negotiate lower costs. Generally, care providers located in other states or regions of the country are out-of-network.
If you choose a narrow-network plan, it may have a lower premium but you will have less choice in care providers. And, if you obtain care outside of the plan’s network, you will pay more. In some cases, you will be responsible for paying the total cost of the services you obtain from out-of-network doctors and hospitals.
To avoid dilemmas like mine, here’s what you need to know:
1. If you have a choice of health plans, compare the costs and the care provider networks. Set aside some time to read and understand the benefits of each health plan. Make sure you clearly understand whether the plan you’re considering has a narrow network.
2. Before you choose a plan, check if the hospitals and care providers that you use are included in the plan’s network. Contact the doctor’s office, the customer service or billing department of the hospital, or your health plan to see if the hospital and your care providers are in-network. Remember to check on the care providers used by family members on your plan.
3. Take steps to protect yourself from surprise billing for out-of-network care. Sometimes consumers receive a “surprise bill” — one that is completely unexpected or far higher than expected. Often these bills relate to emergency care at an out-of-network facility or doctors who work at an in-network facility but are not in-network themselves.
What to do? Learn about your health plan benefits regarding emergency care at an out-of-network facility. If you’re visiting family in another state and need emergency care, what are the out-of-pocket costs? Knowing the costs ahead of time, you might decide to go to an urgent-care center rather than the emergency department of the hospital, if the problem is urgent but not a true emergency.
If you are planning for a non-emergency test or surgery, make sure the doctors and hospital are in-network. Contact the doctor’s office, the customer service or billing department of the hospital, or your health plan to check.
4. Communicate with family members (your spouse, college-age children) about your plan’s network. Make sure they know which care providers are in-network — and the financial consequences of obtaining care from out-of-network hospitals or care providers.
5. If you receive a surprise bill or find an error on your bill, take proactive steps immediately. If you find any errors on your bill or receive a surprise bill, contact the hospital or doctor’s office directly as soon as possible. You can correct any errors or try to negotiate a lower price and a payment plan. Contact the care provider as soon as possible to avoid having an unpaid bill turned over to a collection agency.
In the end, we decided to purchase the student health insurance — fortunately the enrollment deadline had not passed — and my daughter is working her way back to health and a career on the stage. And I learned a valuable lesson about the importance of fully understanding the network limits of our health plan.
Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH is author of the Harvard Health Publishing special report Navigating Health Insurance. This Harvard Medical School Guide will help you compare health plans, estimate your costs, understand Medicare and Medicaid benefits, decipher your hospital bill, take steps to avoid unexpected charges, and reduce prescription drug costs.
The post Insurance plan networks: 5 things you need to know appeared first on Harvard Health Blog.
From: Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/insurance-plan-networks-5-things-you-need-to-know-2017112012743
Ted Koppel and wife Grace Anne on living with COPD
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease is the third leading cause of death in U.S., yet it is little understood by millions who have gone undiagnosed
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ted-koppel-grace-anne-koppel-on-living-with-copd-chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease/
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ted-koppel-grace-anne-koppel-on-living-with-copd-chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease/
Giving smiles
Dr. Bob Marchese was among eight veterans who provided free dental services during a Veteran Smile Day event.
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/giving-smiles
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/giving-smiles
New Jersey dentist builds legacy in helping uninsured
This is the third in a series featuring graduates of the ADA Institute for Diversity in Leadership and how these dental leaders continue to affect their communities.
From: By Kimber Solana
http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/new-jersey-dentist-builds-legacy-in-helping-uninsured
From: By Kimber Solana
http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/new-jersey-dentist-builds-legacy-in-helping-uninsured
North Carolina Ph.D. candidate, dentist receives research award
The ADA Foundation announced that Dr. Kevin Byrd received the ADA Foundation Crest and Oral-B Promising Research Award for his research on oral soft tissue growth, patterning and regeneration.
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/north-carolina-phd-candidate-dentist-receives-research-award
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/north-carolina-phd-candidate-dentist-receives-research-award
Whiston Award winners show leadership skills in dentistry
The ADA Foundation in October announced that three dentists have received the 2017 Dr. David Whiston Leadership Awards.
From: By Matt Carey
http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/whiston-award-winners-show-leadership-skills-in-dentistry
From: By Matt Carey
http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/whiston-award-winners-show-leadership-skills-in-dentistry
Ted and Grace Anne Koppel on COPD, third leading cause of death in U.S.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, is the nation's third biggest killer after heart disease and cancer. About 150,000 Americans die of COPD each year. Among women, it is more deadly than breast and ovarian cancers combined. Ted Koppel focuses on the disease for a report next weekend on CBS "Sunday Morning." His wife, Grace Anne, was given only a few years to live when she was diagnosed 16 years ago. The Koppels join "CBS This Morning" to discuss why they're advocating for more research into prevention and treatment.
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/ted-and-grace-anne-koppel-on-copd-third-leading-cause-of-death-in-us/
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/ted-and-grace-anne-koppel-on-copd-third-leading-cause-of-death-in-us/
Girl taking medical marijuana sues Jeff Sessions and DEA
A 12-year-old girl is spearheading a campaign to legalize medical marijuana across the whole country. Alexis Bortell said she and her family had no choice but to move from their Texas home to Colorado to treat her severe epilepsy. Now, her family and a handful of others are suing Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the DEA. Barry Petersen reports.
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/girl-taking-medical-marijuana-sues-jeff-sessions-and-dea/
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/girl-taking-medical-marijuana-sues-jeff-sessions-and-dea/
Association seeks treasurer candidates
Members interested in running for ADA treasurer can visit ADA.org to find the information necessary to file for candidacy.
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/association-seeks-treasurer-candidates
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/association-seeks-treasurer-candidates
December webinar to help dentists collect what they produce
The ADA Council on Dental Practice is sponsoring a one-hour program, GPS Managing Finances Webinar: How to Collect What You Produce, on Dec. 7 to assist dentists in making sound business decisions when helping patients finance treatment.
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/december-webinar-to-help-dentists-collect-what-they-produce
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/december-webinar-to-help-dentists-collect-what-they-produce
Just the Facts — November 20, 2017
Dental service organization affiliation
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/just-the-facts-november-20-2017
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/just-the-facts-november-20-2017
Snapshots of American Dentistry — November 20, 2017
Cost as a barrier to dental care
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/snapshots-of-american-dentistry-nov-20
From: http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/november/snapshots-of-american-dentistry-nov-20
12-year-old taking medical marijuana sues Jeff Sessions and DEA
A 12-year-old girl with severe epilepsy is spearheading a campaign to legalize medical marijuana across the country
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/medical-marijuana-epilepsy-seizures-alexis-bortell-lawsuit/
From: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/medical-marijuana-epilepsy-seizures-alexis-bortell-lawsuit/
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