Health plans for everyone
My Saturday column listed a few of the things that West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin proposed to extend health insurance to at least some of the 245,000 West Virginians who don’t have it. Insurance...
View ArticleHealth plans for everyone II
Back in 2006, Massachusetts went the route of requiring all state residents to buy health insurance. Those who could not afford it would get help from the state to buy low-cost options. Those who did...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Swine flu: Are factory farms to blame?
During a Gazette Online Chat earlier this week, I asked Kanawha County Health Officer Dr. Rahul Gupta about possible connections between swine flu and factory farming. Dr. Gupta responded this way:...
View ArticleFamily receives first Advocate for Justice award
The West Virginia Association for Justice was scheduled to recognize a Brooke County widower and his daughter on Thursday evening for their bravery and commitment to accountability involving a medical...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Study links domestic abuse to more health problems
A new study by Dr. Amy Bonomi (right), an associate professor at The Ohio State University’s Department of Human Development and Family Science, finds that victims of intimate partner violence have a...
View ArticleHealth care fraud convictions help recover billions
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that joint efforts by the Department of Justice and Health and Human Services recovered more...
View ArticlePain pills and ER visits
Here’s another obvious indicator that prescription drug abuse is running rampant (as if we really needed another): emergency room visits attributed to narcotic pain relievers have doubled in just four...
View ArticleDrug use and pregnant teens
A recent report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration highlights some interesting trends among pregnant teenagers who seek treatment for drug and alcohol abuse. The report...
View ArticlePharmaceutical drugs and suicide attempts
Here’s yet another reason to be extra careful with what’s in your medicine cabinet: When young adults try to kill themselves, the suicide attempt almost always involves pharmaceutical drugs. More than...
View ArticleConvicts and nursing homes
As ProPublica.org pointed out, the Office of Inspector General just released a study that found that 92 percent of nursing homes employ a person with a criminal conviction, and almost half employ five...
View Article
