Month: August 2011

Officials with the state Department of Employee Trust Funds unveiled another hit to members' wallets last week — a coinsurance payment that could cost them up to $1,000 a year. ETF on Thursday rolled out a series of videos and fact sheets meant to educate members about changes to health insurance benefits, some of them beginning as early as this week. (WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL, 8/22)

The Medical College of Wisconsin has received its largest grant ever, just under $45 million in federal money over six years, to fund and analyze large clinical research trials aimed at answering fundamental questions surrounding one of medicine's best weapons against certain cancers. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 8/22)

The cost of low health literacy in Wisconsin is estimated at $3.4 billion to $7.6 billion annually, according to John Vernon, principal analyst for a 2007 health literacy costs study by the University of Connecticut School of Business. Those with low health literacy are less likely to get preventive care and more likely to be hospitalized with bad outcomes, driving up costs. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 8/22)

Less than two months after a new state law took health benefits off the bargaining table for public workers — effectively giving school boards the green light to raise health insurance premiums paid by teachers -- WEA Trust has lost a fifth of its business. And that means big changes could be coming for the Madison-based group health insurer of mostly school districts that employs nearly 500. (WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL, 8/22)

Aurora Health Care is exploring partnerships with insurance companies to begin offering employers a product by early next year that officials say will reduce their health care costs in exchange for their commitment to exclusively visit the system’s hospitals and doctors. (MILWAUKEE BUSINESS JOURNAL, 8/19)

Brynne McBride is on a mission to get the word out that BadgerCare Plus, Wisconsin's low-income health care program, is available to children, families and pregnant women. As the associate director for the Madison-based nonprofit Advocacy and Benefits Counseling for Health, McBride is among several local and state health advocates touring the state to publicize the program. (GREEN BAY PRESS GAZETTE, 8/19)

A top federal health care official says bold local programs could serve as models for improving care nationally. Dr. Donald M. Berwick oversees the government's Medicare and Medicaid programs. He stopped by the Mayo Clinic Health System in La Crosse on Thursday to discuss health care with local providers after making similar stops in Eau Claire and Black River Falls. (LA CROSSE TRIBUNE, 8/19)

Karl Strelnick, a veteran psychiatrist who retired under fire this year from his job at the Milwaukee County Mental Health Complex, has been cleared by state regulators who investigated a complaint that he bungled care of a pregnant patient, according to records released Wednesday. Nonetheless, a state Medical Examining Board investigation confirmed serious lapses in the care of the patient, who became pregnant while at the complex and gave birth in April 2010. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 8/18)

Controlling cost and improving quality are the hot topics in health care these days and the federal government is attempting to help consumers navigate their way through the quality piece. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced earlier this month a new online tool for patients and caregivers with updated information on more than 4,700 hospitals across the country, including all of the Milwaukee-area hospitals. (MILWAUKEE BUSINESS JOURNAL, 8/18)

Madison Area Technical College is saving some big bucks due to a sluggish economy and today's ultra-competitive construction industry. MATC just finalized the bid process for the construction aspects of its new Health Education Building, and the project came in nearly 20 percent under budget. (CAPITAL TIMES, 8/18)