Mednotes
Connecticut Health Care News
Medical Society Questions Anthem About Medicare Advantage Terminations
HARTFORD, CT — The Connecticut State Medical Society is sounding alarm bells over Anthem’s decision to terminate Connecticut physicians from its Medicare Advantage Network. The termination of certain physicians doesn’t start until Jan. 1, but the organization worries...
Doctors don’t always know what patients will owe for meds
WASHINGTON (AP) — It's the No. 1 reason patients don't fill their prescriptions: sticker shock. While the price of almost any good or service can be found online, most Americans don't know what they'll owe for a prescription medication until they get it. Unexpected...
Blumenthal slams drug makers for EpiPen shortages
As the back-to-school season gets underway, the makers of EpiPen, an anti-allergy injector, are being blamed for shortages and – in a recurring complaint – exorbitant prices. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., continued his long -running criticisms of Mylan, which...
Office of Health Strategy launches online health care rating system
Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz joined OHS Director of Healthcare Innovation, Mark Schaefer, and other OHS members for a presentation of Healthscore CT– a free online tool that will help consumers navigate the state’s healthcare networks based on quality and cost...
A Not-So Public Commissioner of Public Health
The state health commissioner’s decision to keep private a robust data set detailing school-level vaccination rates in Connecticut, along with her insistence that it’s not her job to weigh in on matters of public health, is rattling some policy makers and provoking...
Reports: Sacklers, Purdue offer massive settlement of opioid suits
Washington – The maker of OxyContin, Purdue Pharma, and its owners, the Sackler family, are offering to settle more than 2,000 lawsuits against the company for $10 billion to $12 billion, according to several reports. Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, who is...
Years ago, this doctor linked a mysterious lung disease to vaping
Dr. John E. Parker was working at a West Virginia hospital in 2015 when a 31-year-old female patient was admitted with acute respiratory problems. A team of doctors ultimately suspected that her mysterious case of lipoid pneumonia might be related to vaping and...
Blacks, Poor At Higher Risk Of Heart Disease; Overall Death Rate Falls
The death rate from heart disease plummeted nationally over several decades for all racial and ethnic groups, but the rate of decline has slowed slightly and African Americans and low-income individuals are still at a higher risk of developing the disease and dying...
Public health commissioner won’t release school-by-school vaccination data
Renee Coleman-Mitchell, Connecticut’s public health commissioner, said Tuesday that she has no plans to release the most recent round of statewide school-by-school immunization data, despite calls this week from lawmakers who say parents should have access to the...
DPH Officials Decline To Take Position On Religious Exemption
Michael Bolduc, head of the Department of Public Health’s vaccine program BRIDGEPORT, CT — Officials from the Connecticut Department of Public Health joined federal and local officials Wednesday at the Southwest Community Health Center to talk about the importance of...