Covered services include mammograms and colorectal cancer screening, bone mass measurement and nutritional counseling.
Plans will be required to cover such preventive services as cholesterol, blood pressure and diabetes testing, cancer screening and routine immunizations without additional charges, such as copayment.
The U.S. must spend $500 million on prevention this year. Rather than spreading it around, writes Robert Gould, it would be best to target one thing: tobacco.
As many as 50,000 to 100,000 deaths in people under age 80 could be prevented each year if just nine simple of preventive services were implemented effectively.
If you had $15 billion to spend on prevention, where do you think it would do the most good? Fighting obesity? Smoking? Maybe encouraging exercise?
Some basic preparation and common-sense safety tips will help ensure safety during possible power outages and high winds.
Tip:SMS text messages from a wireless communication device will often work if even if a cellular signal is not strong enough for a voice call.
State’s obesity rate has nearly tripled over the past 20 years.
Health stories in the news
Republicans “clueless” about health reform writes Seattle Times editorial columnist.
A wellness program at Johnson & Johnson has improved employee health and cut health costs.
By Lori Whittaker, MD
I love to talk about affairs of the heart: Not just because St. Valentine’s Day falls in February, but because this is American Heart Month.
Your heart can always use a little TLC. And the same goes for the heart of your husband, your wife, your significant other, your kids and even your [...]
By Phil Galewitz – Kaiser Health News
August 4, 2009
If there is one thing that both parties can agree on in the health overhaul debate, it’s the need to build a health system that promotes prevention rather than just manages disease.
To do that, legislation being debated in Congress requires Medicare and private health insurers to fully [...]
An Aspirin a Day? The Answer is Different for Men and Women
By Carolyn M. Clancy, M.D.
August 4, 2009
Throughout the ages, the differences between men and women have been the subject of plays, movies, and books. Shakespeare poked fun at the topic.
And, more recently, books with titles like Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus explored [...]
One out of five people in the U.S. infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, doesn’t know it, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports.
CDC recommends that everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 be tested for HIV at least once as part of their routine health care.
People who are [...]
Staying sharp as you age
Benedict Carey writes in the New York Times about the work of researchers who are trying to figure out why some people are able to stay mentally sharp well into their 90s.
Carey writes:
“The evidence suggests that people who spend long stretches of their days, three hours and more, engrossed in some [...]
Healthcare providers should make it clear to patients and parents that male circumcision substantially reduces a man’s risk of contracting AIDS, genital herpes and the virus that causes genital warts and cervical cancer, two University of Washington researchers write in today’s issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
In recent years, the value of circumcision [...]
People put it off, but colorectal cancer screening should top your list of things to do when you turn 50, writes Dr. Lori Whittaker in this month’s Sound Health column.
It seems to be one of the most popular tests to put off to another day. If you’re 50 you probably know what I’m talking about: [...]
Study found that formal swimming lessons can reduce a young child’s risk of drowning by 88 percent.
Lori Whittaker, M.D. is a family physician, who practices at Swedish Physicians Division.
She also serves as a quality improvement consultant for the Puget Sound Health Alliance, a collaboration of more than 150 hospitals, clinics, employers, insurance companies and other organizations working to improve quality and reduce healthcare costs.
In this the first of a monthly column, [...]
In support of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, the Snohomish Health District will offer free HIV testing to Black Americans who might be at risk of HIV infection.
These would include individuals who might have had unprotected sex or have injected drugs and shared their injection equipment.
Testing will include a private counseling session. Testing and counseling [...]
Virginia Mason Medical Center reports that 99% of its staff members have been immunized against influenza, the highest rate Virginia Mason has achieved since implementing its patient safety policy in 2005.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all health-care personnel be vaccinated each year to protect themselves and to prevent transmission [...]
In a large study of older women, taking multivitamins did not reduce the risk of heart disease or cancer—nor did it appear to prolong life.
Marian L. Neuhouser, Ph.D from Seattle’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Division of Public Health Sciences was the lead author of the paper, which appears on the February 9 issue of Archives [...]
Some cancer screening tests can actually help prevent cancers from occurring, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention says, while others help find cancers at an early stage, when treatment can be most effective.
Screening for breast, cervical and colon cancer can save your life – a message from the CDC
Getting screened for some [...]
Accidents are the leading cause of death and injury among children in the United States, according to a new report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention.
On average, more than 12,000 children aged 0 to 19 die each year because of accidents, the report finds.
Motor-vehicle accidents were the leading cause of death, [...]
The popular dietary supplements selenium and vitamins C and E failed to prevent prostate and other cancers in two large trials published online today by JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.
In one study, more than 35,500 older men were randomly assigned to four groups. One group took selenium, one vitamin E, one selenium [...]
Invisible Families: The homeless you don't see
They squeeze in with relatives, couch surf with friends or camp out in cars. More families are quietly becoming homeless, driven to the edge by a lack of jobs and affordable housing. The Seattle Times and its local news partners tackle the topic together. Project home
E-Health Records: Seattle is ahead of the curve
Health News from the Seattle Times
