News

The Changing World of Hospice Care

When I was in graduate school and early in my career, hospices were viewed as one of the most altruistic components of the health care system. With a philosophy of caring holistically for those at the end of life by controlling symptoms, supporting families, and providing a “good” death (preferably at home), hospices seemed to represent the vision of compassion …

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Lansing State Journal: Can Michigan win the battle against obesity?

CHRT Director Marianne Udow-Phillips weighs in on the cost of obesity, explaining to the Lansing State Journal how reducing obesity—a preventable condition—could free money for other things.

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Wacky BackQuack™ game is helping consumers and physicians determine the best course of treatment for acute back pain

A new back pain game created by a University of Michigan doctor aims to teach doctors and patients how to improve management of back pain by demonstrating what not to do. BackQuack™, a humorous but real attempt to educate, is the subject of serious research into consumerism and physician management of back pain. This online video game was developed by …

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Where the Rubber Meets the Road: Health Care Reform in Washtenaw County

Health care policy happens at many levels, but health care delivery: just one. Policy is made at the federal, state and local levels—but delivery is at the local level: in organized systems of care or with individual or teams of practitioners working with patients and families. There must be a nexus between policy and practice in order for policy related to …

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Cost Effective Care: How Do We Get The Waste Out of the System?

In the May 18 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, Rashi Fein and Arnold Milstein tackled the question of why evidence-based care diffuses so slowly. The article is compelling because of its fundamental conclusion: institutionalized interest group pressure against change in health care and consumer misunderstanding of health care financing make it hard to envision how health care …

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ACOs: What Will They Really Be?

Sixty-five quality indicators? Retrospectively attributed patient populations? Risk after the fact? Significant management and financial investment required with uncertain payback? This may not sound like a strategy to win the hearts and minds of providers who are on the fence about whether or not to participate in CMS’ new approach to care: accountable care organizations (ACOs). So, what is going …

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Survey shows health coverage is important — but not sufficient to guarantee access to care

The second annual Cover Michigan Survey, released today by the Center for Healthcare Research & Transformation (CHRT), shows that people who lack health coverage are more likely to seek medical treatment in costlier care settings and less likely to have regular, preventive care. The survey of 1,000 Michigan adults also reveals that simply having health coverage does not guarantee access …

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