News in brief - Dec. 7, 2009

HHS releases $80 million for health IT support - HHS measures insurance reform impact on the states - Medicaid enrollment up by 2 million - Obama announces bioethics advisory panel - New medical marijuana group formed in Colorado

HHS releases $80 million for health IT support

The Dept. of Health and Human Services on Nov. 24 announced the availability of $80 million in grants to help develop and strengthen the health information technology work force.

Of that, $70 million will go toward community college training programs, and $10 million will go to develop supportive educational materials. Authorized by the economic stimulus package enacted earlier this year, the grants are the first in a series of programs to help strengthen and support the health IT work force.

The application deadline for the community college program is Jan. 22, 2010. Schools can apply for grants and access more information online (healthit.hhs.gov/hitechgrants/).

On Nov. 23, HHS announced the launch of a new blog detailing federal efforts in the health IT arena. The blog also provides a forum in which physicians, consumers, policymakers and technology experts can share ideas and concerns (healthit.hhs.gov/blog/onc/).

HHS measures insurance reform impact on the states

A series of state-by-state reports highlighting the projected benefits of health insurance reform are available through the Dept. of Health and Human Services, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced Nov. 23.

The reports provide specific details on the expected benefits of reform for each state, Sebelius said. For example: 4.5 million California seniors would receive free preventive services; 565,000 Florida seniors would have costs waived for brand-name drugs that fall in the Medicare Part D "doughnut hole" coverage gap; 24,000 Nevada small businesses could be helped by a tax credit to make premiums more affordable; and 103,000 New Hampshire residents could qualify for premium tax credits to help purchase insurance coverage.

The reports also note that if substantial reform is not passed, 29 states will see the number of uninsured grow by more than 30% by 2019. The complete reports can be accessed online (www.healthreform.gov/healthcarestatus.html).

Medicaid enrollment up by 2 million

National Medicaid enrollment increased by 2 million people in the first six months of 2009, to reach more than 52 million, according to data released Nov. 19 by HealthLeaders-InterStudy, which tracks the managed care market.

While the national enrollment was growing by 4.6%, Medicaid programs in 25 states were expanding even faster.

The firm conducts enrollment surveys each Jan. 1 and July 1.

Obama announces bioethics advisory panel

President Obama on Nov. 24 announced the creation of the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues, as well as the commission's first two appointees.

Obama earlier this year disbanded the President's Council on Bioethics formed by President Bush, saying he would replace it with a new commission that would focus on developing concrete policy recommendations.

The new panel's responsibilities include identifying bioethical, legal or social issues related to advances in biomedical and behavioral research and health care technology. It will recommend legal, regulatory or policy actions to address these issues.

The panel will be part of the Dept. of Health and Human Services and will have at least 13 members appointed by the president. The chair is Amy Gutmann, PhD, a political scientist and president of the University of Pennsylvania. She is the founding director of the Princeton University Center for Human Values, a multidisciplinary ethics center.

The vice chair is James W. Wagner, PhD, Emory University's president. Wagner, an engineer, previously served as interim president of Case Western Reserve University and as a researcher for the Food and Drug Administration Center for Devices and Radiological Health, where he performed quality assurance tests on medical devices.

New medical marijuana group formed in Colorado

A group of Colorado medical marijuana advocates formed a new organization in November to help develop regulations for the safe use and distribution of the drug.

Colorado is one of about 13 states that allow seriously ill patients to use marijuana with a physician's recommendation, despite federal laws banning the drug. The Colorado Wellness Assn. aims to bring together patients, physicians, policymakers and others to create guidelines that balance patients' access to marijuana for medical use with law enforcement concerns.

The Colorado Medical Society is not involved in the CWA and has not taken a position on the issue.

The American Medical Association House of Delegates, at its Interim Meeting in November, voted to study whether cannabis -- now a Schedule I drug -- should be re-classified to help promote more open research into its medical efficacy.

The print version of this content appeared in the Dec 14, 2009 issue of American Medical News.