A Selection Of Recent Studies And Surveys

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Mathematica Policy Research: The National Health Plan Collaborative: Overview Of Its Origins, Accomplishments And Lessons Learned

"Racial and ethnic minority groups confront disparities in the quality of health care that contribute to higher rates of disease, disability, and mortality," according to a Mathematica description of the document. This report describes National Health Plan Collaborative efforts "to help large national and regional health plans team up to reduce these disparities ... The NHPC initially emphasized collaboration to encourage participating health plans - and indirectly the insurance industry - to consider creative approaches to measuring and reducing disparities. In the second phase, plans focused on collecting primary data on members' race and ethnicity, and on providing translation services to those with limited English proficiency. Most participating plans made substantial progress in integrating and institutionalizing their disparities work into the mainstream of their organizations" (6/12).

Pew Internet/California HealthCare Foundation: The Social Life Of Health Information

When faced with a health question or concern, 61 percent of American adults turn to the internet in addition to seeking the advice of medical professionals or friends and family, according to the results of a national survey report released last week by the Pew Internet & American Life Project and the California HealthCare Foundation. The "survey finds that technology is not an end, but a means to accelerate the pace of discovery, widen social networks, and sharpen the questions someone might ask when they do get to talk to a health professional." The results of the report were based on a national phone survey conducted in Spanish and English. It involved "some 2,253 adults, age 18 and older" and "included 502 cell-phone interviews" (6/11).

The Urban Institute: Health Care Reform for Children with Public Coverage: How Can Policymakers Maximize Gains and Prevent Harm?

Though "universal coverage has the potential to increase access to care and improve the health and well-being of uninsured children and adults," "the effects of health care reform on the more than 25 million children who currently have coverage under Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) are less clear."

"Increased parental coverage will help these children since many have uninsured parents with unmet health needs. However, proposals to move these children into a new health insurance exchange could make them worse off through the potential loss of benefits and legal protections and possible exposure to higher cost-sharing; alternatively, if reimbursement rates are higher in the exchange than paid under Medicaid and CHIP, children's access to providers could improve (Kenney and Dorn, 6/09)."

This information was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at kaiserhealthnews.org.

© Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.