BATON ROUGE - Proposals making it more difficult to cut the rates paid to hospitals and nursing homes for taking care of Medicaid patients are nearing final passage.

Support from lawmakers comes despite concerns the constitutional amendments would further limit budget areas available to cut when Louisiana has financial woes - and leave colleges more vulnerable to slashing.

The House-approved proposals received backing Monday from the Senate Finance Committee and move next to the Senate floor. They also would need support from voters.

One measure would let hospitals pool their money and use those dollars to draw down federal Medicaid matching money. In exchange, cuts to hospital payments would be limited.

The other proposal would set a floor on Medicaid patient reimbursements paid to nursing homes, pharmacies and institutions for the developmentally disabled.

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WASHINGTON - One more time, with feeling!

The Republican-led House has voted yet again to repeal President Barack Obama's health care law, knowing full well that won't stop it.

Thursday's party-line vote marked the 37th time in a little over two years that the House has voted to eliminate, defund or partly scale back the Affordable Care Act.

Democrats called it a waste of time - even an obsession.

But in Congress spin often trumps legislation.

Republicans see a political advantage to keeping the pressure up as the administration tries to get all the moving parts of the law working in the next few months.

They're hoping that problems with its implementation will help them recapture the Senate in next year's midterm elections.

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NEW YORK - The government has filed a last-second appeal that will delay the sale of the morning-after contraceptive pill to girls of any age without a prescription.

The appeal was filed shortly before a noon Monday deadline.

Brooklyn federal Judge Edward Korman says politics is behind efforts by Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius to block the unrestricted sale of the Plan B pill.

Justice Department lawyers had asked for a stay of the month-old decision while they appeal.

Korman denied the request but postponed the enforcement of his order to allow them to take the matter to a federal appeals court.

Earlier this month, the FDA announced the contraception could be sold without a prescription to those 15 and older. But Korman's ruling removed age limits.

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BATON ROUGE - Here are the 2 Your Health stories for May 10, 2013.

Americans love to eat out, but cooking your own meals is better for waistlines.

"It is the easiest thing you can do to improve your health," said Michael Pollan, author of the new book 'Cooked.'

That's because processed foods and those served at restaurants tend to have more sugar, salt, and fat than home-cooked meals. We also consume about 135 more calories per meal when we eat out.

Pollan suggests getting the kids involved in the process.

"Get them to help because the most important thing you can teach your kid for their long-term health and happiness is this life skill, how to cook," he said.

Young people who eat more family meals tend to eat more fruit, vegetables, fiber, and calcium rich foods according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

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Some exercise can make a big difference in reducing the chance of women getting kidney stones.

A new study finds even light exercise reduces the risk for women by about a third, and in another study by as much as 80 percent.

Doctors say exercise changes how the body processes vitamins and minerals. It also reduces factors for heat issues, which lowers kidney stone risk.

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Exercise is also important for mothers. That can especially be true after having a baby, and not just to drop some pounds.

Exercise instructor Kathleen Donahoe says postnatal fitness helps new moms combat post-partum depression. She also cautions exercise alone won't make pregnancy pounds disappear.

"It's not a quick fix. You want to do it in a healthy way, you want to make sure you're eating enough, particularly if you're breastfeeding. I think a slow approach is best," she said.

Donahoe said it's especially important for women with conditions during their pregnancy such as gestational diabetes or who were put on bed rest to get out and exercise.

As always, check with your doctor before starting any new exercise regimen.

 

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WASHINGTON- Indoor tanning beds would carry new warnings about the risk of cancer and be subject to additional regulations, under a proposal unveiled by the Food and Drug Administration.

The FDA wants all tanning beds to issue warnings to people under the age of 18 about the risks of indoor tanning. The agency would also require manufacturers to submit their beds for federal review before marketing them.

The action is aimed at curbing cases of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, which have been rising for 30 years.

This year an estimated 76,690 people will be diagnosed with the disease.

The risk of melanoma is 75 percent greater in people who have been exposed to ultraviolet radiation from indoor tanning.

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WASHINGTON - The Plan B morning-after pill is moving over-the-counter, a decision announced by the Food and Drug Administration just days before a court-imposed deadline.

Tuesday, the FDA lowered to 15 the age at which girls and women can buy the emergency contraceptive without a prescription - and said it no longer has to be kept behind pharmacy counters.

Instead, the pill can sit on drugstore shelves just like condoms, but that buyers would have to prove their age at the cash register.

Earlier this month, a federal judge had ruled there should be no age restrictions and gave the FDA 30 days to act. The FDA said its latest decision was independent of the court case.

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BATON ROUGE - Vickie Sweet came to talk about healthy weight week and Medifast.

The company helps guide people wanting to live a healthy life style and lose weight.

Visit their website for more information.

 

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UNDATED - Here are today's 2 Your Health stories for March 22, 2013 -

An experimental treatment may help fight cancer.

Doctors altered several patient's white blood cells to turn them into cancer fighters.

A 7 year old girl who got the treatment is now in remission.

Meanwhile, it nearly killed a man who got it, but after eight days in a coma, he was cancer-free.

Further studies are needed, though.

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The number of children with autism appears to be much high than previously thought.

The CDC released a study that said 1-in-50 school-aged kids had autism.

Just last year, other research said it was closer to 1-in-88 kids,

Not everyone agrees with the new assessment.

The most recent findings were the result of a survey and based on parental reporting.

The earlier study was based on medical and educational records, along with reviews.

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A top energy drink is making a change on its label.

Monster Energy labels will now show caffeine is included.

It will also no longer show the drink as a dietary supplement.

The FDA requires makers of dietary supplement to report adverse effects linked to the product, while food and drink makers do not have to make those same reports.

Monster Energy says the product itself is not changing.

The energy drink industry is under fire following several deaths, though the FDA won't say if the drinks are a contributing factor.

 

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WASHINGTON - Three years, two elections, and one Supreme Court decision after President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act, its promise of health care for the uninsured may be delayed or undercut in much of the country because of entrenched opposition from many Republican state leaders.

In half the states, mainly led by Democrats, officials are racing deadlines to connect uninsured residents to coverage now only months away. In others it's as if "Obamacare" - signed Mar. 23, 2010 - had never passed.

Make no mistake, the federal government will step in and create new insurance markets in the 26 mostly red states declining to run their own. Just like the state-run markets in mostly Democratic-led states, the feds will start signing up customers Oct. 1 for coverage effective Jan. 1. But they need a broad cross-section of people, or else the pool will be stuck with what the government calls the "sick and worried" - the costliest patients.

Insurance markets, or exchanges, are one prong of Obama's law, providing subsidized private coverage for middle-class households who currently can't get their own. The other major piece is a Medicaid expansion to serve more low-income people. And at least 13 states have already indicated they will not agree to that.

"It could look like two or three different countries," said Robert Blendon, a Harvard School of Public Health professor who studies public opinion on health care. "The political culture of a state is going to play an important role in getting millions of people to voluntarily sign up."

Civic leadership - from governors, legislators, mayors and business and religious groups - is shaping up as a huge factor in the launch of Obama's plan, particularly since the penalty for ignoring the law's requirement to get coverage is as low as $95 the first year.

People-to-people contacts will be key, and the potential for patchwork results is real.

"Obviously it's a possibility in terms of there being some real difficulties," said Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., whose efforts helped pass the law. Casey also said he believes the Obama administration will be ready to lead in states holding back.

Disparities already are cropping up.

Town Meeting Day - the first Tuesday in March - is a storied tradition in Vermont, and this year it provided a platform to educate residents about their options under the health care law. As many as 250,000 may eventually get coverage through Vermont Health Connect, as the state's marketplace is known.

"Even before we were a state, these town meetings existed," said Sean Sheehan, director of education and outreach. "It's a way people come together as a community, and we are counting on those community connections to get the word out." The health care plan was on the agenda at about 100 town meetings, and other local gatherings are taking place.

Texas residents are entitled to the same benefits as Vermonters, but in the state with the highest proportion of its population uninsured, Gov. Rick Perry will not be promoting the federal insurance exchange, a spokeswoman said. Nor does Perry plan to expand Medicaid.

The result is a communications void that civic and political groups, mayors, insurers and hospitals will try to fill.

"You have people who aren't really charged up about it because they don't even know that they would qualify," said Durrel Douglas, spokesman for the Texas Organizing Project, an activist group. A national poll this week by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation found that two of every three uninsured people don't know enough about the law to understand how it will affect them.

Supporters of Obama's law in Texas say the federal government hasn't shown up yet to launch the state's insurance exchange and no one is sure when that will happen.

"It is a much bigger lift here," said Anne Dunkelberg, associate director of the Austin-based Center for Public Policy Priorities, which advocates for low-income people. "The sooner the federal exchange can get engaged and working with all the folks here who want to promote enrollment, the better."

The Congressional Budget Office predicts a slow start overall, with only 7 million gaining coverage through the exchanges next year, rising to 24 million in 2016.

At a recent insurance industry meeting, federal officials directing the rollout rattled off a dizzying list of deadlines. Public outreach will begin in earnest this summer and early fall, said Gary Cohen, head of the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight.

The government sees three main groups of potential customers for the new insurance markets, he said.

There's the "active sick and worried," people who are uninsured or have pre-existing medical conditions. Under the law, insurers will no longer be able to turn the sick away.

There's the healthy and young. "They feel invincible, they don't feel a need for health insurance," said Cohen.

Finally, there's the passive and unengaged. "For these people, a significant education effort needs to happen," he said.

To keep premiums affordable, the government will need to sign up lots of people from the last two groups to balance those in poor health, who will have a strong motivation to join.

The official heading consumer outreach for the rollout, Julie Bataille, acknowledges the challenge but says she's confident.

"This is a really an enormous opportunity for us to change the conversation around health care and help individuals understand the benefits they can get," she said.

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UNDATED - Here are today's 2 Your Health stories for March 19, 2013 -

There are new questions on the reliability of mammograms.

60% of abnormal mammograms turn out to be false positives, most of which were followed by biopsies.

Of those biopsies, 4% of those are also misread, as much as 10,000 women a year.

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The American Heart Association proposed seven steps to reduce strokes and heart attacks three years ago.

Those steps can also help fight cancer.

They are don't smoke, stay active, watch your weight and eat healthy.

Also, maintain a healthy blood pressure, blood sugar levels and cholesterol.

People who followed six or seven of the steps cut their risk of cancer in half, and people who stuck to three or four of the steps saw their cancer risk drop by 25 to 30%.

 

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UNDATED - Here are today's 2 Your Health stories for March 18, 2013 -

Living a vegan lifestyle may conflict with fighting illnesses, especially when it comes to drugs.

Lactose, which is one of the most used animal products, works as a stabilizer in pills or to add bulk.

And gelatin from pigs shows up in a lot of capsules or tablets.

Alternatives to medicines with animal products in it are either hard to find or non-existent.

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One of the best ways to fight breast cancer is found to have a lot of risk involved.

Chest radiation therapy is often used after breast surgery to lower the chances cancer will return.

But a study finds that while it's effective against breast cancer, it increases a woman's chance for heart disease.

The radiation penetrates past the breast to the heart and arteries.

Women who get radiation to the left breast have the greater risk.

Overall, researchers say the benefits still outweigh the risks.

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Forgiveness can be an important way to reduce stress and stay healthy, since carrying anger or resentment can add to anxiety.

It's especially important for people trying to fight a long term illness, since experts say it can undermine our physical health and spiritual well-being.

Experts say it's important to let go of anger or hatred so emotional and physical healing can begin.

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Some of the most prescribed drugs in America aren't always used as intended.

ADHD drugs, like Adderall, are sometimes used as "smart drugs" or "study drugs".

The American Academy of Neurology says that needs to stop.

It's a message for the doctors prescribing the medications and the parents and students who use them.

Doctors say it's unnecessary for healthy youngsters to use the drugs.

Instead, they should focus on proper sleep and exercise.

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The FDA is being more aggressive with drugs given to kids as flu and allergy season overlap.

It issued a warning about doubling up on active ingredients in some medications.

Antihistamines in particular are found in a lot of cold and allergy combination meds.

Other active ingredients found in both include Acetaminophen, Ibuprofen and Pseudo-Phedrine.

All can cause serious health issues if children take too much.

 

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BATON ROUGE - Two former Louisiana health care secretaries are urging Gov. Bobby Jindal to reconsider his opposition to the Medicaid expansion allowed under the federal health overhaul.

David Hood was secretary of the Department of Health and Hospitals under Republican former Gov. Mike Foster. Fred Cerise was DHH secretary under Democratic former Gov. Kathleen Blanco.

The two men were featured Friday in a newspaper ad run in The Advocate newspaper calling the Medicaid expansion a good deal for Louisiana.

Hood and Cerise say the inclusion of up to 400,000 uninsured people in the government-run insurance program would improve people's health, be a good financial deal for the state and help Louisiana's health care delivery system.

Jindal says the expansion is an improper growth of a costly and inefficient government entitlement program.

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UNDATED - Here are today's 2 Your Health stories for March 13, 2013 -

Not smoking is the best thing you can do for your heart, but there's a new concern for people who try to stop, weight gain.

New research shows patients who quit smoking gained six pounds on average, but also had a reduced risk for heart disease.

Researchers also say people who never smoked have a 70% less chance of a heart attack or stroke than smokers.

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Most women diagnosed with ovarian cancer are not getting adequate care.

According to a new study, poor care leads to missing out on treatments that could add a year or more to a patient's life.

Cancer specialists say the reason is because not enough doctors and hospitals have expertise dealing with ovarian cancer.

The best treatment is extensive surgery followed by chemotherapy.

Only a third of the patients in the study got that kind of care.

 

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