Quinnipiac University’s medical school will be named after Dr. Frank Netter, a surgeon and prolific medical illustrator whose work has long been used in medical education, the school announced this week. The Frank H. Netter, M.D., School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University is scheduled to open in the fall of 2013. The naming is the […]
Arielle Levin Becker
Arielle Levin Becker covered health care for The Connecticut Mirror. She previously worked for The Hartford Courant, most recently as its health reporter, and has also covered small towns, courts and education in Connecticut and New Jersey. She was a finalist in 2009 for the prestigious Livingston Award for Young Journalists, a recipient of a Knight Science Journalism Fellowship and the third-place winner in 2013 for an in-depth piece on caregivers from the National Association of Health Journalists. She is a 2004 graduate of Yale University.
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GOP hearing challenges Malloy order on home care attendants
Opponents of two executive orders that establish a way for home care attendants and child care workers to unionize voiced their frustration Thursday, warning that they could hurt home care in the state, criticizing Gov. Dannel P. Malloy for issuing the orders without input from the people most affected, and questioning whether he overstepped his […]
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Another nursing home could face closure
The operator of a Wethersfield nursing home is seeking state approval to close the 210-bed facility, one of the town’s largest employers and home to close to 180 residents. In its request to close Wethersfield Health Care Center, HealthBridge Management cited several factors including having too few residents to maintain operations, annual financial losses, Medicaid […]
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Storm panel told of challenges faced by people with disabilities
When the power went out at her home in Cromwell, Nanfi Lubogo used her cell phone to access the town’s website to find information on shelters. There wasn’t any. She tried calling 2-1-1, the state’s infoline, but couldn’t get through and after 20 minutes, with her phone’s battery waning, she gave up. Many Connecticut families […]
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Deadline extended for exchange CEO applications
Interested in running the state’s health care exchange but behind on the application? You’re in luck. The Connecticut Health Care Exchange has extended the deadline for candidates to apply to be CEO of the quasi-public agency, which is charged with developing a marketplace for buying health insurance as part of federal health reform. Applications had […]
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Foundations team up to survey residents about health care
Five foundations are teaming up to examine patient views of health care, surveying Connecticut residents to get a sense of how good health care is in the state, whether residents have ready access to high-quality care, and how insurance impacts the quality of care residents receive. The research will be based on similar national surveys […]
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Storm highlights need for emergency home health care planning
With a major snowstorm in the forecast, Todd Rose’s home health care agency set its emergency plan in motion, making a prioritized list of patients to visit in case resources became limited. But two days after the snow hit, with power outages across the state and long lines outside the few gas stations in the […]
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As exchange board begins work, advocates still seeking change
The board developing the state’s health insurance exchange–a key piece of federal health reform–is already at work. But consumer advocates unhappy with the composition of the board are still trying to change its make-up, and Democratic lawmakers are open to the idea. Some advocates have been urging lawmakers to amend law that governs the exchange […]
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Advocates challenge use of ‘observation status’
The Mansfield-based Center for Medicare Advocacy filed a class action lawsuit Thursday challenging the practice of placing hospital patients on “observation status,” an alternative to admitting them as inpatients that can leave Medicare patients with hefty bills for hospital and nursing home care. The lawsuit, filed against U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary […]
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Leonardi named to federal insurance panel
Insurance Commissioner Thomas B. Leonardi has been named to a federal panel that will advise the new office established to monitor the insurance industry as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Leonardi, a venture capitalist who worked with the insurance industry before being named insurance commissioner earlier this year, will […]
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Cancer society offers resources for patients affected by snow storm
Cancer patients and caregivers affected by this weekend’s snow storm and power outages can get information on resources for food, shelter, transportation and medical assistance by calling the American Cancer Society at 1-800-227-2345. Cancer information specialists, including oncology nurses, are available to answer calls 24 hours a day, every day. Zana Baruch, the cancer society’s […]
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DSS picks medical home pay plan many advocates oppose
The state Department of Social Services is preparing to roll out its final plan to encourage the use of a form of primary care known as a medical home in Medicaid, with a four-part method for making extra payments to health care providers who taken on additional responsibilities for keeping their patients healthy. The plan […]
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DOT denies permits for new wheelchair-accessible cabs
The state Department of Transportation has denied the requests of two taxi companies for permits to add 70 wheelchair-accessible cabs to each of their fleets, ruling that the companies had not demonstrated the need for new permits and could instead replace existing vehicles with accessible ones. The proposals by Metro Taxi of West Haven and […]
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HUSKY expanding, at least in name
The state’s Medicaid program is going through a number of changes. One of the simpler ones involves its name. Currently, the majority of Medicaid clients are part of the HUSKY health program, which covers low-income children and their parents or guardians. HUSKY also covers children and teens whose families earn too much to qualify for […]
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With power out, experts warn of carbon monoxide risk
With much of the state without power, hospitals are warning people to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning. Many of the ways people try to keep warm without electricity–furnaces, stoves and fireplaces–produce carbon monoxide. The Connecticut Poison Control Center has received 50 calls asking about carbon monoxide in the past two days, and Hartford Hospital has seen […]