AAMC, health organizations recommend
public health funding increase
The AAMC and nearly 450 other organizations sent a letter
to Congress last week urging increased funding for all federal public
health activities and programs. The organizations recommend a $5.3
billion increase in the fiscal year 2009 discretionary budget allocation
for public health funding. In the letter, the groups caution that
the president's proposed federal budget continues to seriously "underfund
and undermine these important initiatives." The recommended
increase would: restore funding to public health programs cut in
fiscal year 2006; restore lost purchasing power that has eroded
due to five years of flat-funding; and provide investments that
begin to truly meet health challenges facing the nation.
Continuing education opportunity available
on advanced healthcare planning
The organizers behind a national campaign to increase public awareness
of the need for advance healthcare planning (e.g., end-of-life decisions,
living wills) will host an online seminar for health and legal professionals
next month. "National Healthcare Decisions Day 2008: The Law,
the Talk and the Care" will review strategies that can be used
to assist clients/patients and their families in facilitating conversations
relating to advance planning. Continuing education credit is available
to physicians, nurses, social workers, and attorneys who participate.
The online
seminar will be held on March 19, at 2:00PM eastern time.
The inaugural National
Healthcare Decisions Day, on April 16, will bring together representatives
from health, legal, and other professions in an effort to highlight
the importance of advance healthcare decision-making. The AAMC is
a national supporter of National Healthcare Decisions Day.
HHS announces physician electronic
health record demonstration
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced
a demonstration
project that would provide Medicare incentive payments to physicians
for the use of certified electronic health records (EHRs) to improve
patient care. While the project will be open to small- and medium-sized
primary care physician practices-which excludes most faculty group
practices-the project indicates that HHS values the investment in
and use of EHRs to improve quality and reduce errors.
