Copyright
Monday, April 27, 2009
Homeland Security Takes Lead in Flu Pandemic Pointing to Compensation Programs
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
HIPPA Privacy Modifications Under Presidential Emergency H1N1 Flu Order
Those modifications are:
"If the President declares an emergency or disaster and the Secretary declares a public health emergency, the Secretary may waive sanctions and penalties against a covered hospital that does not comply with certain provisions of the HIPAA Privacy Rule:
- the requirements to obtain a patient's agreement to speak with family members or friends involved in the patient’s care (45 CFR 164.510(b))
- the requirement to honor a request to opt out of the facility directory (45 CFR 164.510(a))
- the requirement to distribute a notice of privacy practices (45 CFR 164.520)
- the patient's right to request privacy restrictions (45 CFR 164.522(a))
- the patient's right to request confidential communications (45 CFR 164.522(b))
1. In the emergency area and for the emergency period identified in the public health emergency declaration.
Wednesday, September 3, 2014
CVS Stores Stop Selling All Tobacco Products
Today's post is shared from nytimes.com At a CVS store near Times Square, the shelves are notable for what they no longer display: cigarettes. Now the only smoking products to be found are those that could help customers quit. As of midnight on Tuesday, all 7,700 CVS locations nationwide will no longer sell tobacco products, fulfilling a pledge the company made in February, as it seeks to reposition itself as a health care destination. The rebranding even comes with a new name: CVS Health. The decision to stop selling cigarettes is a strategic move as pharmacies across the country jockey for a piece of the growing health care industry. Rebranding itself as a company focused on health could prove lucrative for the drugstore as it seeks to appeal to medical partners that can help it bridge the gap between customers and their doctors. “CVS is really trying very hard to position themselves as the winner in that marketplace,” said Skip Snow, a health care analyst at Forrester Research. “If they can be perceived as a place to go to receive health care, and buy health care products, as opposed to the place to go to buy a bottle of whiskey or get your film developed, then they can capture more of the retail medicine dollars.” CVS already operates 900 walk-in medical clinics, or “minute clinics,” where customers can get relatively simple services like blood pressure tests and flu vaccines. By dedicating space for these services, CVS and other major retailers like Walmart are diving into... |
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Sunday, October 20, 2013
Work resumes at federal public health agencies
Congressional agreement on a funding bill that reopened government yesterday got the gears turning again with several key public health tasks, such as flu surveillance, science communication, and lab testing.
Within hours of President Obama's signing of the legislation, some of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Twitter accounts crackled to life again, including one used by its director, Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, who wrote, "So relieved to have the best and brightest back to work protecting and promoting health. Hope for no relapse…" Government employees who had been furloughed were asked to return yesterday. At the CDC all but 4,000 of about 13,000 employees were furloughed. A few were called back to manage a Salmonella Heidelberg outbreak linked to three Foster Farms processing facilities in California. Barbara Reynolds, PhD, who directs the CDC's division of public affairs, was the point person who fielded media queries while many of her colleagues were furloughed. She told CIDRAP News yesterday that the CDC is operating as it did before the shutdown, and that its scientists and health officials can resume needed travel and attend meetings. Throughout the day yesterday, the CDC posted several notices on its Web site signaling that its activities were returning to normal. It posted a notice that its weekly FluView surveillance reports would return today, but in an abbreviated form, after a 2-week absence. The lack of reports created an... |
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Thursday, March 28, 2013
Official Disabilities Guidelines Now Covers Diabetes
The latest edition of the annual Official Disabilities Guidelines (ODG) has been released, including the latest ODG volume on treating patients. ODG Treatment is the nationally recognized standard for medicine in determining the scope and duration of medical treatment in workers’ compensation.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Vaccinating Workers’ Compensation Against Flu Claims
The spread of influenza A has now reached pandemic proportions. The focus has now been directed to creating a vaccine to halt the rapid community spread. The next challenge to workers’ compensation systems may be claims resulting from adverse reactions to employer sponsored vaccination programs.
For more on workers compensation and the flu pandemic visit the Workers' Compensation Blog.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
FDA takes action against thousands of illegal Internet pharmacies
The announcement takes place during the 5th annual International Internet Week of Action (IIWA), a global cooperative effort to combat the online sale and distribution of potentially counterfeit and illegal medical products. This year’s effort – Operation Pangea V – operated between Sept. 25 and Oct. 2 and resulted in the shutdown of more than 18,000 illegal pharmacy websites and the seizure of about $10.5 million worth of pharmaceuticals worldwide.
The goal of this annual effort, which involved law enforcement, customs and regulatory authorities from 100 countries, is to identify producers and distributors of illegal pharmaceutical products and medical devices and remove these products from the supply chain.
“Consumers in the United States and around the world face a real threat from Internet pharmacies that illegally sell potentially substandard, counterfeit, adulterated or otherwise unsafe medicines,” said FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D. “This week’s efforts show that strong international enforcement efforts are required to combat this global public health problem. The FDA is committed to joining forces to protect consumers from the risks these websites present.”
Last week, the FDA reinforced its online efforts with the launch of a national campaign to educate Americans about the risks of buying prescription medications over the Internet. BeSafeRx – Know Your Online Pharmacy seeks to raise public awareness about the health risks of using fraudulent Internet pharmacies and what consumers can do to protect themselves.
During Operation Pangea V, the FDA targeted websites selling unapproved and potentially dangerous medicines. In many cases, the medicines can be detrimental to public health because they contain active ingredients that are approved by FDA for use only under the supervision of a licensed health care practitioner or active ingredients that were previously withdrawn from U.S. market due to safety issues.
Among the illegal medicines identified through the operation were:
Domperidone: This medicine was removed from the United States market in 1998 because it may cause serious adverse effects, including irregular heartbeat, stopping of the heart, or sudden death. These dangers could convey to the nursing baby of breastfeeding women, who may be using domperidone to try increase milk production (which is not an approved use).
Isotretinoin (previously marketed as Accutane in the United States): This medicine is used to treat severe nodular acne and carries significant potential risks, including severe birth defects if pregnancy occurs while using this medicine. To minimize potential risks to consumers, FDA-approved isotretinoin capsules are only available through restricted distribution in the United States.
Tamiflu (oseltamivir phosphate): This medicine, which is used to treat the flu, is often sold online as “generic Tamiflu.” However, there is no FDA-approved generic version of Tamiflu. Previous FDA tests found that fraudulent versions of “generic Tamiflu” contained the wrong active ingredient, which would not be effective in treating flu. In these cases, the wrong active ingredient was similar to penicillin and may cause a severe allergic reaction, including a sudden, potentially life-threatening reaction called anaphylaxis, in consumers allergic to penicillin products.
Viagra (sildenafil citrate): This medicine is used to treat erectile dysfunction. Due to its vasodilation effects, sildenafil citrate should not be used by consumers with certain heart conditions. Consumers taking this medicine without the supervision of a health care professional may not learn about potential drug interactions, such as increased blood pressure lowering effects of organic nitrates when taken with sildenafil citrate.
The FDA sent Warning Letters to the operators of more than 4,100 identified websites. As a follow up, the agency sent notices to Registries, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), and domain Name Registrars (DNRs) informing them that these websites were selling products in violation of U.S. law. The FDA is working with its foreign counterparts to address the remaining websites that continue to offer unapproved or misbranded prescription medicines to U.S. consumers.
“Internet pharmacies that illegally sell unapproved, counterfeit, or potentially adulterated or substandard drugs are an inherently international crime problem,” said John Roth, director of the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigation. “The FDA is pleased to work with INTERPOL, the international police agency, to fight this problem. Because these criminals do not respect international borders, the international coordinated law enforcement response represented by Operation Pangea demonstrates that international cooperation is the best way to protect the American public from the risk of unsafe drugs.”
The FDA coordinated the efforts of this year’s Operation Pangea V, including screening all drug products received through the international mail facilities during the IIWA. Preliminary findings showed that certain products from abroad, such as antibiotics, antidepressants, and other drugs to treat high cholesterol, diabetes, and high blood pressure, were on the way to U.S. consumers. Many of those products can pose health risks if taken without the supervision of a health care practitioner or if the products have been removed from the market for safety reasons.
The FDA encourages consumers to report suspected criminal activity at www.fda.gov/oci.
The IIWA is a collaboration between FDA, INTERPOL , the World Customs Organization, Permanent Forum of International Pharmaceutical Crime, Heads of Medicines Agencies Working Group of Enforcement Officers, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency of the United Kingdom, the Irish Medicines Board, the London Metropolitan Police, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the Center for Safe Internet Pharmacies, and national health and law enforcement agencies from 100 participating countries.
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Saturday, July 20, 2013
Sleep, Pain, and Hospital Workers
New research from the Harvard Center for Work, Health and Wellbeing –one of four NIOSH Centers of Excellence funded to explore and research the concepts of Total Worker Health™- examines the question: Does lack of sleep increase pain and limit function among hospital care workers?
The study, published in the American Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, finds that sleep deficiency (including short sleep duration, insomnia symptoms, sleep insufficiency, or all three) is significantly associated with pain, functional limitations of daily living tasks due to that pain, and difficulty performing work tasks due to that pain, among hospital care workers.
Friday, October 18, 2013
Shutdown’s science fallout could last for years
The government may finally be on a path to reopening, but the shutdown’s effects will linger for scientists studying everything from climate change to cancer. Antarctica-bound field researchers stuck in budget limbo over the past three weeks fret that decades of data on penguins and ice sheets will end up with a glaring gap, undercutting their documentation of global warming. Doctors operating federal-funded clinical studies on Alzheimer’s, cocaine addiction and heart disease worry they’ve lost the trust of patients.
Public health officials warn the country is still “flying blind” for the start of the flu season.
“Even if the government opens tomorrow, a significant amount of damage has been done,” said Mary Woolley, president of Research!America, a nonprofit advocating for science-minded agencies. “This isn’t about a few people who can’t go to the labs like they’re on vacation or something. The whole research enterprise depends on operating 24/7.”Thinking more of the big picture, there’s also the little matter of keeping the best and brightest researchers working in, and for, the United States or seeing them flee to the private sector. It’s a realistic expectation after nearly three years of stop-and-go budget battles resulting in sequestration and now the cruel reality of laboratories ordered to keep the lights out. (WATCH: Who won the shutdown? Top 5 quotes) “Would you... |
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Tuesday, July 5, 2016
Early screening spots emergency workers at greater risk of mental illness
Emergency services workers who are more likely to suffer episodes of mental ill health later in their careers can be spotted in the first week of training. Researchers wanted to see if they could identify risk factors that made people more likely to suffer post-traumatic stress (PTSD) or major depression (MD) when working in emergency services.
Researchers from the University of Oxford and King's College London wanted to see if they could identify risk factors that made people more likely to suffer post-traumatic stress (PTSD) or major depression (MD) when working in emergency services.
Dr Jennifer Wild from the University of Oxford explained: 'Emergency workers are regularly exposed to stressful and traumatic situations and some of them will experience periods of mental illness. Some of the factors that make that more likely can be changed through resilience training, reducing the risk of PTSD and depression. We wanted to test whether we could identify such risk factors, making it possible to spot people at higher risk early in their training and to develop interventions that target these risk factors to strengthen their resilience.'
May 21, 2013 ... Emergency room medicine is becoming an easy avenue for work-related medical care as employers and insurance carriers keep restricting ...
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Sep 15, 2009 ... The Urgent Need for Workers Compensation Flu Pandemic Planning ... Additionally, the President may issue an emergency declaration under ...
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Aug 29, 2013 ... A recently published study from the US Department of Health and Human Services (NIOSH) reports that 45% of emergency room medical ...
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May 31, 2016 ... 27, 2016, from the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency alleging Ungerer & Company employees suffered respiratory distress from ...
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Sunday, June 12, 2022
Central New Jersey facility to pay $273K, take corrective actions to resolve COVID-related respirator violations
OSHA finds employers failed to ensure safe respirator use while testing hundreds daily.
Friday, September 19, 2014
Influenza Vaccination Coverage Among Health Care Personnel — United States, 2013–14 Influenza Season
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Saturday, February 15, 2014
Yep, There's a Medical Code for Being Bitten by Shamu
Sarah Kliff reports on the ongoing battle over the ICD-10, a set of medical codes for illnesses and injuries that's far more detailed than the current ICD-9:
There are different numbers for getting struck or bitten by a turkey (W61.42 or W61.43). There are codes for injuries caused by squirrels (W53.21) and getting hit by a motor vehicle while riding an animal (V80.919), spending too much time in a deep-freeze refrigerator (W93.2) and a large toe that has gone unexpectedly missing (Z89.419).Depending on who you listen to, we are either hopelessly behind the rest of the world in implementing common-sense international standards or else the only country in the world that's holding out against the madness. Read the whole thing and decide for yourself. |
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Thursday, November 29, 2012
Heath Concerns About the Misuse of Pesticides for Bed Bug Control
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are alerting the public to an emerging national concern regarding misuse of pesticides to treat infestations of bed bugs and other insects indoors. Some pesticides are being applied indoors even though they are approved only for outdoor use. Even pesticides that are approved for indoor use can cause harm if over applied or not used as instructed on the product label.
There has been a dramatic increase in the number of bed bug-related inquiries received by the National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC) over the past several years, with many involving incidents of pesticide exposure, spills, or misapplications. From January 2006-December 2010, NPIC reported 169 calls to their hotline where residents, homeowners, or pesticide applicators sprayed pesticides indoors to treat bedbugs. These cases involved pesticides that were misapplied, not intended for indoor use, or legally banned from use. Of those, 129 resulted in mild or serious health effects (including one death) for persons living in affected residences.
ATSDR warns that outdoor pesticides should not be used indoors under any circumstances. Homeowners and applicators should always carefully read the product label to make sure that:
it has an EPA registration number
- it is intended for indoor use
- it is effective against bed bugs (the label should say it is meant to be used to treat your home for bed bugs) and
- you know how to properly mix the product (if a concentrate) and where and how to apply it safely within the home.
- ....
Jon L.Gelman of Wayne NJ, is the author NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson).
Friday, January 22, 2021
Is the workers' compensation system ready for the COVID-19 [coronavirus] virus? Live Updates
Friday, December 13, 2013
Carbon Monoxide Safety Facts and Tips – How to prevent poisoning from a gas with no odor
Today's post was shared by US Dept. of Labor and comes from www.nsc.org
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Friday, June 18, 2021
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Friday, June 19, 2020
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Thursday, October 14, 2021
COVID Boosters: What Employees and Employers Need to Know
Many employers and state governments are mandating that employees be vaccinated against COVID. Confusion remains over the rapidly changing landscape of booster doses as reports of waning or compromised immunity even though a worker is considered “fully vaccinated” when the original series of doses are completed.
Friday, November 1, 2013
Prevention For Profit: Questions Raised About Some Health Screenings
Messiah United Methodist Church in Springfield, Va., is unusually busy for a Thursday morning. It's not a typical time for worship, but parishioner Stacy Riggs and her husband have come for something a little different: a medical screening. "I'm getting ready to turn 50 sooner than I'd like to say, and just thought it was a good time to get an overall screening," said Riggs, of Fairfax, Va. She doesn't have any symptoms, but she stopped by the church, which is offering a day of testing by the company Life Line Screening as a service to parishioners.
For less than $200, Riggs is getting six different screenings for stroke, heart disease and osteoporosis. Life Line says they've checked 8 million Americans this way at churches and community centers, and up to 10 percent of them are found to have some sort of abnormality. But several of the tests performed by Life Line are on a list of procedures for healthy people to avoid. The tests can potentially do more harm than good, according to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, an independent panel that recommends evidence-based treatments. Even though the screening tests may be noninvasive, follow-up exams and procedures often are not, and can increase a person's odds of being injured or over treated. One of those tests is the carotid artery... |
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