News Roundup: Health Wonk Review and news from our bookmark file

September 15th, 2017 by Julie Ferguson

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Health Wonk Review kicks off the fall season with The Neverending Summer of Healthcare Legislation Edition posted by Louise Norris at Colorado Health Insurance Insider. It unfolds against the backdrop of the continuing ACA saga, with not one but two new bills introduced: Senator Sanders’ single-payer bill and Senators Lindsey Graham, Bill Cassidy, Dean Heller and Ron Johnson’s ACA repeal/replace bill. This issue covers single payer, opioid abuse, drug pricing, hurricane recovery workers, hospice care, medical innovations, the return of hookworm in the US, and more.

Louise has a sterling reputation as an informed commentator on the evolving ACA matters, contributing to a variety of blogs. If the ACA ison your radar, be sure to see her many entries at healthinsurance.org.

Meanwhile, in the midst of the ongoing debate, it is worth noting that 3 years after the Affordable Care Act’s coverage expansion took effect, the uninsured rate fell to a record low of 8.8%, in contrast to 17% in 2009. The number of people without healthcare insurance fell to 28 million, down from 50 million. The number of uninsured fell dramatically from 42 million in 2013 to 28 million today, when the ACA allowed states to expand Medicaid coverage to low-income people.

Other news of note from our bookmark file

Think you’re an informed health wonk? Test your knowledge in this Kaiser Health News Quiz: How Well Are You Paying Attention?

NCCI: Recovering From a Nightmare: Assaulted Employee Returns to Work in 10 Weeks

Joe Paduda: Costs & Benefits of Disasters and Big changes a-coming in workers’ comp.

Roberto Ceniceros at Risk & Insurance: Ergonomic Sense

Jordan Barab: OSHA Covers Up Workplace Fatalities

Jordan Barab: Undercover: Working and Dying as a Temporary Employee

Bob Wilson: God Vacations in Sarasota, or, What I Learned from Hurricane Irma

ESPN: “Who Does This To People?”

Kudos to our friends at Insurance Recovery Group in naming Paul James as new CEO and President. IRG specializes in subrogation, second injury fund, COLA recovery, and cost containment in work comp and other property/casualty disciplines.

Chikita Mann at WorkCompWire: Cultural Competency and the LGBTQ Injured Worker

Ken Ward: Trump nominates former coal exec to run MSHA and Democratic leader calls for scrutiny of Trump’s mine safety nominee

Cal/OSHA’s disappearing funds – where’s the money?

Workers compensation renewal rates remain negative

Gig Economy Workers May See Benefits Relief via Portable Benefits for Gig Economy Workers Act

WCRI Study: Fewer Injured Workers Prescribed Opioids After Kentucky Reforms

Overtime rule scrapped but there’s likely to be a new one

House approves bill to speed autonomous vehicle development

Scanning The Future, Radiologists See Their Jobs At Risk

Medical school debts run $180,000 on average per student

Check out this clip of the world’s first drone equipped with robotic arms

And in more technology developments, the chairless chair