- Seeking a doctor while on Medicaid? Forgetaboutit in N.J., By Phil Galewitz, August 7, 2012, Philadelphia Inquirer: “If you’re on Medicaid and looking for a new doctor, your chances are excellent of finding one – in Wyoming. In New Jersey, not so much. About 69 percent of doctors nationally accept new Medicaid patients, but the rate varies widely across the country, according to a study published Monday in the journal Health Affairs. New Jersey had the nation’s lowest rate at 40 percent, while Wyoming had the highest, 99 percent, according to a survey last year of doctors by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pennsylvania and Delaware closely track the national average of about seven out of 10 doctors accepting new Medicaid patients…”
- Falling through cracks if states don’t expand Medicaid, By Maggie Fox, August 7, 2012, NBC News: “Derek Anderson never imagined he’d wind up on welfare. At 36, he has a college degree, a solid background in sales and three kids under the age of 7. He’s also recovering from leukemia and since he lost his job and his employer-sponsored insurance, he’s been on Medicare, the federal health insurance plan for the disabled and elderly. Anderson, who now relies on Social Security disability payments for income while he tries to get back on his feet, worries about whether he can get a job with health insurance. If he starts working, he’ll lose eligibility for Social Security and Medicare — but he and his wife, Erica, would likely be eligible for Medicaid if his home state, Montana, expands it as called for under the 2010 health reform law and offers it to low-income adults. However, their future is now unclear after the Supreme Court said states can opt out of the expansion…”
Day: August 7, 2012
Schools and Longer Academic Calendars
To increase learning time, some schools add says to academic year, By Motoko Rich, August 5, 2012, New York Times: “It was the last Sunday in July, and Bethany and Garvin Phillips were pulling price tags off brand-new backpacks and stuffing them with binders and pencils. While other children around the country readied for beach vacations or the last weeks of summer camp, Bethany, 11, and Garvin, 9, were preparing for the first day of the new school year at Griffith Elementary, just six weeks after the start of their summer vacation. Griffith, one of five schools in the Balsz Elementary School District here, is one of a handful of public schools across the country that has lengthened the school year in an effort to increase learning time. A typical public school calendar is 180 days, but the Balsz district, where 90 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch, is in session for 200 days, adding about a month to the academic year. According to the National Center on Time and Learning, a nonprofit research group in Boston, about 170 schools – more than 140 of them charter schools – across the country have extended their calendars in recent years to 190 days or longer…”