ANN ARBOR, Mich., Nov. 14, 2011 /Coal Geology-PRNewswire/ — Thomson Reuters today released its annual study identifying the top U.S. hospitals for inpatient cardiovascular services.

The study, in its thirteenth year, singled out 50 hospitals that achieved superior clinical outcomes.

“This year’s 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals have continued to deliver excellent care and have been able to improve their performance in a tough economic climate,” said Jean Chenoweth, senior vice president for performance improvement and 100 Top Hospitals® program at Thomson Reuters. “The hospitals in this study have provided measurably better care and are more efficient than their peers, demonstrating incredibly strong focus by hospital leadership at a time when the healthcare system is steeped in volatility.”

The study shows that 97 percent of cardiovascular inpatients in U.S. hospitals survive and approximately 96 percent remain complication-free, reflecting improved cardiovascular care across-the-board over the past year. The 50 top hospitals’ performance surpasses these high-water marks as indicated by:

• Better risk-adjusted survival rates (23 percent fewer deaths than non-winning hospitals for bypass surgery patients).

• Lower complications indices (40 percent lower rate of heart failure complications).

• Fewer patients readmitted to the hospital after 30 days.

• Shorter hospital visits and lower costs. Top hospitals discharge bypass patients nearly a full day sooner and spend $4,200 less per bypass case than non-winners.

• Increased use of internal mammary artery (IMA) for coronary artery bypass surgeries.  Top hospitals have increased their use of this recommended procedure from 88 to 96 percent

The study evaluated general and applicable specialty, short-term, acute care, non-federal U.S. hospitals treating a broad spectrum of cardiology patients.

Thomson Reuters researchers analyzed 2009 and 2010 Medicare Provider Analysis and Review (MedPAR) data, Medicare cost reports, and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare data. They scored hospitals in key performance areas: risk-adjusted mortality, risk-adjusted complications, core measures (a group of measures that assess process of care), percentage of coronary bypass patients with internal mammary artery use, 30-day mortality rates, 30-day readmission rates, severity-adjusted average length of stay, and wage- and severity-adjusted average cost.

The Thomson Reuters 50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals were classified into three comparison groups. (The order of hospitals in the list does not reflect performance ranking.)

Teaching Hospitals With Cardiovascular Residency Programs
Mayo Clinic Hospital – Phoenix, AZ
The University of Kansas Hospital – Kansas City, KS
Lahey Clinic – Burlington, MA
Saint Vincent Hospital – Worcester, MA
Park Nicolett Methodist Hospital – St. Louis Park, MN
Hackensack University Medical Center – Hackensack, NJ
Deborah Heart and Lung Center – Browns Mills, NJ
NYU Langone Medical Center – New York, NY
Kettering Medical Center – Kettering, OH
Doctors Hospital – Columbus, OH
The Washington Hospital – Washington, PA
Allegheny General Hospital – Pittsburgh, PA
Robert Packer Hospital – Sayre, PA
Bryn Mawr Hospital –  Bryn Mawr, PA
Lankenau Hospital – Wynnewood, PA

Teaching Hospitals Without Cardiovascular Residency Programs
Morton Plant Hospital – Clearwater, FL
St. Luke’s Boise Medical Center – Boise, ID
St. John’s Hospital – Springfield, IL
Decatur Memorial Hospital – Decatur, IL
Marquette General Hospital – Marquette, MI
St. Joseph Mercy Hospital – Ann Arbor, MI
Mercy Medical Center – Canton, OH
Aultman Hospital – Canton, OH
Bethesda North Hospital – Cincinnati, OH
St. Luke’s Hospital – Bethlehem, PA
UPMC Hamot – Erie, PA
St. Joseph Medical Center – Reading, PA
Memorial Hermann Hospital System – Houston, TX
Baptist St. Anthony’s Health System – Amarillo TX
Corpus Christi Medical Center – Corpus Christi, TX
St. Mark’s Hospital – Salt Lake City, UT
St. Mary’s Hospital – Richmond, VA
Aspirus Wausau Hospital – Wausau, WI
Gundersen Lutheran – La Crosse, WI
Meriter Hospital – Madison, WI

Community Hospitals
St. Francis Medical Center – Lynwood, CA
French Hospital Medical Center – San Luis Obispo, CA
Martin Memorial Medical Center – Stuart, FL
Provena Covenant Medical Center – Urbana, IL
St. Vincent Heart Center of Indiana – Indianapolis, IN
Heart Hospital of Lafayette – Lafayette, LA
Nebraska Heart Institute & Heart Hospital – Lincoln, NE
Gaston Memorial Hospital – Gastonia, NC
The Chester County Hospital and Health System – West Chester, PA
Doylestown Hospital – Doylestown, PA
Maury Regional Medical Center – Columbia, TN
Heart Hospital of Austin – Austin, TX
Dixie Regional Medical Center – St. George, UT
Memorial Regional Medical Center – Mechanicsville, VA
Bellin Hospital – Green Bay, WI

About Thomson Reuters

Thomson Reuters is the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals.  We combine industry expertise with innovative technology to deliver critical information to leading decision makers in the financial, legal, tax and accounting, healthcare and science and media markets, powered by the world’s most trusted news organization.  With headquarters in New York and major operations inLondon and Eagan, Minnesota, Thomson Reuters employs more than 55,000 people and operates in over 100 countries.  For more information, go to www.thomsonreuters.com.

SOURCE Thomson Reuters Healthcare

WASHINGTON, Nov. 14, 2011 /Coal Geology-PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Access to paid sick days could save $1 billion in medical costs annually according to a report released today by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR). This includes $500 million in taxpayer-funded public health care programs for children, elders, and low-income Americans. Currently, more than 44 million American workers do not have access to paid sick days, and more are unable to use time off to take care of sick children or other family members.  

“Taking time off work to see a primary care doctor is common sense, but over 40 million Americans cannot do so without losing pay or their job,” said Kevin Miller, Senior Research Associate with IWPR, and an author of the report. “Americans are paying over $1 billion each year in preventable emergency department costs because hard-working people without paid sick days are unable to get the preventative and early treatment they and their children need.”

The United States spends approximately $47 billion annually on emergency department services.  IWPR findings show that, by shifting the treatment of some preventable illnesses from emergency departments to less expensive doctor’s offices, clinics, and hospital outpatient settings, universal access to paid sick days would save $1.1 billion annually. Currently, approximately $500 million of these preventable costs are covered by taxpayer-funded public health care for children, elders, veterans and low-income families, including Medicare, Medicaid, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), and Veterans Affairs services. The remainder of preventable emergency department costs are accrued to individuals who pay out of pocket for health care and to insurance companies and their customers.

“As high and rising health care expenditures continuing to be a top concern for policymakers and businesses alike, paid sick days is a cost saving solution that should receive serious attention,”  saidClaudia Williams, Research Analyst with IWPR and an author of the report.

After controlling for various characteristics, including health insurance status, IWPR’s analyses reveal that paid sick days are associated with better self-reported health, fewer delays in medical care, and fewer emergency department visits for adults and their children. Controlling for other factors, workers without paid sick days are 40 percent more likely than workers with paid sick days to delay medical care for themselves or a family member. Approximately 2.6 million fewer Americans would delay medical care each year if paid sick days were universal.

Employees with access to paid sick days have an easier time getting to a doctor during regular business hours to care for themselves or family members. In turn, access to paid sick days can help to decrease the likelihood that a worker will put off needed care and increases access to preventive care among workers and their children.

Workers without private insurance tend to have less access to paid sick days than workers with private health insurance. Previous IWPR analysis found that access to paid sick days is significantly rarer among Hispanics and blacks. Asian Americans and whites overall have the highest rates of access at 67 and 60 percent respectively, compared to 56 percent of blacks and 42 percent of Hispanics.

Many states and localities, as well as the U.S. Congress, have considered legislation that would ensure workers are able to earn paid sick time to take care of themselves and their families when they are ill. Such laws have been approved in the state of Connecticut, the cities of San Francisco and Seattle, and the District of Columbia. Two-fifths of private sector employees, including three in four food service workers, three in five personal health care workers and three in four child care workers, do not currently have access to paid sick days.

The Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) conducts rigorous research and disseminates its findings to address the needs of women and their families, promote public dialogue, and strengthen communities and societies.

SOURCE Institute for Women’s Policy Research

[ReviewAZON asin="1428352937" display="inlinepost"]According to the new report, The Road to Clean Air, California could avoid at least $7.2 billion per year in health and other societal costs and reduce all major air pollution-related health impacts – from asthma attacks, premature deaths and hospitalizations to lost work and school days – by 70% percent if the California fleet of vehicles is converted to the next generation of cleaner, more efficient vehicles by 2025. Greater benefits can be achieved by further accelerating introduction of zero and near-zero emission technologies, like battery electric, plug-in and fuel cell vehicles.

According to the new report, strong state “Advanced Clean Car” standards beginning in 2017, including smog and particle pollution controls, greenhouse gas emission standards, and an aggressive zero emission vehicle requirement will annually avoid the following illnesses and deaths when fully implemented across the fleet:

• 400 – 420 premature deaths avoided
• 8,075 – 8,440 asthma attacks and lower respiratory symptoms avoided
• 181,000 – 190,000 acute and other respiratory symptoms avoided
• 390 – 405 heart attacks avoided
• 420 – 440 respiratory ER visits and cardio/respiratory hospitalizations avoided
• 28,100 – 29,300 lost work days avoided
• 8,800 – 9,500 missed school days avoided
• $7.2 – $8.1 billion in healthcare, environmental damage and societal damages avoided

“Ninety percent of Californians live in areas with unhealthy air according to the American Lung Association State of the Air report,” said Jane Warner, President and CEO of the American Lung Association in California. “Pollution from passenger cars and trucks is largely responsible for our dirty air and its huge health toll. Our new study reveals the benefits in lives and dollars saved by adopting tough vehicle emission and technology standards.”

The state currently is drafting the Advanced Clean Car standards, which update and link several existing programs aimed at reducing pollution from vehicles, including the Low-Emission Vehicle program, the Zero-Emission Vehicle program and the greenhouse gas emission reduction program (often called Pavley standards), and plans to release a draft this Fall. All three standards are critical to reduce the level of criteria pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions that new passenger vehicles sold in California will generate through model year 2025.

“There are few needs as urgent as making sure that the air we breathe in California isn’t making us sick and contributing to escalating health care costs,” says David T. Cooke, M.D., member of the Lung Association Board and Assistant Professor of Thoracic Surgery at the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento. “California has an opportunity to dramatically reduce the human toll of cars by adopting strong Clean Car standards and accelerating the introduction of zero emission vehicles in the next round of rulemaking.”

The Road to Clean Air finds that under current standards (which apply to passenger vehicles through model year 2016), vehicles on the road in 2025 will generate over 270 tons per day of smog forming pollutants and cause $14.5 billion per year in health and societal costs, including $5 billion per year in public health costs and thousands of cases of illness. Converting the fleet to cleaner, more efficient vehicles would avoid as much as 190 tons per day, or over 70 percent, of these smog forming emissions. Considering that California still has a long way to go in achieving smog levels low enough to meet federal clean air standards, adopting the strongest possible clean car regulations is critical.

On an individual basis, the American Lung Association in California report finds that an average car under current standards will cause more than $4,700 in health, environmental and societal damage over its lifetime – the equivalent to $1.19 in damage per gallon of gasoline, or about $20 per fill-up.

In order to reduce vehicle impacts on human health, the American Lung Association in California finds that the California Air Resources Board must adopt strong Advanced Clean Car Standards for the passenger vehicle fleet for 2017-2025 that will include the following requirements for new cars:

• Achieve a 75 percent reduction in smog-forming emissions and place stringent controls on particle pollution from vehicles
• Achieve, at minimum, an overall 45 percent (6 percent per year) reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles
• Achieve a new car fleet mix that includes at least 20 percent zero emission vehicles

“Vehicles meeting California’s current clean car standards greatly reduce pollutant emissions in California and nationally, but more can be done to clean up our fleet. This report shows that California, by requiring a new generation of clean, efficient vehicles beginning in 2017, can significantly improve the health of children, seniors, and people who live in polluted communities,” says Robert Sawyer, Ph.D., member of the Lung Association Board and past Chairman of the California Air Resources Board.

The state is expected to adopt its new standards in November 2011. To view the full report, go to www.lungusa.org/california-cleancars.

Data and Methodology

The American Lung Association in California commissioned a study to compare the emissions, public health and greenhouse gas benefits that will result from current vehicle emission standards (LEV II for smog-forming emissions and Pavley I for greenhouse gas emissions) to the benefits that can be achieved from the next generation of vehicle standards (LEV III, Pavley II), including strong zero emission vehicle (ZEV) requirements being considered this year. Vehicle emission reductions result from decreases in tailpipe, onboard and upstream emissions.

The American Lung Association in California contracted TIAX, LLC, a nonpartisan engineering consulting firm, to conduct a technical analysis comparing the benefits of moving from existing standards to possible future vehicle standards. This report incorporates the criteria standards into the fleet mixes, calculating the health benefits that result from the mix of tailpipe standards and alternative technologies. For each component of this study, TIAX relied on numerous state and federal regulatory documents, technical models and input from the Lung Association.

About the American Lung Association in California

The American Lung Association in California saves lives and improves the health of Californians and their lungs. Through research, education and advocacy, we fight to reduce smoking, keep the air we breathe clean, prevent and treat lung diseases such as asthma and COPD, and eliminate lung cancer.

SOURCE American Lung Association in California