DAILY UPDATE      

New data show average American with Medicare to save nearly $4,200 through 2021 thanks to health reform

Nearly 3.6 million people with Medicare saved $2.1 billion on their prescription drugs in 2011 thanks to the Affordable Care Act according to data issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Savings for people with Medicare will increase over time. According to a new report issued from HHS, the average person with Medicare will save nearly $4,200 by 2021 because of the new law.

The Affordable Care Act provides a 50 percent discount on brand-name prescription drugs and this year, a 14 percent discount on generics. Last year, it provided a seven percent discount on covered generic medications for people who hit the prescription drug coverage gap known as the donut hole, with 2,814,646 beneficiaries receiving $32.1 million in savings on generics.

In 2011, the 3.6 million Americans who hit the donut hole saved an average of $604 on the cost of their prescription drugs. Data also show that women especially benefitted from the law’s provision with 2.05 million women saving $1.2 billion on their prescription drugs. By 2020, the donut hole will be closed completely. The report finds that this provision and other features of the health reform law will generate substantial savings for people with Medicare. Typical Medicare beneficiaries will save an average of nearly $4,200 from 2011 to 2021. People with high prescription drug costs could save as much as $16,000. Visit HHS for the release.

Highest level of drug-resistant TB found in Europe

The World Health Organization says the highest levels ever of drug-resistant tuberculosis have been found in Russia and Moldova. But the agency didn't have data from most of Africa and India, where tuberculosis rates are much higher. Experts said trends in drug-resistant TB in most countries "are still unclear."

In research published in the February edition of WHO's journal, Bulletin, experts reported that about 29 percent of new TB patients in parts of Russia were drug-resistant. They also found 65 percent of previously treated patients in Moldova had resistance problems. Normally, less than 5 percent of TB cases are drug-resistant. (Associated Press) Visit USA Today for the article.

Vascular Solutions launches reprocessing service for ClosureFAST vein catheters

Vascular Solutions, Inc. announced that it is marketing a reprocessing service for the ClosureFAST radiofrequency ablation catheter in the United States. The ClosureFAST catheter, which is manufactured and marketed by VNUS Medical Technologies, Inc. division of Covidien, is widely used for performing endovenous therapy for the treatment of varicose veins. Vascular Solutions' reprocessing service is designed to help physicians reduce medical waste and lower their costs.

Vascular Solutions is offering the reprocessing service under contract with Northeast Scientific, Inc. (NES), an established third-party reprocessor of medical devices. NES received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on November 30, 2011 for reprocessing the ClosureFAST catheter.

Hospitals and clinics that subscribe to the service send their used ClosureFAST catheters directly to NES for reprocessing. Upon completion of reprocessing, customers receive those same catheters back, ready for a second use. NES's validated reprocessing system for the ClosureFAST catheters involves multiple stages, including decontamination, cleaning, drying, packaging, labeling, sterilization, and biological quarantine testing. As part of the process, each catheter is subjected to function testing and undergoes multiple inspections to ensure that quality standards are met. For further information about the company, connect to www.vasc.com.

APIC announces 2012 Elaine Larson Lectureship Award recipient    

The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) announced William Rutala, MS, MPH, PhD, CIC, as the 2012 recipient of the Elaine Larson Lectureship Award.

Presented annually by APIC’s Board of Directors, the award honors the individual best able to present a lecture on the state of the science of infection prevention or healthcare epidemiology in the area for which he or she has been a major contributor over a lifetime of pursuit.

A world-renowned expert on disinfection and sterilization, Dr. Rutala is a professor for the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of North Carolina's (UNC) School of Medicine, and serves as the director of Hospital Epidemiology, Occupational Health and Safety Program at the University of North Carolina Health Care System. He is also director and co-founder of the statewide program for Infection Control and Epidemiology at the UNC School of Medicine and a retired Colonel with the U.S. Army Reserve.

Dr. Rutala will be delivering a lecture during the opening session of the APIC 2012 Annual Conference, June 4-6, 2012 in San Antonio, TX. In addition, he will present workshops for conference attendees on disinfection and sterilization. Dr. Rutala has authored more than 450 publications, and was a lead author for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization in Healthcare Facilities. He has delivered more than 300 lectures at state, national, and international conferences, and has testified twice before the U.S. Congress.

Elaine Larson Lectureship Award candidates must be recognized experts who have created, delivered or promoted an infection control and epidemiology service that has influenced public perception, attitudes and awareness. Candidates must also show evidence of outstanding and significant contribution and demonstrate excellence toward the science of infection control and epidemiology research, education, administration or clinical practice. Visit APIC for more information.

Report outlines steps to reduce multiple IV infusion risks

A new report by the Health Technology Safety Research Team (HTSRT) at the University of Toronto provides nine specific recommendations to reduce the risks associated with multiple intravenous (IV) infusions. The report stems from twelve field studies in Ontario hospitals, carried out in conjunction with the Institute for Safe Medication Practices, Canada. The report, “Mitigating the Risks Associated With Multiple IV Infusion,” was released at a recent meeting of the AAMI Healthcare Technology Safety Institute (HTSI) and calls for the immediate adoption of these recommendations by healthcare institutions.

IV therapy, or the infusion of liquids directly into a vein (commonly known as a drip), is one of the most commonly used techniques in a hospital. Typically, the infusions are delivered via pumps with a user interface, to infuse fluids, nutrients, or medication into a patient’s bloodstream in a regulated manner, which may be continuous or intermittent.

Multiple IV infusions are often delivered with large volume pumps “through a combination of primary and secondary ‘piggyback’ infusions on multiple pumps and channels,” according to the HTSRT website, making the system prone to a variety of errors, including mix-ups of infusion lines, bags, and pumps. For the patient, this could mean receiving an incorrect dose, at the wrong time, with lethal consequences. These risks were also highlighted at the HTSI Infusion System meeting, which took place in Daytona Beach, FL, Jan. 25-26, 2012. The meeting was held to address such priority issues in the safe and effective use of infusion systems.

Andrea Cassano-Piche and Mark Fan co-led this phase of the HTSRT study, conducting fieldwork and experimental research to assess these risks. Tony Easty was the principal investigator on the project, which was launched in February 2010. The report delineates nine recommendations to improve safety in specific areas, including secondary infusions, line identification, line set-up and removal , and IV bolus administration.

The HTSRT report provides detailed rationale for each of these recommendations, as well as photographs and diagrams to guide healthcare workers in areas where multiple IV infusions are administered to patients, such as intensive care units, outpatient chemotherapy clinics, and hospital emergency departments. Visit AAMI for the report.

Portable device will quickly detect pathogens

Two Cornell professors will combine their inventions to develop a handheld pathogen detector that will give healthcare workers in the developing world speedy results to identify in the field such pathogens as tuberculosis, chlamydia, gonorrhea and HIV. Using synthetic DNA, Dan Luo, professor of biological and environmental engineering, has devised a method of "amplifying" very small samples of pathogen DNA, RNA or proteins. Edwin Kan, professor of electrical and computer engineering, has designed a computer chip that quickly responds to the amplified samples targeted by Luo's method. They will combine these to make a handheld device, usable under harsh field conditions, that can report in about 30 minutes what would ordinarily require transporting samples to a laboratory and waiting days for results.

The work will be supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as part of the Grand Challenge program to develop "point-of-care diagnostics" for developing countries. The foundation has distributed $25 million to 12 teams, selected from more than 700 applicants. Various teams are working on different aspects of the technology, and eventually their work will be integrated to make a practical, low-cost testing kit, Luo said.

The chip uses the popular and inexpensive CMOS technology compatible with other common electronic devices. A detector might be powered by a mobile phone, Luo suggested. All this can be combined with nanofluidics to make a robust battery-operated testing kit, the researchers said. After further development they plan to conduct tests simulating field conditions in the developing world. Along with surviving hot or cold weather, Luo said, "It has to work in dirty water." Visit Cornell for the article.

Soaps, makeup and other items contain deadly ingredients, say consumer advocates

According to Jane Houlihan, who directs cosmetics safety research for the Environmental Working Group, a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, cosmetics and other personal care products contain numerous ingredients — such as phthalates, parabens, formaldehye and diethanolamine — that we should be wary of. “What we put on our skin often ends up inside our body, and so it’s every bit as important as what we eat, drink and breathe when it comes to minimizing exposure to things that aren’t healthy for us,” she explains.

Drugstore shelves are lined with shampoos, deodorants, moisturizers, soaps and makeup that contain potentially harmful ingredients, say consumer advocates. “Research has shown that many conventional personal-care products contain chemicals of concern that can disrupt your hormones, have been linked to cancer, cause allergies or can damage your skin,” explains Stacy Malkan, author of “Not Just a Pretty Face: The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry.” She points out that because there are few safety standards for cosmetics in the United States, “companies are basically making their own decisions about what’s safe enough to sell.”

Industry officials contend that the risks of using cosmetics with trace amounts of chemicals are insignificant or nonexistent. The FDA does evaluate some ingredients used in cosmetics and has issued warnings, such as with formaldehyde in some hair straighteners. But the dearth of solid, large-scale studies on the effect of such chemicals at the levels found in conditioner or toothpaste, say, means it’s difficult to know what the risks are.

As a result, it’s your choice whether to use a fruity body wash, lipstick or after-shave that may contain lead, diethyl phthalate (a hormone disruptor that is widely used in plastics and has been linked to sperm damage and other reproductive problems) or 1,4-Dioxane, a carcinogenic byproduct that has been banned in Europe.

In November, an advocacy group found that Johnson & Johnson was selling baby shampoo in the United States, Canada and several other countries that contained small amounts of quaternium-15, a formaldehyde-releasing preservative that has been linked to cancer, even though the company had removed the chemical from similar products sold in Europe and Japan. (The company has announced that it did not believe the small amounts in its shampoos posed any threat but that it would phase out the use of such ingredients across the globe.)

The worry here isn’t just one chemical in your or your child’s shampoo. Rather, it’s the buildup of potentially dangerous additives from a variety of sources. While skin irritations and other acute reactions to some of the chemicals are possible, the greater concern is longer-term effects such as cancer, fertility problems and neurological issues. Visit the Washington Post for the article.

Dentist used paper clips as posts in root canal

A Crofton man pleaded guilty in Massachusetts Superior Court to multiple charges of Medicaid fraud for using pieces of paper clips in root canals instead of standard stainless steel posts, according to an announcement today from the Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler.

Gansler's office, the Maryland Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the Maryland State Police aided in the investigation after he was indicted in 2010 because he moved to the state. The probe found former Fall River, MA, dentist Michael Clair, 53, had submitted false claims to Medicaid for $130,000 between 2002 and 2005 for the costs of the posts. He used other dentists' provider numbers because he had been excluded from the Medicaid program since 2002.

Gansler said Clair also illegally prescribed prescription drugs, including Hydrocodone, Combunox and Percocet.

Clair’s been under investigation in Massachusetts since 2005. Officials said paper clips are okay to use temporarily in some cases but not permanently. They can cause infection, discomfort and pain, they said. Visit the Baltimore Sun for the article.

IDN Summit announces 2012 Spring Agenda

Shake off those winter blues and think spring! The 2012 Spring IDN Summit will take place April 23-25 at the Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate in Orlando, FL. The program is shaping up and the IDN Summit conference agenda is now available online. A new feature of the education program will be the interactive roundtable discussions that will be held at 1:30 pm in each of the five educational tracks. View the current IDN Summit agenda here.