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Save the Date: Webinar on Tuesday, October 4th at 1pm EST
The Smoking Cessation Leadership Center announced its free webinar, Electronic Cigarettes: Marketing and Potential Public Health Impact. The webinar aims to outline the basics about electronic cigarettes, raise awareness of the current marketing of electronic cigarettes and to review the public health issues posed by these products, featuring Rachel Grana, PhD, MPH, Postdoctoral Scholar, and Pamela Ling, MD, MPH, Associate Professor in Residence, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco.

Register for this free event today!
https://rwjf.webex.com/rwjf/j.php?ED=181767577&RG=1&UID=0&RT=MiM0

For more information about the Smoking Leadership Cessation Center, click here.

HealthSMART Tip: Of the 45.3 million current smokers, 70% say that they would like to quit. But without assistance, less than 5% are able to stop smoking. If you’re trying to quit, or know someone who is, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW for free help.

The phenomenon of the rescue fantasy was first discussed by Freud in 1910. Popular in fairy tales, dramatic novels, movies, and cartoons, the fantasy is that, even in the most dire of situations, somehow, from somewhere, a superhero will swoop down out of the sky and rescue us from our almost certain doomed fate. Despite knowing the idea is a fantasy, we still hope.

Americans suffer from rescue fantasies in health care.

We pay small fortunes for the privilege of access to a health care system with an unsustainable cost structure that only delivers quality care 40 percent of the time. We are on a train heading in the wrong direction, and we are awaiting our rescue to a more secure reality. Some are expecting the superhero politicians to be the rescuers; others are counting on employers and union negotiators; still others think doctors in their white coats will perform the brave task.

The truth is: It’s up to us.

The second truth is: We can do it.

As American, we have within our cultural DNA a basic sensibility that is optimistic, resilient and entrepreneurial. It is time to activate this sensibility and take charge of our future by taking charge of our health. Commerce is driven by the basic laws of supply and demand. If we flatten the demand for health care services by increasing our health, we will not need to be concerned about the supply of health care services. It will have to level off to counterbalance the new level of demand.

The task of learning how the health care system works would be daunting. The task of learning how to improve our health should not be daunting. We may need to adapt and to better ourselves through self-education, but we are not alone. As a society, we are all together in this.

Smoking cessation programs, along with federal, state and local laws banning smoking in public places, have helped to curb the use of tobacco for some consumers, but each year more than 438,000 people die from smoking-related disorders. Another 8.6 million suffer from smoking-related illnesses and the overall costs of this lifestyle choice are significant. Smoking remains the number one preventable cause of illness and death in the United States, with surveys reporting that 70 percent of tobacco users want to end the habit.

A new study conducted by researchers at Penn State University supports the premise that helping smokers quit not only saves lives, but also results in favorable economic benefits to states – perhaps as much as $301 billion. The report, Smoking Cessation: the Economic Benefits, released September 14 by the American Lung Association, offers a nationwide cost-benefit analysis comparing the costs to society of smoking with the economic benefits of states providing “smoking cessation” coverage. The report comes at a time when cessation benefit provisions are about to be implemented at the federal and state levels as a result of health care reform legislation.

Helping people quit smoking can be an important way for states to reduce health care costs, the study says.

HealthSMART Tip: Take action now! For those who want help with quitting smoking, call the toll-free hotline at 1-800-Quit-Now. Visit the Smoking Cessation Leadership Center’s “Stop Smoking” web page at: http://smokingcessationleadership.ucsf.edu/FSStopSmoking.htm.

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Now that new health care reform legislation has become law, the U.S. health care system can expect another 32 million people over the next several years to join the approximately 260 million Americans who currently have access to health care services. This phenomenon could produce significant new health care costs unless health care leaders can determine how to deliver quality care while easing the burden on primary care physicians, and simultaneously reducing overall cost. None of these goals can be achieved, however, without the active participation of health care consumers. The time has come to awaken this “sleeping giant” in order to enable a healthy future.

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The Foundation for HealthSMART Consumers, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to consumer education and activation, is convening a Leadership Roundtable to discuss a major challenge to our mission: the advent of new IRS rules which limit the eligibility of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines as health care purchases. The Roundtable will be held on the morning of October 4, 2010 in Washington, DC. The objective of this session will be to articulate the challenges and opportunities to develop a shared definition of the problem and begin the process for mapping out our strategies to action.

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Senior citizens have a more negative view of the new health care reform law than their younger counterparts and also display a mixed awareness of the specific provisions that affect Medicare, according to a Kaiser Health Tracking Poll. The survey found that 52 percent of seniors were aware that the new law will result in premium increases for some higher income Medicare beneficiaries, while 50 percent knew it will gradually close the Medicare “doughnut hole” for prescription drug costs. However, only 33 percent knew the law will eliminate Medicare co-pays and deductibles for some preventive services. And large shares of seniors mistakenly believe the law includes provisions that cut some previously universal Medicare benefits and creates “death panels.”

HealthSMART Tip: Senior citizens should review their Medicare booklets for 2011 to be aware of new benefits. For those with traditional Medicare, certain preventive services will now be covered without a required co-payment, beginning January 2011. These include mammograms and colorectal cancer screenings, bone mass measuring, and nutritional counseling for those at risk of diabetes. Under health care reform, Medicare beneficiaries are also entitled to a free annual wellness checkup beginning in 2011, so take advantage of this opportunity to develop a plan for your personal health. A proactive plan can help you avoid outbreaks of chronic diseases and can help reduce overall health care costs.

For more information, click here.

HealthSMART Tip: Lifestyle choices make a positive difference in personal health. Consumers can self-manage their health with practices that embrace the following lifestyle choices:

Good nutrition: Design an eating plan with healthy meals and snacks that combine fruits, vegetables, proteins, healthy grains and reduces intake of salt and refined sugars.

Daily exercise: Develop a daily routine that keeps you moving, which can help keep your heart healthier, control blood glucose levels, and maintain a healthy weight.

Smoking cessation: In the U.S., an estimated 24.8 million men (23.1 percent) and 21.1 million women (18.3 percent) are smokers. These people are at higher risk of heart attack and stroke. If you are a smoker, you can stop smoking via various smoking cessation options, including counseling and quitline support, nicotine patch or drug treatments, and in some cases, hypnosis.

Weight control: Healthy nutrition and daily exercise can help keep your weight under control. Set realistic goals and avoid starvation or fad diets.

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Smarter, More Confident Consumers Could Spell Relief

HealthSMART tip: Consumers can act responsibly to save money and reduce pressure on the health care systems by focusing on self-care efforts that prevent illness and promote general good health. When a minor illness or ailment arises, such as congestion from a cold, sleeplessness, minor sunburn or skin irritation, learn about how you may be able to effectively relieve symptoms with an over-the-counter medication. If you are not sure, consider a visit to a retail or worksite clinic where you can talk with a health care professional. Check with your health plan or employers about what resources are available to you to make HealthSMART decisions.

For more information, click here.

As an update to our post below on insurance companies’ offers to extend health insurance coverage to 23- to 26-year olds earlier than January 2011, a May 31 article in The New York Times points out that some employers may choose not to offer the advantage to their employees until the January 2011 compliance date. When asking for details from their employers about how to keep their children on a family health plan, some parents have learned that employers have different approaches to the extension of coverage issue. Many said they will wait until the January 2011 deadline. While this provision of the health care reform legislation officially takes effect September 23, 2010, employers don’t have to comply until January 2011, according to The New York Times article.

For generous insurers, it means more revenue, the article notes, but for employers it just means more costs. Some families may have to consider COBRA or other insurance coverage for their children who fall into the June-December 2010 gap. The COBRA law permits children who are currently ineligible for their family’s plan to extend their current coverage for up to three years.

HealthSMART tip: Don’t assume your 23- to 26-year old has received automatic extended coverage. Check with your employer and your insurance company to be sure your son or daughter is properly covered during the crucial gap period between now and January 2011.

Consumers can count calories in chain food restaurants…Beginning in 2011, a provision in the new health care reform legislation requires all chain food restaurants with more than 20 locations to post the calorie and nutrition data for all choices on their menus and drive thru signs to better inform consumers.

This practice may provide a wake-up call for consumers who had adopted the “ignorance is bliss” approach to fast food. It also may provide the impetus for a food revolution in restaurants, as restaurant owners are forced to offer well-informed consumers healthier options on their menus.

Whether the new standards will do anything to curb obesity levels in the U.S. remains to be seen. Critics of the measure say it will drive up the cost of restaurant food, but it is likely that many consumers who are already diet conscious, will make the effort to read the menu labels and adjust their intake accordingly.

We can all become actively engaged consumers by reading the calorie/nutrition information before placing our orders and by selecting the healthier nutritional choices.

For more information, go to “Health Care Reform in Action — Calorie Labeling Goes National”. The New England Journal of Medicine, April 7, 2010.