BERN, SWITZERLAND – Several players met in Bern at the end of last week to hammer out details of how the country can provide citizens with an electronic or “cyber health” system that will include smart health care cards. The goal is to create a nationwide electronic system that provides hospitals and doctors with medical information but that protects the patients’ privacy. Insurance industry, medical profession and high tech company representatives as well as Swiss Post, which has been trialling a card, agreed on a number of steps.
There were strong reservations about including medical data on the card itself, but an experts review of existing cards that was mandated by Bern, such as the Swiss Post and pharmasuisse ones, concluded that all existing cards work very well. Technical differences came to light, however, and the group agreed that card manufacturers will need to create “middleware”, an interface that functions independently of the cards or software, to provide uniformity and allow them to be used more widely.
The group agreed that setting up a pilot project to trial cards in some cantons is a top priority, but there was also widespread agreement that a legal basis for handling data must be created. The Federal Health Office will be responsible for overseeing the development of the legal system needed to ensure that the next generation of cards has the necessary compatibility.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Swiss consumers found their pocketbooks thinner in 2009, thanks to an 8.1 percent overall average health insurance premium increase. The hike resulted in a 0.6 percent fall in disposable income, according to the Federal Statistical Office in Neuchatel. The amount of disposable income is calculated by taking all income and deducting “transfers”: taxes, social security payments and other insurance. Revenues take into account salaries, interest payments, pensions, reimbursements and reducations in insurance premiums, as well as other income.
Obligatory health insurance premiums rose 8.7 percent but the overall rise was brought down slightly by increases for complementary health insurance, which ranged from 5.4 to 7.1 percent depending on the type of hospital room selected (group, semi-private, private).
Disposable income rose only slightly from 2009 to 2010, with an average of CHF3,791 a month, up from CHF3,768 in 2009.
Insurance premiums for 2011 will rise by 6.5 percent on average.
The cost of diabetes in the US could soar to $3.35 trillion from 2010-2020, with the government footing 60 percent, the bulk of the bill, if Americans don’t start to take off pounds, says the country’s largest health insurance group, United Health of Minnesota. Diabets currently costs the US $195 billion. The number of Americans with high blood sugar will climb from 93.8 million in 2010 to 135 million by 2020, a new study released 23 November by the group shows.
The figures follow a study published in October 2010 by the US Centres for Disease Control in Atlanta that shows one in three US adults could have diabetes by 2050. “One in 10 US adults has diabetes now,” the CDC reported. “The prevalence is expected to rise sharply over the next 40 years due to an aging population more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, increases in minority groups that are at high risk for type 2 diabetes, and people with diabetes living longer, according to CDC projections.”
The reality of what the budget cuts, put in place by the new coalition government in Britain, really mean is making headlines in the UK: the National Health Service and disability insurance are likely to see sharp cuts. Meanwhile, new measures agreed to by the G20 to increase bank capital requirements could mean £130 million less for banks to loan for home mortgages, writes the Telegraph.
Links to other sites: British Medical Association press release, The Scotsman
The US House of Representatives late night Sunday 22 March voted 219-212 for a major overhaul of the US healthcare system, putting in motion a change to the law that has been a major goal of Barack Obama’s presidency. An agreement by Democrats not to allow the national health care bill to fund abortions appears to have been the magic deal that will let the bill become law. Once the bill is passed President Barack Obama will sign an executive order that funds will not be used to pay for abortions. The New York Times nevertheless urged caution, as a last-minute surprise could still derail the bill.
Links to other sites: New York Times, NPR, Obama statement on executive order, White House, Reuters UK
Bern / Neuchatel, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Switzerland is facing a shortage of nurses, and higher health insurance premiums in 2008 reduced households’ disposable income, say two reports just out, that look at aspects of the health care system.
Too few nurses, even with foreigners
Switzerland is facing a health care professionals shortfall, says the Swiss Conference of Cantonal Health Directors (CDS). Two-thirds of the health care professionals the country needs are being trained in Switzerland, with foreign-trained professionals making up what should be the difference. But only about one-half of the nurses needed are available. An important reason for this is that too many health care professionals choose to drop out or take extended leaves, according to CDS in a report released 11 December.
The US Senate majority leader, Sen. Harry Reid, unveiled the upper house version of the health care reform bill that is US President Barack Obama’s top domestic priority for 2009. The bill would extend health coverage to 31 million Americans who do not now have health insurance, or fine those that do not wish to participate. It introduces a “public plan”, a state-run health insurance, to compete with private insurers. The health care plan would be paid for by taxing the wealthy and a tax on “Cadillac” plans with expensive, all-inclusive coverage.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the plan’s $849 billion cost over 10 years would be offset by budget savings of $130b over the same time period.
The bill must still be voted on in the Senate. If passed by the Senate, the House version passed 7 November must be reconciled with the Senate version to be ready for signature by Obama.
Links to other sites: ABC, CNN, Economist, San Francisco Chronicle
US President Barack Obama has thrown his weight behind reforming the US healthcare system and commiting the country to passing significant climate change legislation before world leaders meet in Copenhagen in December to replace the Kyoto agreement on CO2 emission. It now appears that lawmakers may not have the time or energy to deal with climate change laws that will increase consumers’ energy costs, with the fight to reform health care becoming bogged down. Obama will address Congress Wednesday 9 September in what is increasingly being portrayed as a key speech to get the health debate back on the rails. NPR, Reuters
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Federal Council (cabinet) in Bern is backing a number of health care cost containment proposals, including a controversial charge of CHF30 to visit a doctor. The measures, recommended by the Federal Department of Home Affairs, are designed to reduce Switzerland’s increasing health costs. The cabinet 6 May announced that it will also ask the home affairs office to draw up the legislation that will be presented to Parliament.
The African First Ladies Health Summit in Los Angeles, California USA brought together 15 spouses of African heads of state. The women joined together with health care policy experts and aid organizations to address issues such as: HIV/AIDS, maternal/child health, and girls’ education. The summit was jointly organized by US Doctors for Africa (USDFA) and African Synergy Against AIDS and Suffering. AllAfrica
A new study of 16,000 people in 52 countries identified three main eating patterns, reports the BBC, with the typical Western diet of food that is high in fat, salty, with meat, responsible for 30% of heart attack risk, and a diet high in fruit and vegetables reducing the risk by one-third.
Claudia Lopez, an intern, with outpatients at 5 de Septiembre Polyclinic, Havana. Photo: WHO, Gail Reed
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The World Health Organization (WHO) says in its annual report on the state of health care around the world (World Health Report) that the “health status of different populations, both within and between countries, [is] dangerously out of balance.”
Bern, Switzerland (Le Temps, Fre) – The bulk of a tab for CHF80 million in unpaid hospital bills will most likely be picked up by Swiss cantons.
