What We're Reading
By Joy Burkhard, MBA
Founder and Executive Director, 2020 Mom
This edition of my twice-monthly article round-up includes a commentary about the need to more urgently address shortages of psychiatrists. I couldn't agree more, and I also think we must increase the number of psychologists, those who can do full assessments of mothers (and others) with complex symptoms and causes, so we can accurately diagnose and treat the right problem, which may or may not need an RX or MD prescribed treatment. We also need to start thinking about mental health ‘medical homes’ which provide psychological assessment, therapy, peer support, psychiatric support, and care coordination with the PCP or in our case, Ob/midwife.
Read more about this important topic and the other articles that I took note of:
Amid the Nation’s Mental Health Crisis, We Need More Psychiatrists Now
The number of residency positions in the U.S. is limited by the availability of Medicare funding to pay for the cost of training. The Build Back Better Act includes two measures that are meant to widen this bottleneck for all physicians via the Pathway to Practice Training Programs. One will provide 1,000 scholarships to medical students to encourage practice in low-resource areas. The other expands the number of residency training positions across all specialties, but only by 1,000 — a less than 1% expansion that is not scheduled to be complete until 2026.
A Mindfulness Application for Reducing Prenatal Stress
Up to 40% of patients report depression or anxiety symptoms in pregnancy; feelings of increased stress are nearly universal. Antepartum stress is linked to adverse outcomes including preterm birth, low birth weight, postpartum depression, and maternal self-harm. Unfortunately, limited treatment options exist, and patients are often hesitant to initiate medications prenatally.
Prenatal Exposure to Maternal Autoimmune Diseases Associated With Increased Risks of Mental Disorders in Offspring
Maternal type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis during pregnancy were associated with offspring's mental health up to early adulthood.
The Doctor Will See You Now…in the Metaverse?
Virtual reality is increasingly being used in health care for treating pain.
Who Doesn’t Text in 2022? Most State Medicaid Programs
West Virginia will use the U.S. Postal Service and an online account this summer to connect with Medicaid enrollees about the expected end of the covid public health emergency, which will put many recipients at risk of losing their coverage. What West Virginia won’t do is use a form of communication that’s ubiquitous worldwide: text messaging.
Opinion: What We Owe New Mothers
She was four months pregnant when she came into the clinic, having just relocated from Texas to California. As I moved the ultrasound probe across her stomach to visualize her baby, I asked why she had moved. She responded that she could not risk repeating what happened the last time she was pregnant.
Value-Based Payment Models In The Commercial Insurance Sector: A Systematic Review
Value-based payment models are a prominent strategy in health reform. Although Medicare payment models have been extensively evaluated, much less is known about value-based payment models in the commercial insurance sector.
Fueling a Resurgence in Neuro Drug Development
Biotechs are used to turning to genetics as guideposts in developing new medications and clues for developing brain disorder treatments. At least four biotech companies have integrated electroencephalograms, or EEGs, in their work. The tests use dozens of electrodes placed around a person’s head to measure brain waves, generally to diagnose epilepsy or sleep disorders, but these companies believe they could unveil new biomarkers for many other conditions. They are now looking at biomarkers on various brain waves to predict treatment outcomes.
How an Online Program Helped Black Women Sleep
An interactive online program designed to manage insomnia significantly improved sleep for Black women, especially when it was specifically tailored to that population with new photos and modules, finds a new study in JAMA Psychiatry.
200 Rural Hospitals At Risk of Closing in the Next Few Years, Study Finds
Inadequate payments from private insurers are a large part of the reason, the study author says.
Pandemic, Racism Linked to Postpartum Anxiety, Depression in Black Mothers
The COVID-19 pandemic, in combination with systemic racism in the U.S., is associated with elevated levels of postpartum anxiety and depression among Black mothers, researchers reported in JAMA Psychiatry.
New Studies Highlight Impact Of Fixing The Family Glitch
In early April, the Biden administration issued a proposed rule to fix the so-called family glitch. If finalized, this revised interpretation would extend marketplace subsidies to millions of people—primarily children and women—who face high costs for job-based family coverage but are currently ineligible for financial help through the marketplaces…the family glitch would reduce health care costs by $4,152 for a typical family of four with an income of $53,000.
Comparison of Estimated Incentives for Preventing Postpartum Depression in Value-Based Payment Models Using the Net Present Value of Care vs Total Cost of Care
In this decision analytical model with a simulated cohort of 1,000 pregnant individuals enrolled in Medicaid, sharing estimated savings offered more than double the financial incentives for clinicians to prevent postpartum depression than traditional VBP models, assuming continuous health insurance coverage (ie, no churn). This incentive decreased as rates of annual health insurance churn increased.