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INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE OF CHICAGO

  • 15 Mar 2024 2:24 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    A workgroup would explore ways to reduce burdens facing the behavioral health workforce under a plan approved Thursday by a House committee. [Health News Illinois]

    The bill, sponsored by Rep. Lindsey LaPointe, D-Chicago, would create a workgroup inside the office of the chief behavioral health officer. The officer or their designee could appoint up to 15 members.

    They would be tasked to review policies and regulations to identify “inefficiencies, duplicate or unnecessary requirements” as well as other administrative burdens that prevent workers from providing services, according to the plan.

    A report highlighting short- and long-term policy recommendations would be due to the General Assembly within a year after the group’s first meeting.

    LaPointe told colleagues on the House’s Mental Health & Addiction Committee that hearings held earlier this spring related to the behavioral health workforce made clear that administrative burden is negatively affecting providers.

    “We are at an acute moment where we have an intense workforce shortage," she said. "Anything we can do to reduce those barriers is what we want to do."

    Tyler Smith, director of policy and government affairs for the Community Behavioral Healthcare Association, said workers often have to deal with a “vast and uncoordinated array of requirements.” That can include repeatedly submitting the same data to access their critical care providers.

    Smith said the proposal would make the “industry better for customers, clinicians and clients."

    A forthcoming amendment would allow the workforce’s chair to appoint a nonprofit organization to provide administrative support for the group. It would also establish an immediate effective date for the bill.

    The plan unanimously passed the committee.

    The committee also unanimously approved a plan by Rep. Margaret Croke, D-Chicago, related to network adequacy and so-called “ghost networks.”

    Her plan would task insurers with auditing at least 25 percent of their provider directories for accuracy at least once a year and to make any necessary corrections. Plans would also have to provide information to allow customers to dispute charges for out-of-network providers or facilities that were incorrectly listed as in-network.

    Consumers would be able to file a complaint with the Department of Insurance if charged for out-of-network services incorrectly listed as in-network.

    The Department of Insurance would also have to “randomly” audit at least 10 percent of plans each year.

    Croke said there is some overlap with Gov. JB Pritzker’s proposed sweeping insurance reform, but her proposal gets into finer details on the issue, which can be more difficult in an omnibus package. Specifically, a coming amendment to the plan will insert a mechanism where patients can recoup costs.

    “I think that there is some level of bipartisan support when it comes to this particular issue,” Croke said.

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  • 14 Mar 2024 3:58 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    The Board voted to add $500,000 to its Local Food Pantry Infrastructure Investment Program, which provides funding to local food pantries for capital equipment purchases or information technology investments. DuPage County also allocated nearly $1 million to 16 food pantries for infrastructure and technology investments in February. [County of DuPage]

    Additionally, the County will provide nearly $1.6 million to the Northern Illinois Food Bank, allowing the organization to distribute fresh produce, protein, and essential commodities to local food pantries in DuPage County. This allocation brings the County’s total funding provided to the Northern Illinois Food Bank to more than $4 million.

    "We've heard from our residents that food insecurity continues to be an issue. These two programs will help address the immediate need for fresh food, while also providing funds to create the framework for pantries to be sustainable and successful for years to come," said Human Services Committee Chair Greg Schwarze.

    The portal for food pantries to apply for funding through the Local Food Pantry Infrastructure Investment Program will open March 15 and close May 15. To Learn more about the program, visit the County's Food Infrastructure Program website. To apply for funding through the Local Food Pantry Infrastructure Investment Program, please visit the program portal website.

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  • 13 Mar 2024 5:48 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    Illinois is moving to join 10 other states that limit toxic forever chemicals in underground sources of water. [Chicago Tribune] Photo credit E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune

    Regulations unveiled Wednesday by the Illinois Pollution Control Board are intended to protect millions of people from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, some of which build up in human blood, cause cancer and other diseases and take years to leave the body.

    Nearly 300,000 Illinoisans rely on utilities where PFAS in well water exceed the state’s proposed standards, according to a Chicago Tribune analysis of testing conducted between 2020 and 2022. Chicago-area communities with contaminated wells include Fox Lake, Lake In The Hills, Marengo, Rockdale, South Elgin and Sugar Grove.

    It is unknown how many of the 1.4 million people in the state who depend on private wells are drinking PFAS-contaminated water. The Tribune reported last year that state officials had decided it is up to individual well owners to have their water tested.

    More> 

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  • 12 Mar 2024 7:27 AM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    There’s another new subvariant of omicron rapidly spreading across America, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Known as BA.2.12.1, the new strain is a sublineage of the BA.2 subvariant. Here’s what to know about BA.2.12.1 as its spread continues. [Fast Company]

    • What is BA.2.12.1? It’s a sublineage of the BA.2 subvariant of COVID-19. These subvariants are offshoots of omicron, which the CDC lists as a Variant of Concern (VOC)

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  • 11 Mar 2024 6:13 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)
    As anticipation builds for President Biden’s State of the Union address [tonight]  the American Public Health Association commends the Biden administration for its efforts to address critical issues affecting the nation's well-being, while recognizing we still have a long way to go to ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to be healthy. [APHA]


    Throughout his presidency, Biden has prioritized initiatives to improve the health and well-being of communities across the country by following the science. Since taking office, the administration has guided the country through challenges from COVID-19 and the end of the public health emergency while emphasizing the importance of vaccines, combating misinformation and supporting funding for the nation’s federal, state and local public health systems. This funding has been a critical lifeline for the public health infrastructure, and it needs to continue if we expect to have a public health system that is prepared for the next pandemic or public health emergency.

    Under Biden’s leadership, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has moved forward with several important rules to protect the public’s health, especially the nation’s most vulnerable groups, including children, the elderly and communities of color. Recently, the EPA finalized rules to significantly reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas industry, and issued more health-protective rules to reduce the dangerous particulate matter pollution that can lead to increased asthma attacks, heart attacks, strokes, lung cancer and premature death. 

    The EPA is also moving forward with a new rule to reduce the amount of lead and copper in the nation’s drinking water supply and has secured billions in funding to help communities replace existing lead service lines — which negatively impact the health of more than 21 million individuals — to strengthen the nation’s commitment to environmental justice. We call on the EPA to finalize a critical rule to protect the public from the health threats associated with climate change by drastically reducing carbon pollution from fossil fuel-fired power plants.

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  • 8 Mar 2024 8:51 AM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    CDC Director Mandy Cohen joins Bloomberg News reporter Riley Griffin to discuss new Covid-19 guidance, the fentanyl crisis and maternal healthcare in America.

    Watch Video here>

  • 7 Mar 2024 5:49 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    Increased attention to harmful race-based clinical algorithms—equations and decision-making tools that misuse race as a proxy for genetic or biologic ancestry1—has led to the reconsideration of these algorithms in many medical specialties. Most such algorithms were developed or endorsed by medical specialty societies, ensuring their widespread use. [JAMA Network]


    Advocacy to eliminate the misuse of race in clinical algorithms has grown from grass-roots efforts to organized, coalition-based efforts2 supported by numerous medical societies. The American Medical Association (AMA) has specifically called for eliminating the misuse of race in clinical algorithms and implementing strategies to redress related harms.3 This call aligns with a growing movement to advance reparative approaches, which appropriately use race as a social construct, to identify and redress harms.4

    Given the influence of medical societies in developing and legitimizing clinical algorithms, as well as anecdotal reports of societies’ efforts to eliminate harmful algorithms from use, we surveyed societies on their activities related to this and other equity issues. This article presents descriptive findings on organized medicine’s efforts to eliminate harmful race-based clinical algorithms.

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  • 6 Mar 2024 5:25 PM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    Adolescents who use substances have more psychiatric symptoms than peers who do not use.1,2 There are, however, conflicting findings on whether various substances have unique or nonspecific associations with co-occurring psychiatric symptoms.2,3 Similarly, dose dependence of these associations and presence of increased psychiatric symptoms among adolescents with infrequent use are debated.1 With increasing rates of adolescent mental health–related problems, particularly suicide,4,5 clarification on these issues is needed to inform screening, prevention and intervention, and policy.6 We examined associations between common substances and psychiatric symptoms among adolescents. [JAMA]

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  • 5 Mar 2024 10:58 AM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    The recently adopted federal guidance that shortens isolation recommendations for COVID-19 does not apply to Illinois health facilities, the Department of Public Health reiterated Monday. [Health News Illinois]

    A spokesman for the agency referred to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notice released on Friday, which said the guidance is intended for a general audience. Nothing in the language supersedes accommodations required under federal civil rights laws.

    The federal agency said Friday it now suggests those with a respiratory illness can return to normal activities when their symptoms improve over 24 hours and they no longer have a fever without using fever-reducing medication. They’re encouraged to continue taking steps to curb disease spread during the following five days, like wearing a mask.

    Previously, the CDC recommended those testing positive for COVID-19 stay at home for five days. The new guidance brings a unified approach to a range of common respiratory viruses, like COVID-19, flu and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, according to the federal agency.

    IDPH said Friday it will adopt the guidance going forward.

    The CDC offers separate guidances for healthcare settings related to COVID-19flu and general infection prevention and control.

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  • 4 Mar 2024 11:41 AM | Deborah Hodges (Administrator)

    1. Margins for health systems improved in 2023 after a disastrous 2022. At the end of 2022, it looked like we would see massive health system failures. Systems rebounded in 2023 far better than many of us expected. The median hospital margin was -0.5% in January 2023 and 2.3% by year's end, according to Kaufman Hall. [Becker's Healthcare Review]

    There is still much variation between systems' 2023 results, with Mayo Clinic reporting a 6% operating margin for example and Cleveland Clinic at 0.4% or Kaiser Permanente at 0.3%. It should be noted that while systems improved overall through 2023, the median margin is still too thin for comfort and 40% of U.S. hospitals continue to lose money from operations, with more than a dozen hospitals and health systems closing or filing for bankruptcy or otherwise reducing services in the last year.

    2. The physician shortage in primary care and specialties is getting worse. The Association of American Medical Colleges issued a forecast in 2019 that the U.S. will face a shortage of up to 124,000 physicians by 2033. Numerous data points, albeit delayed, can paint a picture of how we are trending in the trajectory toward that end date, although more data — such as a national estimate of annual physician turnover — would certainly help the cause. 

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