Culture | Science Codex

Moral Hazard: How people choose insurance plans

Economists often talk about "moral hazard," the idea that people's behavior changes in the presence of insurance. In finance, for instance, investors may take more risks if they know they will be bailed out, the subject of ongoing political controversy, while the most likely person to buy an alarm system is someone who got robbed.

When it comes to health insurance, the existence of moral hazard is a more matter-of-fact issue: When people get health insurance, they use more medical care, according to a recent randomized study on the impact of Medicaid.

Married opposite-sex couples have better overall health than same-sex couples who live together

Same-sex couples who live together have worse health than married opposite-sex couples and similar health as opposite-sex couples who are living together (after adjusting for socioeconomic differences), according to a new study from researchers at Rice University.

"Families, Resources and Adult Health: Where Do Sexual Minorities Fit?" is one of the first studies comparing the health of married couples, cohabitating opposite-sex couples and cohabiting same-sex couples. The study appears in the March 2013 Journal of Health and Social Behavior.

Superbug CRE may endure in patients 1 year after initial infection: Study

Washington, DC, February 27, 2013 -- Patients who tested positive for carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) took an average of 387 days following hospital discharge to be clear of the organism, according to a new study published in the March issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).

Studying the health of same-sex couples

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Same-sex couples that live together report worse health than people of the same socioeconomic status who are in heterosexual marriages, according to a national study that could have implications for the gay marriage debate.

Research has shown that married people are healthier than the unmarried. Yet, while gay marriage is gaining support in Michigan and around the country, most same-sex cohabiters do not have the option of legally marrying their partners, noted Hui Liu, Michigan State University sociologist and lead investigator on the study.

Study: Same-sex cohabitors less healthy than those in heterosexual marriages

WASHINGTON, DC, February 21, 2013 — Same-sex cohabitors report worse health than people of the same socioeconomic status who are in heterosexual marriages, according to a new study, which may provide fuel for gay marriage proponents.

Brandeis University study finds public policy, institutional barriers are pushing racial wealth gap

New research shows the dramatic gap in household wealth that now exists along racial lines in the United States cannot solely be attributed to personal ambition and behavioral choices, but rather reflects policies and institutional practices that create different opportunities for whites and African-Americans.

Mental health-substance use services in hospitals up after parity law, finds new report

WASHINGTON, DC —The Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 ("Parity Act") increased access to mental health and substance use services in hospitals, yet consumers continued to pay more out-of-pocket for substance use admissions than for other types of hospital admissions, finds a new Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI) report.

HPS2-THRIVE trial: Side-effects cause a quarter of heart patients to stop treatment

The largest randomised study of the vitamin niacin in patients with occlusive arterial disease (narrowing of the arteries) has shown a significant increase in adverse side-effects when it is combined with statin treatment.

Results from the HPS2-THRIVE study (Heart Protection Study 2 – Treatment of HDL to Reduce the Incidence of Vascular Events), including the reasons patients stopped the study treatment, are published online today (Wednesday) in the European Heart Journal [1].

Home based telehealth does not improve quality of life for patients with long term conditions

As such, the researchers say "it should not be used as a tool to achieve improvements in generic health related quality of life or psychological outcomes."

Telehealth uses technology to help people with health problems live more independently at home. For example, blood pressure or blood glucose levels can be measured at home and electronically transmitted to a health professional, reducing the need for hospital visits.

Self help books and websites can benefit severely depressed patients

Depression is a major cause of disability worldwide and effective management of this is a key challenge for health care systems. Evidence suggests 'low-intensity' interventions provide significant clinical benefit. Initial severity of depression is one of the key variables determining who gets 'low' or 'high' intensity treatment, but this is largely based on epidemiological studies and clinical experience rather than high quality evidence.

Long-term use of medication does not improve symptoms for heart failure patients

Among patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, long-term treatment with the medication spironolactone improved left ventricular diastolic function but did not affect maximal exercise capacity, patient symptoms, or quality of life, according to a study appearing in the February 27 issue of JAMA.

Police and firefighters at higher risk for mental disorders following traumatic events

Police, firefighters and other protective services workers who are repeatedly exposed to traumatic events and are new to their profession are at greater risk of developing a psychiatric disorder, according to a new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The researchers also found that protective services workers do not appear to have a higher prevalence of mental health problems than workers in other occupations. The study results are featured in the February 2013 issue of Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness.

Bridal registries: Moms have been replaced by markets

Bridal registries might be efficient – sparing the gift-giver from hours of shopping and the recipient from having to return unwanted items. But that convenience may come at a cost: Where once the mom held great sway over selecting the intimate items that shaped the new household, now Target, Macy's and other retailers have taken over that role.

Clinical Intuition—A Complex Concept Characterized by Numerous Cognitive Processes

To gain a better understanding of "clinical intuition" as experienced by physicians, researchers conducted in-depth interviews with 18 family physicians, analyzing 24 different patient cases in which the physicians believed they had experienced an intuition.

While the medical literature discusses clinical intuition as "first impressions" or the first thing that comes to a physician's mind, researchers found this is only a part of what most family physicians understand by the term intuition.

Sequestration is not a smart strategy for reducing the deficit, say small business leaders

Alexandria, Va.—February 26, 2013— More than two-thirds (67%) of small business leaders say basic research funded by the federal government is important to private sector innovation, according to a new nationwide survey of small business owners/operators commissioned by Research!America. In addition, nearly half (45%) say medical research funding to universities and other non-governmental research institutions should not be cut as part of sequestration, and a plurality (40%) say that such across-the-board cuts are not a smart strategy for reducing the deficit.