Telehealth use remains high among rural, older Medicaid members in Florida

| 8/30/2022

Telehealth use remains high among rural, older Medicaid members in Florida

Among Medicaid patients in Florida, those in rural areas and older than 65 used telehealth more than their counterparts, highlighting the need for continued access to virtual care for vulnerable populations, according to a new report. The report, published by Elevance Health's Public Policy Institute, includes data from members enrolled in Florida's Simply Healthcare Medicaid plans. [Source: mHealth Intelligence]

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» Telehealth boomed during the pandemic -- and so did telehealth fraud

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Johns Hopkins All Children's president puts hospital's mission in focus

K. Alicia Schulhof, president of Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital St. Petersburg since July 2021, likes to start staff meetings with a “mission moment” — a story that demonstrates “the impact our team members have each and every day on the patients we care for.” One of her favorite stories from her first year involved a 7-year-old girl named Maya, who stayed at the hospital more than 200 days waiting for a heart transplant. During that time, the girl grew close to Carli Fischer, her certified child life specialist, who one day learned that Maya’s favorite color was “rainbow.” That information came in handy later when a heart finally became available for Maya and, as she was being prepped for surgery, Maya asked Fischer to describe the new heart she’d be getting. [Source: Florida Trend]

Florida's COVID case counts and hospitalizations show a decline

Florida's COVID-19 case counts and hospitalizations are continuing to decline, and fewer counties are listed as being at high risk of transmission, according to recent federal and state data. The number of residents testing positive dropped during the past two weeks, according to data released Friday by the state Department of Health. The data showed that 43,703 people tested positive for COVID-10 from Aug. 19 through Thursday, after 45,416 tested positive the previous week. Those were the first weeks in more than two months that new cases totaled fewer than 50,000. More from Health News Florida and the News Service of Florida]

With kids back in Florida schools, doctors stress the importance of vaccines

Pediatricians are using the start of a new school year to encourage families to make sure kids are caught up on vaccinations, including routine shots against measles and polio and ones that protect against COVID-19. Florida has some of the lowest COVID-19 vaccination rates for children in the country as the coronavirus continues to spread around the state. Just over 27% of kids in the 5-11 age group had received at least one dose as of Aug. 17, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Only 2.2% of kids between 2 and 4 years old and 1.1% of babies 6 months to 2 years old had. [Source: WUSF]

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Tags: Health Care eNews

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