North Carolina Health Link Weekly – February 27, 2015

The health care industry is one that begs discussion — it’s personal, it’s social, and it impacts us all. Every week we come across hundreds of articles, tweets, updates, and briefs. We thought you’d like to read some of what we’re seeing right now, and start a conversation. Tune in Fridays for your weekly dose of all things North Carolina health care news related.

Got a link to share? Tweet us at @bcbsnc with #NCHealthLinkWeekly, and we could feature your story in an upcoming Friday edition.

North Carolina Health Link Weekly  – February 27, 2015

 

Innovation and Trends

• The world’s first human head transplant: could it happen in the next 2 years (Medical Health News, 02-27-2015)
  An Italian surgeon will announce plans to conduct the first ever human head transplant, claiming the procedure could happen within the next 2 years.
• New high-tech device offers hope for epilepsy patients (USA Today, 02-26-15)
  The device includes a small, battery-powered neurostimulator that continuously monitors the brain’s electrical activity.

Healthcare Technology

•  ‘Bionic’ eye allows man to see wife for first time in a decade (CNN, 02-24-15)
  A blind man is now able to see objects and people again, including his wife and family, for the first time in a decade. How? With the help of a bionic eye implant.
• Video Feature: Apps for Meditation and Calming on iPhone and Android (NYT, 02-25-15)
  Your smartphone can actually be an agent of calm, relaxation and mindfulness.

Health and Fitness

• Stress: its surprising implications for health (Medical News Today, 02-25-15)
  Around 75% of us report experiencing moderate to high levels of stress over the past month. It is well known that stress can cause sleep problems, headache and raise the risk of depression
• Your blood pressure is borderline high. What should you do about it? (Washington Post, 02-23-15)
  Perhaps this has happened to you: You go to the doctor, for a checkup or a sprained ankle, and find that your blood pressure is high.
• Exposing infants to peanuts causes big reduction in peanut allergy, study shows (Washington Post, 02-23-15)
  Peanut allergy, an occasionally life-threatening condition prompts changes in food consumption rules everywhere from pre-schools to airlines.
• Behind New Dietary Guidelines, Better Science (New York Times, 02-22-15)
  For decades, many dietary recommendations have revolved around consuming a low percentage of your daily calories from fat.

 

Industry News

• Sign-Up Season Is Over, But List Of Special Enrollment Events Is Expanding (Kaiser Health News, 02-27-15)
  When the annual sign-up period for individual Obamacare coverage ended earlier this month, it meant that in general, people are locked into their plans for the year.
• Five Health Care Developments Important to Employers (JD Supra Business Advisor, 02-26-15)
  Perhaps never before have employers faced so many challenges when it comes to health care issues affecting their workforce.
• In N.C., 16% still don’t have health insurance, among highest in U.S. (Triangle Business Journal, 02-25-15)
  North Carolina is among the states that still have the highest rate of uninsured residents, according to a Gallup study released Tuesday.
• Legal liabilities in recent data breach extend far beyond Anthem (Modern Healthcare, 02-23-15)
  The potential legal liabilities is unprecedented breach.

Video

Kay Yow’s Live Fearless Story

Hear Kay Yow’s friends and family share her Live Fearless story on how she always had a positive outlook on life, and lead her NC State Women’s Basketball team while giving them hope even during the toughest days of her battle with cancer.Find more Live Fearless stories at www.LiveFearlessNC.com.