Health News Roundup

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Each month, the Observer brings you a roundup of some recent health news.


Telehealth visits are still covered by Medicare – for now

Medicare recipients who rely on telehealth visits for their care will still have Medicare coverage of those visits, at least until later this year. After that, the future of this service, which many older Americans find vital to their health, is in question.

Telehealth visits are defined as using a tablet, computer or smartphone to speak with a health care provider without going into the provider’s office. Medicare expanded its coverage of telehealth visits during the COVID pandemic and has continued to cover that service. However, Congress put coverage of telehealth on the chopping block in its efforts to fund the federal government in late December. Telehealth coverage was part of the bill; however, both President Donald Trump and American businessman​ Elon Musk objected to the bill. Congress ultimately approved a three-month extension to the funding bill. But then negotiations will begin again, and telehealth Medicare coverage will once again be subject to federal funding whims.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, telehealth services are extremely popular. According to an April 2023 federal report, about 22% of U.S. adults reported a recent use of telehealth, and more than one-quarter of Medicare recipients reported a recent telehealth visit. According to a recent American Medical Association Update, experts are optimistic Congress will figure out a permanent solution to continue Medicare coverage of telehealth.

Combination flu and COVID at-home tests now available

As flu and COVID cases ramp up, consumers may want to consider stocking up on the new at-home flu and COVID diagnostic tests.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first combination flu-COVID at-home test in October. The test kits, which typically sell for about $30 for a package of two tests, function similarly to the at-home COVID tests Americans have been using for years. The test requires a nasal swab and produces results in about 15 minutes.

The test will tell users if they have COVID, influenza A, influenza B or are negative for those three viruses. Studies show the tests are about 80% accurate – similar to the efficacy rates for COVID tests.

At-home testing is widely encouraged by physicians. People who test positive for either COVID or flu can consider taking an antiviral medication (Paxlovid for COVID or Tamiflu for flu) that could shorten the duration of the illness and lessen the severity of symptoms. The antiviral medications work best if taken early in the course of the illness. Knowing you have an infectious respiratory disease also allows patients to isolate and help protect others from getting sick.

Don’t understand your test results? You’re not alone.

A federal law passed in 2021 required that all medical test results be released to a patient’s electronic medical record as soon as they become available. However, the law, known as the 21st Century Cures Act, can create additional anxiety for patients who read their results and don’t understand them, according to a study from University of Michigan scientists published in January in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Test results are written for medical professionals, such as pathologists, radiologists or surgeons. The study showed that most adults cannot get basic information from a standard medical test report. However, when those reports are written for patients – called patient-centered reports – patients were able to accurately assess the test results with a high degree of reliability.

The study also showed that patients’ anxiety about their health is closely linked with how well they understood their results.

The study authors suggest that medical systems issue patient-centered reports to patients. Until then, they said, patients should ask their doctors how to best interpret the results of their tests even before they undergo the test.

Inadequate sleep carries serious health risks

Getting fewer than six hours of sleep per night is linked to a higher risk of cognitive impairment and high blood pressure in adults, according to a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The relationship between sleep duration and the risk of cognitive impairment has been debated. Some studies suggest a link while others found no association. The recent study found that people with high blood pressure are especially vulnerable to cognitive damage from inadequate sleep. The study also found that having high blood pressure in midlife is associated with cognitive impairment and dementia later in life.

The study examined 682 people over age 40 enrolled in the multigenerational Framingham Health Study. The participants did not have dementia or a history of stroke. Researchers collected sleep data using a questionnaire and home-based sleep study measures (polysomnographic evaluation). They also measured the participants’ daytime blood pressure and, three years after the sleep assessment, conducted MRI scans to assess changes in brain structure.

They found shorter sleep duration was associated with larger gray matter volume in the brain. Gray matter is central to cognitive function and often decreases in volume in old age. However, they found that sleep duration impacted cognitive function and levels of brain changes only in people with high blood pressure.

The study is a reminder of two well-known strategies for healthy aging, said the study’s author: Get adequate sleep and have your doctor check your blood pressure regularly.