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Vanderbilt Dept. of Health Policy Profile picture
Vanderbilt Dept. of Health Policy
@VUHealthPol
Official account for Dept. of Health Policy, Vanderbilt School of Medicine. Shaping policy through research, education & service. https://t.co/ZzsGdfjf8b
Sep 1, 2021 • 5 tweets • 3 min read
NEW: Today, #Tennessee hit an unfortunate milestone in the pandemic, reaching the highest level of hospitalizations (~3,500) from the virus yet. Several other regions are above the highest points from the winter as well. Many regions are still increasing very rapidly. 1/ Additionally, the use of ICU beds and ventilators are also well above their previous peak, which can impact access to vitally important care for anyone, not just COVID patients.

ICU use is 20% above previous peak. (⚫️ line)
Ventilator use is 40% above previous peak. (🟣 line) 2/
Dec 23, 2020 • 15 tweets • 7 min read
#COVID-19 in #Tennessee: TN leads the U.S. in cases reported per population this week. This is very serious but raises an important question: How should we interpret the latest numbers? A thread … 1/ nytimes.com/live/2020/12/2… Let’s be clear on 1 thing: @TNDeptofHealth is correct that hospitals are beyond their “bend” point and quickly heading to their breaking point. We’re at 2,900 hospitalized and rising. A continued surge following the holidays will create a truly dire situation. 2/
Oct 2, 2020 • 6 tweets • 3 min read
NEW: Nashville news media have seen and reported rising #coronavirus hospitalizations in the past week, a trend we have also observed... 1/ However, what we have also seen is a shift in the age distribution of new #COVID19 cases in #Tennessee regions recently into older age groups, which we know to be at higher risk of poor outcomes, like hospitalization and death. 2/
Aug 14, 2020 • 4 tweets • 3 min read
NEW in @JAMANetworkOpen from @stephenwpatrick, @MelindaBBuntin @ashleyleech et al...

Pregnant women have a harder time getting treatment for #opioid use disorder than nonpregnant women.

MORE ➡️ vumc.org/health-policy/… Image “Only about half of women were given an appointment for treatment with their insurance, the rest were either told no or had to pay cash. In some states, only about 1-in-5 women were given appointments with their insurance,” @stephenwpatrick said. Image
Jul 9, 2020 • 4 tweets • 3 min read
NEW: Hospitalizations for #COVID__19 continue to rise across #Tennessee, and age demographics for those patients is changing. Learn more in our newest report on the epidemic in Tennessee. ➡️ vumc.org/health-policy/… Image Here is a "heat map" of median age by region over time. It's a very different situation depending where you are in Tennessee. Age is a leading risk factor, per the @CDCgov Image
Jul 6, 2020 • 11 tweets • 6 min read
NEW: Here's an updated look at Tennessee's #COVID19 transmission number (R0), and where the most cases are over the last 10 days. (Data current as of July 6.)

Find this and more resources on the public health response to the pandemic here ➡️ vumc.org/health-policy/… Image As a reminder, an R0 above 1.0 means the virus is spreading and gaining momentum, and people who are infected are infecting more than 1 other person on average.
Jun 29, 2020 • 9 tweets • 6 min read
NEW: Here's an updated look at Tennessee's #COVID19 transmission number (R0), and where the most cases are over the last 10 days, from our #COVIDmodel. (Data current as of June 29.)

Also, w/ hospital coalition regions for a closer look at areas w/ higher reported numbers. Image Here's a closer look at the area around #Memphis over the last 10 days. (Note: Gray boundaries are counties, shaded areas are ZIP codes) Image
Jun 22, 2020 • 8 tweets • 5 min read
NEW: Here's an updated look at Tennessee's #COVID19 transmission number (R0), and where the most cases are over the last 10 days, from our #COVIDmodel. (Data current as of June 22.)

Also w/ hospital coalition regions for a closer look at areas w/ higher reported numbers. Image Here's a closer look at #Chattanooga area over the last 10 days. (Note: Gray boundaries are counties, shaded areas are ZIP codes) Image
May 18, 2020 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
WATCH: This morning, @melissamcpheete delivered an update on #COVID19 hospitalizations and cases across Middle Tennessee and the state. This thread also includes slides that were not displayed. Image
May 4, 2020 • 5 tweets • 4 min read
NEW (and big): After increasing nearly six-fold between 2004 and 2014, the rates of #NAS in babies showed signs of leveling off between 2014 and 2016. Latest from @ashleyleech and @stephenwpatrick in @Health_Affairs (cc: @VUMCchildpolicy @NIH) ➡️ vumc.org/health-policy/… Image The findings are certainly good news, but still means that rates remain high compared to previous generations.

"While encouraging, rates are significantly higher than they were 20 years ago; we still have more work to do.” Image
Mar 18, 2020 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
A recent paper in @AmerAcadPeds provided initial analysis of COVID-19 cases in China, but lacked details that clinicians need to consider as treatment policies develop, says Dr. Kathy Edwards, the Sarah H. Sell and Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair of Pediatrics at @VUmedicine 1/ Edwards says: "Only 1/3 of the cases had confirmed COVID 19 infection and 2/3 were suspected and not confirmed. Most children had few symptoms and recovered quickly. A very small number required more intensive care, but no fatalities were reported. ... 2/
Mar 10, 2020 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
.@MurryVelma set out 20 years ago to address one thing: risky behavior in African American youth. It began with 677 rural Georgia families, each with an 11-year-old. Then expanded and added a tech component. Here's what she learned, in @ConversationUS 1/ theconversation.com/how-a-tech-bas… She was initially focused on things like early sexual engagement, and use of drugs and alcohol. The first program was called Strong African American Families Program, or SAAF.

It worked. 2/

cds.web.unc.edu/files/2012/12/…
Jan 24, 2020 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
‼️ NEW STUDY ‼️ In 2013, a law took effect in #Tennessee aimed at curbing prescription of #opioids to slow the growing epidemic. In 1 way, it worked, but research from @melissamcpheete and Jacqueline Yenerall at @UTAgResEcon looks at 1 subpopulation. vumc.org/health-policy/… That group: Patients using opioids for long-term treatment.

What did they find? A sharp decline when the law took effect of opioid prescriptions for more than a 30-day supply. The research appears in @ijdrugpolicy March 2020 edition. Available here: sciencedirect.com/science/articl… Image
Jan 6, 2020 • 5 tweets • 5 min read
🚨Since 2014, there's been 1 burning question: Does expansion of #Medicaid under the #ACA make people healthier? Well, now there's evidence to answer that question. NEW in @Health_Affairs from @johngraves9 @JMichaelMcW @laura_tastic at @harvardmed ➡️vumc.org/health-policy/… Image @Health_Affairs @johngraves9 @JMichaelMcW @laura_tastic @harvardmed This is study is the first to use longitudinal data from the Southern Community Cohort Study, which includes health surveys from thousands of low-income people in 12 states. Here's the full study: healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10.13…
Nov 15, 2019 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
NEW study on #opioids and overdoses in #Tennessee: @melissamcpheete and her partners at @TNDeptofHealth found that prescribing opioids is common in the year before a non-fatal overdoes, and does not decrease considerably following a nonfatal OD event.

vumc.org/health-policy/… Image Also notable, medically assisted treatment, like prescriptions for buprenorphine, may be underutilized. sciencedirect.com/science/articl… Image
Oct 31, 2019 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
#healthpolicy #halloween in full effect at @VUMChealth! 🎃 ImageImageImageImage Loving it! Image
Oct 14, 2019 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
NEW in @JMIR from @JB_Everson, @nicolesenft and #VandyMPH student Evan Butler: Policies to reduce disparities in e-health activities among socioeconomic groups may have had an unintended effect. jmir.org/2019/10/e14976 Image The study examined trends in eHealth disparities before and after the introduction of federal financial incentives. They compared patient-provider messaging (incentivized), and, basically, googling health information (not incentivized). Image
Oct 9, 2019 • 5 tweets • 6 min read
NEW in @NEJM: @MelindaBBuntin explains what states can learn (but also what they won't) from Tennessee's negotiation with @CMSGov to change its #Medicaid program to a block grant.
vumc.org/health-policy/… @NEJM @MelindaBBuntin @CMSGov "These efforts are distinct from block-grant bills proposed
by congressional Republicans and extensively debated in
2017, which sought to limit federal spending and shift financial risk to states in exchange for somewhat greater programmatic flexibility."
Oct 1, 2019 • 6 tweets • 4 min read
NEW: In the latest @Health_Affairs blog, David Stevenson, PhD, professor at @VUmedicine offers up 3 ways policymakers can make headway at improving nursing home care, which has attracted significant attention this summer. healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hbl… Image The alarming reports from @USGAO and @HHSGov OIG that highlight these instances of poor oversight, greed and abuse. gao.gov/products/GAO-1…
Sep 18, 2019 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
Dr. David Satcher is giving a moving retrospective about the highs and lows in #public #health. There’s one idea that connects them... Image That idea? Agreement. When the public agrees about a public health issue, great things happen, Satcher says.
Sep 5, 2019 • 5 tweets • 3 min read
NEW: @johngraves9 @C_Garthwaite @talgross
@ProfNoto find interesting data about #Medicaid expansion effect on hospital usage in expansion states v. non-expansion states. It's out today in @BrookingsEcon. Read here: brookings.edu/bpea-articles/… Some of the key findings: Among the 20 states examined, those that expanded their #Medicaid programs under the #ACA saw increased hospital use and lower levels of uninsured visits. Image