Laura Enderle

This article originally appeared online in 

	In an unveiling ceremony held Wednesday, the White House issued new regulations that will require all health insurance plans to provide certain preventive services at no cost to patients.

	The rules, which belong to the Affordable Care Act, will go into effect on September 23, 2010. Patients who enroll in health plans on or after this date will be eligible to take advantage of a long list of “evidence-based preventive services,” according to a 

 by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

	Copays, deductibles, and coinsurance payments will be eliminated for blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol tests; certain cancer screenings; counseling services for smoking, alcohol, depression, and obesity; as well as routine vaccines and flu and pneumonia shots.

The regulations also ensure comprehensive preventive care for children, covering regular physician’s office visits for babies, children, and adolescents up to age 21. These visits will include physicals, immunizations, and screenings and counseling for common childhood conditions. An additional suite of services will be available to pregnant and nursing women.

Although the rules will eliminate out-of-pocket costs for the services offered, the change is likely to raise insurance premiums by an average of 1.5%, the 

Like every aspect of health care reform, the plan has received mixed reviews. Supporters view the services as crucial to reducing the high costs of preventable chronic disease. According to HHS, eliminating cost sharing—a known barrier to the use of preventive care&mdash;is an essential first step. “Today, too many Americans do not get the high-quality preventive care they need to stay healthy, avoid or delay the onset of disease, lead productive lives, and reduce health care costs,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. The regulations are needed to “help transform the health care system from a system that focuses on treating the sick to a system that focuses on keeping every American healthy,” she added.

Critics of the plan believe it will open the door to lobbyists and disease advocates, in addition to raising the cost of insurance. In a report for the 

 Christopher Weaver of the Kaiser Health Network wrote that the task force in charge of implementing the plan could become “a political lightning rod.”

“If it doesn't recommend a service,” Weaver argued, “insurers might not pay for it, and advocates might argue the decision is a barrier to care. If the panel does back a service, it might increase patients' access, as well as create new business opportunities.”

Now that the benefits are available, an additional challenge for the administration will be convincing Americans to take advantage of them. “Getting access to early care and screenings will go a long way in preventing chronic illnesses like diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “These are important tools, and now it’s up to us to use them.”

For a complete review of the new services, visit 

http://www.healthcare.gov/law/about/provisions/services/index.html

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Last Wednesday, the White House announced new regulations that will require all health insurance plans to provide certain preventive services at no cost to patients.

Health Plans to Provide Free Preventive Care

With applications for recording everything from calorie intake to sleep habits, smartphones are an increasingly valuable tool for patients to quickly and accurately self-monitor their vitals. Especially for those suffering from chronic migraines, long-term tracking of symptoms can be an essential component of diagnosis and pain management. While several developers have pounced on this market by producing apps that function as simple “headache journals,” few are as precise or comprehensive as the iHeadache 1.2, developed by neurologist Brian D. Loftus, MD, of BetterQOL, Inc.

The application, which costs $9.99 for the iPhone version and $14.99 for the BlackBerry version, is designed to facilitate communication between doctors and patients to improve quality of treatment for chronic head pain. When patients enter symptoms, headaches are classified using industry-standard ratings systems like the Migraine Disability Assessment Scale (MIDAS). The MIDAS measures the extent to which headaches impair daily functioning. Headaches are also classified by the International Headache Society (HIS) criteria, which categorizes them into three major types: migraines, probable migraines, and tension headaches.

The most recent version of the application also allows patients to keep track of common headache triggers, such as chocolate, stress, or alcohol, or to create their own custom triggers based on observed correlations. Medication data can also be stored to monitor the effectiveness of prescriptions or over-the-counter drugs used to treat frequent headaches.

The information is stored in iHeadache for a period of 15 months, and users can generate reports on 28- or 30-day cycles. These reports could lead to valuable insights into the patterns, causes, and treatment of migraines. For more information, or to download a free trial on a Blackberry or iPhone, visit 

With applications for recording everything from calorie intake to sleep habits, smartphones are an increasingly valuable tool for patients suffering from chronic migraines.

Laura Enderle

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