Latest news with #healthcare
Washington Post
30 minutes ago
- Health
- Washington Post
6 protein mistakes you're making and how to fix them
Optimizing your protein intake can be tricky. It's not just how much protein you eat that matters, but when you eat it, and the foods that you get it from. You may even have higher protein needs than you think depending on your overall health, your age, your activity levels and other factors.
CNN
30 minutes ago
- Health
- CNN
More employers plan to pass along health care costs to workers in 2026
Battered by multiple years of high health care costs, employers are planning to shift more of the expense to workers in 2026, a new survey released Wednesday found. Just over half of employers are planning to adjust their health insurance offerings to increase staffers' share of the cost, such as instituting higher deductibles or annual out-of-pocket maximums, according to Mercer's Survey on Health and Benefit Strategies for 2026. The tight labor market and rising cost of living in recent years had made companies more reluctant to add to workers' financial burden, Mercer said. Some 45% of employers reported in 2025 that they would shift more costs to staffers. 'Employers are thinking, we're at a point where we can't do another year of not passing along some of the cost increases,' said Beth Umland, director of research at Mercer's Health and Benefits business. Companies expected their health benefits expenses to jump by nearly 6% this year, after experiencing a 4.5% increase in 2024. Costs will likely rise at an even higher rate next year, driven in part by patients' increased usage and doctors using artificial intelligence to more accurately bill insurers, said Sunit Patel, US chief health actuary at Mercer. Another area of cost concern is coverage of anti-obesity GLP-1 medications, which are very popular but very expensive. Nearly two-thirds of companies with 20,000 or more workers provided such coverage in 2024, while 44% of employers with 500 or more workers did. The pace of employers adding such coverage is likely to slow in 2026, Umland said. Companies may be reluctant to stop providing the benefit but may narrow eligibility or require more documentation — making it more difficult for workers to access it, Patel said. Meanwhile, employers remain committed to providing mental health services for staffers, the survey found. More are offering onsite Employee Assistance Program counseling services — some 35% will do so next year, up from 29% this year. They are also providing more sessions, moving to six to eight sessions, rather than the traditional three to five. Also, as employers increasingly require staffers to return to the office, companies are more interested in providing child care or elder care benefits, Mercer found. Some 54% of large employers provide — or will offer next year — at least one child care resource, including a platform to search for child care, access to backup child care services or tuition discounts. Likewise, 58% of large employers offer or plan to provide at least one type of elder care benefit, including grief counseling, a platform to search for elder care or access to backup elder care services. Some 59% of employers will offer at least one resource to support women's reproductive health, including lactation support, high-risk pregnancy and pre-conception family planning. Employees will find out more details about their health care benefits for the coming year during the annual open enrollment period, which typically occurs in the fall.
CNN
an hour ago
- Health
- CNN
More employers plan to pass along health care costs to workers in 2026
Battered by multiple years of high health care costs, employers are planning to shift more of the expense to workers in 2026, a new survey released Wednesday found. Just over half of employers are planning to adjust their health insurance offerings to increase staffers' share of the cost, such as instituting higher deductibles or annual out-of-pocket maximums, according to Mercer's Survey on Health and Benefit Strategies for 2026. The tight labor market and rising cost of living in recent years had made companies more reluctant to add to workers' financial burden, Mercer said. Some 45% of employers reported in 2025 that they would shift more costs to staffers. 'Employers are thinking, we're at a point where we can't do another year of not passing along some of the cost increases,' said Beth Umland, director of research at Mercer's Health and Benefits business. Companies expected their health benefits expenses to jump by nearly 6% this year, after experiencing a 4.5% increase in 2024. Costs will likely rise at an even higher rate next year, driven in part by patients' increased usage and doctors using artificial intelligence to more accurately bill insurers, said Sunit Patel, US chief health actuary at Mercer. Another area of cost concern is coverage of anti-obesity GLP-1 medications, which are very popular but very expensive. Nearly two-thirds of companies with 20,000 or more workers provided such coverage in 2024, while 44% of employers with 500 or more workers did. The pace of employers adding such coverage is likely to slow in 2026, Umland said. Companies may be reluctant to stop providing the benefit but may narrow eligibility or require more documentation — making it more difficult for workers to access it, Patel said. Meanwhile, employers remain committed to providing mental health services for staffers, the survey found. More are offering onsite Employee Assistance Program counseling services — some 35% will do so next year, up from 29% this year. They are also providing more sessions, moving to six to eight sessions, rather than the traditional three to five. Also, as employers increasingly require staffers to return to the office, companies are more interested in providing child care or elder care benefits, Mercer found. Some 54% of large employers provide — or will offer next year — at least one child care resource, including a platform to search for child care, access to backup child care services or tuition discounts. Likewise, 58% of large employers offer or plan to provide at least one type of elder care benefit, including grief counseling, a platform to search for elder care or access to backup elder care services. Some 59% of employers will offer at least one resource to support women's reproductive health, including lactation support, high-risk pregnancy and pre-conception family planning. Employees will find out more details about their health care benefits for the coming year during the annual open enrollment period, which typically occurs in the fall.
Medscape
an hour ago
- Health
- Medscape
Here's How to Navigate the Transition From RN to NP
Nurse practitioners (NPs) play integral roles in many types of healthcare settings. They provide care in rural, urban, and suburban hospitals, urgent care centers, clinics, and private practices. They diagnose and treat a range of conditions, order diagnostic testing, prescribe medications, and much more. And their numbers are growing. The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) reported that there were about 355,000 licensed NPs in the US in 2022 and nearly 385,000 in 2023. In 2025, those numbers have increased to over 431,000 NPs, according to the AANP. To become a NP, you must first be a registered nurse and then complete a NP-focused master's or doctoral nursing program, and then pass a national NP board certification exam. To learn more about what that first year on the job is like, we talked with Lani Orellana, NP in the Medical Intensive Care Unit at Christiana Hospital in Newark, Delaware. She recently completed her first year as an NP after more than 13 years as a nurse. New Skills, New Responsibilities For Orellana, becoming an NP meant building on skills learned during her previous career as a nurse, while developing new skills and finding ways to adapt to some big changes in responsibility. 'One of the biggest revelations this past year has been the shift in identity from being an expert nurse to becoming a novice provider,' she said. 'My years of nursing experience, time spent at bedside, and a rigorous nurse practitioner program gave me a strong foundation for this transition. But it was not until I started practicing that I truly understood the weight of the responsibility that I felt.' Orellana's role in patient care shifted quickly. 'Suddenly, I went from patient advocate and receiving orders to being the one giving them,' she recalled. 'Nurses began looking to me for clinical decisions. It was a humbling experience and one that I hope I never lose sight of.' Orellana's first year as an NP also opened her eyes to just how complex the role of NP can be and how much there is to learn. 'Even after years spent at the bedside and countless hours in the classroom and clinic to reach the point of graduation and taking our boards, it feels as if a whole new set of skills then needs to be developed,' she explained. 'It may feel overwhelming at times, but our roles demand that we continue to strive for new knowledge and develop expertise so that we become experts in our nurse practitioner roles.' Your Best Doesn't Have to Be Perfect All that new responsibility and learning can seem overwhelming. But Orellana recommends first stepping back and thinking about how you want to interact with patients and the other professionals on your team. 'My biggest piece of advice to a new nurse practitioner is to imagine the kind of provider others enjoy working with and that patients and families would feel lucky to have,' she said. 'Strive to be that person.' Keep in mind that you have already worked in demanding situations and learned how to be a compassionate and cooperative healthcare provider. Use that knowledge to help you with the challenges ahead. 'As nurses, bedside experiences give us a unique perspective that adds to the value that nurse practitioners bring to the care team,' Orellana said. 'We can take our bedside experiences in caring for our patients, building relationships with families, and patient advocacy and use that to foster trusting relationships with not only patients and families but our coworkers as well.' And while you probably hold yourself to a high standard, remember that your early months and years on the job are going to have ups and downs. Even veteran NPs find themselves learning from mistakes along the way. 'Give yourself grace if you ever feel like you may have made a mistake,' Orellana said. 'I often remind myself, 'You never learn anything from the easy ones.' That mindset has helped me turn challenges into learning opportunities and build confidence with each new experience.' Be Ready to Assist and Be Assisted Regardless of the setting in which you work or the degree of autonomy you have, there will always be times when you'll be called on to help a colleague and have a colleague help you. Just remember to stay humble and professional, Orellana said. 'As nurse practitioners, we are leaders in our field, and it is our responsibility to uphold the standards of our professional practice,' she said. 'Also, always reach out for help when you need to. Never make a clinical decision if you are uncertain or second-guessing yourself. There should always be a resource available to you for those times you may be faced with challenging clinical situations or even if you need to run an idea or thought by someone else who is more experienced.'
BBC News
an hour ago
- Health
- BBC News
Barrow hospital could stop treating sickest patients permanently
Sick and injured people requiring the highest level of intensive care may have to be transported more than an hour's drive away to a neighbouring county under a plan to permanently reduce a hospital and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB) intends to make permanent the temporary suspension of the level 3 unit at Furness General Hospital (FGH), in Barrow-in-Furness, due to a lack of who require lower levels of critical care will continue to be treated at FGH, but the sickest patients would have to attend Royal Lancaster director Prof Andy Knox said the ICB would engage with the community and staff before confirming the cuts. FGH suspended the provision of the highest intensive care services last September due to the impact on patient safety caused by issues with recruiting enough qualified and experienced ICB said only three of the required eight permanent consultants were in Knox said: "Medical staffing within the unit at FGH has been a concern for several years, with consultant cover not meeting national guidance despite significant efforts from the trust." Michelle Scrogham, Labour MP for Barrow and Furness, said she believed it was the wrong decision."For as long as it's been announced I've been opposed to it, I don't think they've taken into account that it's one road in and one road out [of Barrow]."She said the route was often closed due to accidents, floods or roadworks and it was only "a matter of time before somebody pays the price for that"."We've got a growing population in Barrow and we need to offer those services." Since the suspension, over a six-month period 30 people have been transferred to chief medical officer Dr Caroline Brock said University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay Trust was "absolutely committed" to FGH and its future as a district general hospital."We understand the impact this will have on our colleagues and local community and that there may be concerns about what this means for FGH," she added."If the decision is made to make the changes permanent, we will work with our teams to develop a safe and effective treat and transfer model - using evidence-based learning from other trusts across the country who run similar services in geographically isolated areas like Barrow."We will continue to work with the ICB and support colleagues, patients and families throughout." Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
