Health News
Features
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Pop Quiz: Test your knowledge of managed-care plans
Preventing health insurance mishaps by knowing how you’re covered THERE’S NO GETTING around the fact that healthcare insurance plans can be complicated and confusing. There are many different types of plans, such as managed-care plans, and each has its own set of rules and requirements. However, having the right information — down to the smallest…
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Health insurance update: Who falls in the coverage gap and how can they get insured?
“I think most of the providers that volunteer feel a moral and ethical obligation to help take care of those people.” — Dr. David Loewy, volunteer with We Care of Polk County LOCAL RESIDENTS who have issues getting health insurance coverage are fortunate in that there are many agencies here that offer a wide range…
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Medicare and end-of-life care: What’s changing?
New proposed policy encourages the process of advanced-care planning END-OF-LIFE DECISIONS are complicated and fraught with emotion, but a recent announcement by Medicare will hopefully offer some clarity to those facing such tough decisions. In early July, Medicare announced plans to pay doctors, nurse practitioners, and physician’s assistants for conversations with patients concerning end-of-life care.…
Columns
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Delicious food and the diabetic’s diet
It’s in the Bag Diabetes is a group of diseases characterized by high glucose levels caused by insufficient production of insulin. That’s a fairly simple definition for a disease that is not simple to treat. In general, and that’s all we can deal with in a short article, a balanced diet is a good starting…
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Body, Mind & Spirit: Giving thanks by giving back
What it Means to be a Foster Family Foster parents provide a safe, nurturing home for children to heal. While there are currently about 150 licensed foster homes in Circuit 10, which covers Polk, Highlands, and Hardee Counties, more are needed. According to Teri Saunders, CEO of Heartland for Children here in Polk County, “That…
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Editor’s Dose: More than just comfort food
Reading this article on food “made with love” for the sick really brought back some memories. As a young teenager, my mother had to undergo open heart surgery twice within four years. She has a blood disorder that causes her body to produce too many of the clot-forming platelets. Adding to that complications of…
