Free Tonight?

The Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine Society of Alumni & Friends is hosting a mixer tonight at Pins Mechanical in Dublin at Bridge Park (6558 Riverside Drive).

Alumni, students, and friends are invited to drop in anytime between 5:00-7:00 pm to mingle over pizza, libations, and duckpin bowling.

Details are here.

Lyme Disease is a Rising Concern in Ohio

As Ohioans spend more time outdoors during the summer months, contact with ticks and the diseases they carry will increase. Tickborne diseases have been on the rise—with a 35-fold increase in reported Lyme disease cases in Ohio over the past 13 years.

The Ohio Department of Health’s (ODH) Zoonotic Disease Program within the Bureau of Infectious Diseases has developed a fact sheet for physicians and health care providers about when to consider a differential diagnosis for tickborne diseases including Lyme disease; laboratory testing to make a diagnosis; treatment for tickborne illnesses; and additional resources.

Get the document here.

Non-Medical Cannabis Update

On November 7, 2023, a majority of Ohio voters approved Issue 2 to legalize the possession and use of marijuana by individuals aged 21 and over, the sale of marijuana by state-licensed dispensaries to those individuals, and to create the Division of Cannabis Control within the Ohio Department of Commerce.

The Division issued initial non-medical cannabis licensure applications on June 7, which are only open to current medical marijuana license holders.

Sales of non-medical cannabis may not begin until licenses are issued and facilities are certified. The general public is not permitted in dispensaries at this time unless the individual is a registered patient or caregiver in the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program (MMCP). Currently, there are no individuals or entities licensed to sell non-medical cannabis in the state of Ohio, and any sale of marijuana prior to non-medical licenses being issued may be subject to criminal penalties.

MMCP patients and caregivers are encouraged to keep their patient or caregiver card active, even after non-medical cannabis sales begin.

Proposed rules and FAQs can be found here.

Four Factors Driving the Trend on Early Death

The Health Policy Institute of Ohio (HPIO) has released a new publication titled 2024 Health Value Dashboard Data Brief: What’s Driving the Trend on Early Death

Using data from the 2024 Health Value Dashboard, the brief explores the experiences and environments that lead to deaths among working-age Ohioans (ages 15-64) and provides a set of policies to drive improvement. The biggest increases in this population are in unintentional injuries (including overdose deaths), chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, homicide, suicide, and chronic lower respiratory diseases.

Previous HPIO analysis of death trends shows this age group is dying at a much higher rate than 15 years ago. Data from the recently released 2024 Dashboard shows four factors that are driving this trend:

• Addiction and overdose
• Alcohol overuse
• Tobacco use
• Violence and firearms

The data brief also includes 10 policy options for state and local leaders to improve health, advance equity and ensure that more working-age Ohioans reach their full potential.

More information is here.

It’s White Coat Season

Medical school starts in eight weeks for first-year students at Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. With that, comes the invitation to personally welcome the Class of 2028 by sponsoring the purchase of a white coat. The Ohio Osteopathic Association and individual donors provide each student with their first white coat as a gift to commemorate the beginning of their academic career as a medical student.

By making a $45 donation, you can sponsor the purchase of a coat to connect with these newest members of the Ohio osteopathic family. When you make your donation, you have the opportunity to write a short note to a new student. Your words of encouragement, advice, or any message of your choice will be printed onto an OOA notecard and tucked in the coat pocket. Students will receive their coats and notes at the Convocation & White Coat Ceremony in August.

The coats have OOA and HCOM patches, providing a sense of unity and belonging.

Make your donation online here. Be sure to write your message in the comment box.

AOA Addresses Private Practice Challenges

Last month, the AOA submitted a statement to the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee hearing on the collapse of private practice and the challenges facing independent medicine. The letter highlights many issues, including the negative impacts of health care consolidation, such as reduced access to care and increased physician burnout, especially in rural areas.

The letter noted the potential detrimental effects of private equity acquisitions, which often prioritize profits over patient care, leading to poorer patient outcomes and increased hospital-acquired conditions. The statement also covered the economic pressures causing rural hospital closures and increased travel distances for patients seeking care.

The letter calls on Congress to support several bills that help address challenges facing independent medicine, including:

• The Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act (HR2389), which increases the number of residency positions funded by Medicare, with particular emphasis on hospitals in rural areas and Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs);
• The Rural Physician Workforce Production Act (HR834), which aims to increase residency positions and financial support for rural hospitals, and;
• The Strengthening Medicare for Patients and Providers Act (HR 2474), which provides financial stability by providing inflationary updates to Medicare physician payment.

Additionally, the AOA called for sustainable physician payment models and adjustments to Medicare's budget neutrality threshold to ensure the viability of independent practices.

Read the statement here.

State Allocates $88 Million to Support Public Health

It was announced this week that the state will award more than $88 million in funding to help nearly a dozen Appalachian school districts improve public health and enhance workforce development in their areas.

The Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (OFCC) is awarding the funds as part of the Appalachian Community Innovation Centers Program, which was created in partnership with the Ohio General Assembly. The goal of the program is to create full-service centers for public education, community health services, and career development in Appalachia Ohio.

Funding will cover expenses related to the construction of four new school-based community wellness, education, and career development centers in Mahoning, Jefferson, Noble, and Brown counties. Seven existing school-district sites will be renovated or expanded to provide services in Belmont, Carroll, Lawrence, Gallia, Perry, Trumbull, and Clermont counties.

Each center will provide programming and services which could include in-demand job training; Ohio Means Jobs support; classrooms and computer labs; walk-in health and mental health clinics; on-site dental services; and wellness, physical health, and training space.

The new centers will be open to any Ohioan who needs assistance, including those living outside the school districts receiving the awards.