Having some fall fun with her main man, January Jones took Xander to Underwood Family Farms in Moorpark, California on Saturday (October 19).
The "Mad Men" star dressed casually in a green plaid shirt, blue jeans, and ankle boots as she kept her little guy close.
Currently in limited release, the 35-year-old actress is starring in the western flick, "Sweetwater," directed by Logan Miller.
Joining January in the cast are Ed Harris, Jason Iaacs, Jason Aldean, and Eduardo Noriega. In the movie set in the late 1800s, a a fanatical religious leader, a renegade Sheriff, and a former prostitute collide in a blood triangle.
“ For the first time in history, if you are an energetic entrepreneur with a brilliant new idea or a fantastic new product ... you can get very, very rich, very, very quickly.
Author and politician Chrystia Freeland says economic inequality is growing by leaps and bounds. She charts the rise of today's billionaire plutocrats and wonders what the concentration of wealth means for the rest of us.
About Chrystia Freeland
In her book, Plutocrats: The Rise Of The New Global Super-Rich And The Fall Of Everyone Else, Chrystia Freeland looks under the hood of global capitalism to explain the technological, economic and structural inequalities pushing society in unforeseen directions.
Along the way, she takes the temperature of a growing caste of super-rich billionaires and shows how the creation of vast fortunes at the top hollow out the middle class in Western industrialized countries.
Freeland began her career as an "accidental journalist" with front-line bulletins from the Ukraine in the heat of the Soviet collapse. She recently left her post as managing director and editor at Thomson Reuters. She's now running for office with the center-left Liberal Party of Canada.
Prescription drug use among Medicare patients highly inconsistent
Public release date: 17-Oct-2013 [
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Contact: Annmarie Christensen annmarie.christensen@dartmouth.edu 603-653-0897 Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
First-ever Dartmouth Atlas report on prescriptions finds wide variation in the use of both effective and potentially harmful medications across US
Lebanon, N.H. (October 15, 2013) A new report from the Dartmouth Atlas Project shows that the use of both effective and risky drug therapies by Medicare patients varies widely across U.S. regions, offering further evidence that location is a key determinant in the quality and cost of the medical care that patients receive.
In their first look at prescription drug use, Dartmouth researchers also find that the health status of a region's Medicare population accounts for less than a third of the variation in total prescription drug use, and that higher spending is not related to higher use of proven drug therapies. The study raises questions about whether regional practice culture explains differences in the quality and quantity of prescription drug use.
"There is no good reason why heart attack victims living in Ogden, Utah, are twice as likely to receive medicine to lower their cholesterol and their risk of another heart attack than those in Abilene, Texas, but this inconsistency reflects the current practice of medicine in the United States," said Jeffrey C. Munson, M.D., M.S.C.E., lead author and assistant professor at The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice.
"This report demonstrates how far we still have to go as a nation to make sure people get the care they need when they need it," said Katherine Hempstead, Ph.D., M.A., senior program officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, a longtime funder of the Dartmouth Atlas Project. "Instead of varying widely, patterns of care should be nearly uniform across the country for non- controversial drug therapies with a strong evidence for their use."
The new report offers an in-depth look at how prescription drugs are used by Medicare beneficiaries in the program's Part D drug benefit, which had 37 million enrollees in 2012. The report separates the country into 306 regional health care markets and examines variations among them in the quantity and quality of prescription drug use, spending, and use of brand name drugs. To examine the quality of care, the report looks at prescription use in three categories:
Drug therapies proven to be effective for patients who have suffered heart attacks, have diabetes, or have broken a bone;
Discretionary medications, which have less clear benefits, but may be effective for some patients who take them; and
Potentially harmful medications, for which risks generally outweigh benefits.
"We need to learn from regions that consistently provide high-quality care, and focus attention on regions that appear to offer the worst of both worlds: high-risk and discretionary medications and, in relative terms, low use of effective drug therapies," said Nancy Morden, M.D., M.P.H., report co- author and associate professor at The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice. "This will help us understand and ultimately improve prescribing quality for all Medicare beneficiaries."
Total use of prescription medications
The average Medicare Part D patient filled 49 standardized 30-day prescriptions in 2010. At the high end, patients in Miami, filled an average of 63 prescriptions, compared to patients in Grand Junction, Colo., who filled 39 prescriptions per year. Other high-use regions included Lexington, Ky., (59 prescriptions) and Huntington, W.Va., (58), compared to low-use regions in Albuquerque, N.M., (40) and San Mateo County, Calif. (41).
Use of effective prescription care
The report examines the use of proven drug therapies, including the use of beta blockers and statins in the months after a heart attack and the use of osteoporosis drugs after bone fractures.
Nearly eight in 10 heart attack survivors (78.5%) filled at least one prescription for a beta blocker in the seven to 12 months following a hospital discharge in 2008 or 2009. The results ranged from San Angelo, Texas, (91.4%) to Salem, Ore., (62.5%). The pattern of statin use after a heart attack was similar to that of beta blocker use, with 72 percent of heart attack survivors filling a statin prescription in the second six months after leaving the hospital. The results for statin use ranged from a high in Ogden, Utah, (91.3%) to a low in Abilene, Texas (44.3%). The regions that excelled in beta blocker use did not necessarily achieve similar results with statin therapy, despite the fact that both beta blocker therapy and strict control of cholesterol levels are recommended by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) for the same condition in the same patients. No single region was in the top 10 regions for highest rates of use for both measures.
NCQA also recommends that survivors of a fracture resulting from osteoporosis should receive drugs that reduce the risk of subsequent fractures. However, only 14.3 percent of fragility fracture survivors received a drug to combat osteoporosis within six months of their fracture. The use of osteoporosis drugs across regions ranged from Honolulu, Hawaii, (28%) to Newark, N.J. (6.8%).
Use of potentially harmful medications
More than one in four Medicare Part D beneficiaries (26.6%) filled at least one prescription in 2010 for medications that have been identified as high-risk for patients over age 65, such as skeletal muscle relaxants, long-acting benzodiazepines, and highly sedating antihistamines. Patients in Alexandria, La., (43%) were more than three times as likely to receive at least one high-risk medication as patients in Rochester, Minn. (14%). More than 6 percent of Medicare patients filled a prescription for two or more different high-risk medications, including 14.6 percent of patients in Alexandria, La.
Total prescription drug spending
Spending on prescriptions by the Part D drug plans and their patients totaled $2,670 per beneficiary. Spending varied nearly threefold across regions, with a $2,968 difference between the lowest-spending regionSt. Cloud, Minn. ($1,770)and the highest spending region, Miami ($4,738).
Prescriptions filled with brand name products
When available, generic medications are generally equally effective and less costly than their brand-name counterparts. Thus, the relative use of brand-name products offers one view of prescribing efficiency. Overall, 26.3 percent of prescriptions were filled as a brand-name product in 2010. Patients in Manhattan (36%) were more than twice as likely to fill a prescription for a brand- name product than patients in La Crosse, Wis. (16.5%).
###
The full report, The Dartmouth Atlas of Medicare Prescription Drug Use, and complete data tables can be found at http://www.dartmouthatlas.org.
Methodology
Overall prescription drug use, spending for prescription drugs, and the use of brand-name medications were measured for Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and over who were continuously enrolled in a stand-alone Part D plan in 2010 (based on a 40% random sample). High-risk and discretionary medication use were also measured in this population. High-risk medications examined were those identified by NCQA as generally conferring more risk than benefit in older people. Discretionary medications were defined as those commonly prescribed in situations with higher diagnostic and therapeutic uncertainty. Effective prescription drug use measures were based on widely accepted, evidence-based prescribing guidelines. Effective drug use was studied for three groups of Part D beneficiaries: patients who had a heart attack, patients ages 65-75 with treated diabetes, and patients with a fragility fracture (a fracture of the hip, wrist, or shoulder commonly resulting from osteoporosis). For some effective care measures, earlier years were included in order to increase the sample size to allow for more accurate estimation of utilization in disease-specific cohorts.
About the Dartmouth Atlas Project
For more than 20 years, the Dartmouth Atlas Project has documented glaring variations in how medical resources are distributed and used in the United States. The project uses Medicare data to provide information and analysis about national, regional, and local markets, as well as hospitals and their affiliated physicians. This research has helped policymakers, the media, health care analysts and others improve their understanding of our health care system and forms the foundation for many of the ongoing efforts to improve health and health systems across America.
About the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, measurable, and timely change. For 40 years, the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime. Follow the Foundation on Twitter or Facebook.
See more at: http://tdi.dartmouth.edu/press/press-releases/prescription-drug-use-among-medicare-patients-highly-inconsistent#sthash.EDaub79q.dpuf
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Prescription drug use among Medicare patients highly inconsistent
Public release date: 17-Oct-2013 [
| E-mail
| Share
]
Contact: Annmarie Christensen annmarie.christensen@dartmouth.edu 603-653-0897 Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
First-ever Dartmouth Atlas report on prescriptions finds wide variation in the use of both effective and potentially harmful medications across US
Lebanon, N.H. (October 15, 2013) A new report from the Dartmouth Atlas Project shows that the use of both effective and risky drug therapies by Medicare patients varies widely across U.S. regions, offering further evidence that location is a key determinant in the quality and cost of the medical care that patients receive.
In their first look at prescription drug use, Dartmouth researchers also find that the health status of a region's Medicare population accounts for less than a third of the variation in total prescription drug use, and that higher spending is not related to higher use of proven drug therapies. The study raises questions about whether regional practice culture explains differences in the quality and quantity of prescription drug use.
"There is no good reason why heart attack victims living in Ogden, Utah, are twice as likely to receive medicine to lower their cholesterol and their risk of another heart attack than those in Abilene, Texas, but this inconsistency reflects the current practice of medicine in the United States," said Jeffrey C. Munson, M.D., M.S.C.E., lead author and assistant professor at The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice.
"This report demonstrates how far we still have to go as a nation to make sure people get the care they need when they need it," said Katherine Hempstead, Ph.D., M.A., senior program officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, a longtime funder of the Dartmouth Atlas Project. "Instead of varying widely, patterns of care should be nearly uniform across the country for non- controversial drug therapies with a strong evidence for their use."
The new report offers an in-depth look at how prescription drugs are used by Medicare beneficiaries in the program's Part D drug benefit, which had 37 million enrollees in 2012. The report separates the country into 306 regional health care markets and examines variations among them in the quantity and quality of prescription drug use, spending, and use of brand name drugs. To examine the quality of care, the report looks at prescription use in three categories:
Drug therapies proven to be effective for patients who have suffered heart attacks, have diabetes, or have broken a bone;
Discretionary medications, which have less clear benefits, but may be effective for some patients who take them; and
Potentially harmful medications, for which risks generally outweigh benefits.
"We need to learn from regions that consistently provide high-quality care, and focus attention on regions that appear to offer the worst of both worlds: high-risk and discretionary medications and, in relative terms, low use of effective drug therapies," said Nancy Morden, M.D., M.P.H., report co- author and associate professor at The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice. "This will help us understand and ultimately improve prescribing quality for all Medicare beneficiaries."
Total use of prescription medications
The average Medicare Part D patient filled 49 standardized 30-day prescriptions in 2010. At the high end, patients in Miami, filled an average of 63 prescriptions, compared to patients in Grand Junction, Colo., who filled 39 prescriptions per year. Other high-use regions included Lexington, Ky., (59 prescriptions) and Huntington, W.Va., (58), compared to low-use regions in Albuquerque, N.M., (40) and San Mateo County, Calif. (41).
Use of effective prescription care
The report examines the use of proven drug therapies, including the use of beta blockers and statins in the months after a heart attack and the use of osteoporosis drugs after bone fractures.
Nearly eight in 10 heart attack survivors (78.5%) filled at least one prescription for a beta blocker in the seven to 12 months following a hospital discharge in 2008 or 2009. The results ranged from San Angelo, Texas, (91.4%) to Salem, Ore., (62.5%). The pattern of statin use after a heart attack was similar to that of beta blocker use, with 72 percent of heart attack survivors filling a statin prescription in the second six months after leaving the hospital. The results for statin use ranged from a high in Ogden, Utah, (91.3%) to a low in Abilene, Texas (44.3%). The regions that excelled in beta blocker use did not necessarily achieve similar results with statin therapy, despite the fact that both beta blocker therapy and strict control of cholesterol levels are recommended by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) for the same condition in the same patients. No single region was in the top 10 regions for highest rates of use for both measures.
NCQA also recommends that survivors of a fracture resulting from osteoporosis should receive drugs that reduce the risk of subsequent fractures. However, only 14.3 percent of fragility fracture survivors received a drug to combat osteoporosis within six months of their fracture. The use of osteoporosis drugs across regions ranged from Honolulu, Hawaii, (28%) to Newark, N.J. (6.8%).
Use of potentially harmful medications
More than one in four Medicare Part D beneficiaries (26.6%) filled at least one prescription in 2010 for medications that have been identified as high-risk for patients over age 65, such as skeletal muscle relaxants, long-acting benzodiazepines, and highly sedating antihistamines. Patients in Alexandria, La., (43%) were more than three times as likely to receive at least one high-risk medication as patients in Rochester, Minn. (14%). More than 6 percent of Medicare patients filled a prescription for two or more different high-risk medications, including 14.6 percent of patients in Alexandria, La.
Total prescription drug spending
Spending on prescriptions by the Part D drug plans and their patients totaled $2,670 per beneficiary. Spending varied nearly threefold across regions, with a $2,968 difference between the lowest-spending regionSt. Cloud, Minn. ($1,770)and the highest spending region, Miami ($4,738).
Prescriptions filled with brand name products
When available, generic medications are generally equally effective and less costly than their brand-name counterparts. Thus, the relative use of brand-name products offers one view of prescribing efficiency. Overall, 26.3 percent of prescriptions were filled as a brand-name product in 2010. Patients in Manhattan (36%) were more than twice as likely to fill a prescription for a brand- name product than patients in La Crosse, Wis. (16.5%).
###
The full report, The Dartmouth Atlas of Medicare Prescription Drug Use, and complete data tables can be found at http://www.dartmouthatlas.org.
Methodology
Overall prescription drug use, spending for prescription drugs, and the use of brand-name medications were measured for Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and over who were continuously enrolled in a stand-alone Part D plan in 2010 (based on a 40% random sample). High-risk and discretionary medication use were also measured in this population. High-risk medications examined were those identified by NCQA as generally conferring more risk than benefit in older people. Discretionary medications were defined as those commonly prescribed in situations with higher diagnostic and therapeutic uncertainty. Effective prescription drug use measures were based on widely accepted, evidence-based prescribing guidelines. Effective drug use was studied for three groups of Part D beneficiaries: patients who had a heart attack, patients ages 65-75 with treated diabetes, and patients with a fragility fracture (a fracture of the hip, wrist, or shoulder commonly resulting from osteoporosis). For some effective care measures, earlier years were included in order to increase the sample size to allow for more accurate estimation of utilization in disease-specific cohorts.
About the Dartmouth Atlas Project
For more than 20 years, the Dartmouth Atlas Project has documented glaring variations in how medical resources are distributed and used in the United States. The project uses Medicare data to provide information and analysis about national, regional, and local markets, as well as hospitals and their affiliated physicians. This research has helped policymakers, the media, health care analysts and others improve their understanding of our health care system and forms the foundation for many of the ongoing efforts to improve health and health systems across America.
About the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, measurable, and timely change. For 40 years, the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime. Follow the Foundation on Twitter or Facebook.
See more at: http://tdi.dartmouth.edu/press/press-releases/prescription-drug-use-among-medicare-patients-highly-inconsistent#sthash.EDaub79q.dpuf
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) — No. 24 Auburn didn't win a single Southeastern Conference game last season.
So no one could blame running back Tre Mason for shedding a few tears as the final seconds ticked in the Tigers' 45-41 upset of No. 7 Texas A&M on Saturday.
"Those were tears of happiness," he said. "We did something a lot of people didn't think we could do."
Nick Marshall accounted for four scores and Auburn battered Johnny Manziel in the victory. Last season the Aggies beat Auburn 63-21.
Mason's 5-yard score with less than 2 minutes to play was first placed at the 1, but it was reviewed and ruled a touchdown.
"Our plan was to be in the game at halftime and wear them down in the second half," Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said. "I think for the most part it worked."
A&M (5-2, 2-2 SEC) had a last chance, but Manziel, the Heisman Trophy winner, was sacked by Dee Ford on fourth down to secure the win.
"We didn't make enough plays at the end of the day," Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin said. "We had our opportunities — couldn't make a play."
Manziel threw for 454 yards and four touchdowns and ran for a fifth score, but was intercepted twice. He missed a series in the fourth quarter with an injury to his right shoulder. He returned but was constantly moving his right arm. Sumlin didn't provide any details on the injury after the game, but said Manziel told him he was "ready to go."
Marshall threw for 236 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 100 yards and two more scores for Auburn (6-1, 3-1).
Texas A&M's Mike Evans had a school-record 287 yards receiving with four touchdowns to become the first player in school history to have two, 200-yard receiving games in a career. He scored on receptions of 26, 64, 42 and 33 yards.
Manziel wasn't made available to the media after the game, and the school said Evans refused to do interviews.
Auburn entered the game leading the SEC with 287 yards rushing a game and piled up 379 yards rushing against the Aggies. Mason led the way with 178 yards and Corey Grant added 45.
"That's Auburn's identity, tough, hard-nosed football," Mason said. "We're going to run the ball and if you can't stop it, then oh well. We stuck to it. The O-line did great. They had great pressure up front and I had to do my job."
Texas A&M's inexperienced defense, which entered the game ranked in the bottom 25 in the country in yards allowed, continued to be a problem Saturday.
"In my career when you score 41 points you should win — end of story," defensive coordinator Mark Snyder said.
Manziel connected with Evans for his fourth TD on a 33-yard pass — that Auburn was called for pass interference on — giving A&M a 31-24 lead late in the third quarter.
Manziel was injured when he was tackled on an 8-yard run early in the fourth quarter.
He got up after the tackle and then went to the ground before he reached the A&M sideline. A&M officials looked at him for a couple of minutes on the turf before he got up and walked off on his own power.
He was replaced by Matt Joeckel, who threw an incomplete pass on third down and A&M settled for a 20-yard field goal to push the lead to 34-24.
Marshall cut A&M's lead to 3 when he ran 13 yards for a touchdown with about 12 minutes left.
Joeckel remained in for A&M's next possession and the Aggies had to punt.
Cameron Artis-Payne put Auburn ahead 38-34 with a 2-yard run with about 9 minutes remaining. Tre Mason slashed through the line and ran 53 yards to set up the score.
Manziel returned and orchestrated a 75-yard drive capped by his 1-yard touchdown run to give A&M a 41-38 lead with about 5 minutes left.
Marshall found Sammie Coates on a screen pass and he coasted into the end zone untouched for a 43-yard touchdown to tie it at 24-24 in the third quarter.
Evans took a short pass from Manziel and darted through traffic for a 26-yard touchdown that gave A&M a 7-0 lead in the first quarter.
The Tigers answered when Marshall ran 14 yards for a touchdown on Auburn's first drive.
Auburn took a 10-7 lead on a 27-yard field goal in the first quarter after Manziel's first interception.
Texas A&M's next drive was a quick one. Evans grabbed an 11-yard pass before taking a short throw, getting free on a block by Malcome Kennedy and dashing 64 yards down the sideline for a touchdown that put A&M back on top 14-10.
The Tigers coughed the ball up on their next possession when Howard Matthews forced a fumble by Marshall which was recovered by Steven Jenkins.
But the Aggies weren't able to take advantage of that miscue, with Manziel throwing another interception six plays later. He evaded three defenders before launching the pass into double coverage which was intercepted just in front of the goal line by Ryan White.
Marshall escaped the rush and found Quan Bray in the end zone for the 13-yard touchdown that gave Auburn a 17-14 lead early in the second quarter.
A&M tied it with a 37-yard field goal by Josh Lambo.
The Aggies regained the lead just before halftime when Evans scored again. This time he pulled in a short pass, juked a defender and then stiff-armed another before diving into the pylon for a 42-yard touchdown to make it 24-17.
ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - Orlando's international airport authority approved a $1.1 billion improvement program, financed in part by $543.5 million in revenue bonds, to meet growing tourism industry demand linked to the area's theme parks.
"This community is exploding. We've got to be prepared for it because it's coming," Greater Orlando Airport Authority chairman Frank Kruppenbacher said on Thursday.
Passenger traffic at Orlando International, the 13th busiest airport in the nation, stands at 35 million, including 1.8 million international arrivals, according to GOAA executive director Phil Brown.
The bonds will be backed by general revenues derived from airport concessions, and by Federal Aviation Administration-approved passenger facility charges, according to the project budget.
Brown said requests for proposals will go out to investment bankers by the end of the year to ready the first $150-180 million issue for the first quarter of 2014.
The improvements include four additional international gates, upgrades to the ticket hall and baggage screening areas, an automated people mover, and a rail terminal to accommodate the announced All Aboard Florida, a privately financed initiative to provide train service between Orlando and Miami.
The work will bring annual passenger capacity to 45 million, according to the airport authority news release.
The current airport facility, originally designed to accommodate 24 million passengers annually, opened in phases beginning in 1981, a decade after the arrival of Walt Disney Co. turned Orlando into a worldwide tourist destination. Previous expansions occurred in 1991 and 2009, according to a GOAA timeline.
Passenger traffic is projected to exceed 40 million by 2016 when Disney opens its next big draw, a new themed section at the Animal Kingdom park based on director James Cameron's popular Avatar movie and planned sequels.
Additional visitors are being drawn by Orlando's fast-growing Medical City of hospital and research facilities in Lake Nona.
The new capital plan also includes a trigger to begin final design and construction of an additional $1 billion new terminal, for which financing details have not yet been established, once annual traffic reaches that 40 million passenger mark, including 2 million international arrivals.
The GOAA timeline projects the new terminal opening in 2019.
By Amelia Mularz So your zero-gravity Sandra Bullock costume isn't exactly panning out. We've got a couple other movies that might inspire your Halloween wears. Here's what's playing this weekend: On the Big Screen: "Carrie" It's time for a whole new generation to develop illogical fears of tampons and high school dances. The new "Carrie" […]Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2013/10/18/the-weekend-guide-carrie-plus-other-teens-with-bad-attitudes/ Similar Articles: nascarthe bachelorette
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