Healthcare

The New Hampshire Insurance Department found what it calls “a warning sign” during an investigation into whether insurance carriers in the state are following a federal law that requires insurers to cover mental health services as they would any other medical services.

Children were restrained or secluded more than 20,000 times in residential youth behavioral health facilities in New Hampshire over a five year period from 2014 to 2018. That’s the finding of a new report from the Office of the Child Advocate, an independent watchdog agency that oversees the state’s Division for Children, Youth, and Families.

A Grafton Superior Court judge has denied Littleton Regional Healthcare's request for an injunction related to the opening of a private urgent care facility in town.

A Grafton Superior Court judge says he'll rule later on an injunction filed by Littleton Regional Healthcare related to the opening of an urgent care facility in the town.

Littleton Regional filed the injunction in October against the Department of Health and Human Services, after the commissioner determined that there would be no adverse effect on the hospital if a ConvenientMD clinic opened less than 3 miles away.

A committee of New Hampshire House lawmakers is calling for the repeal of the state's Medicaid work requirement.

River Valley Community College is developing a new program to train licensed practical nurses.

The LPN program would be offered at the Lebanon and Keene campuses, starting in January, if approved by the state’s Board of Nursing.

In 2018, there were about 1,200 openings for LPNs, according to the New Hampshire Department of Employment Security.  

Licensed practical nurses work under the supervision of physicians and registered nurses. They can collect patient data and provide some treatment. 

Senator Maggie Hassan was one of a group of bipartisan lawmakers who introduced a bill on Thursday designed to stop surprise medical billing.

The plan would set up an arbitration process where medical providers and insurers could work out who pays for an out-of-network visit without involving the patient.

“That's really the key part of our legislation,” said Hassan at a press conference in Washington, D.C., “taking the patient out of these payment disputes between plans and providers.”

U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan said the ripple effects of opioid addiction will be felt for generations. 

She joined NHPR's The Exchange Monday to discuss the federal and state responses to the crisis, as well as the role the FDA may have played in either "wittingly or unwittingly" encouraging overprescribing of opioids. 

Listen to the full interview here, or watch a video of the program below

Hassan also addressed climate change -- she prefers a series of steps, rather than the sweeping Green New Deal. And she's concerned about the possible impact of  Medicare for all proposals now under discussion.

"As you transition people from one system to the next, it can be very disruptive...especially if you're somebody with complex medical needs," she said.

A battle is brewing over the state's new Medicaid "community engagement requirement," which requires certain beneficiaries of Medicaid to engage in various activities, including attending school or holding a job in order to receive coverage.  

New Hampshire is one of a handful of states with this type of arrangement, often called a "work requirement."

A number of affiliated North Country hospitals are pledging to continue working together despite a recent decision by the group's largest member, Littleton Regional Healthcare, to go its own way.

The hospitals include Androscoggin Valley in Berlin, Weeks Medical Center in Lancaster, and Upper Connecticut Valley in Colebrook.

They came together less than four years ago in an attempt to cut costs and keep care accessible to the largely rural communities they serve.

Littleton Regional Healthcare has announced plans to pull out of an affiliation agreement with three Coos County medical centers.

The hospitals formally joined together less than four years ago under a non-profit umbrella organization, North Country Healthcare, in an attempt to cut costs and improve accessibility of care for patients.  

The six-week window for people who buy their own health insurance through the Affordable Care Act begins Thursday.

Three insurance companies—Anthem, Harvard Pilgrim and Ambetter—are offering a total of 17 different plans in New Hampshire.

Even if you like your current plan, consumers are encouraged to shop around as prices and policies tend to shift from year to year. Overall, premiums for 2019 are down slightly from current rates.

The open enrollment window runs through December 15th.

Governor Sununu unveiled a $24 million plan on Tuesday to tackle New Hampshire's nursing shortage.

The Governor says he expects a major surplus in state funds this year and that the majority of it should go to expanding college nursing programs.

Dr. Anna Konopka, a New London doctor who's been fighting in the courts to reopen her practice, was dealt another disappointment this week. In a decision released Wednesday, a judge in Merrimack County Superior Court denied her motion to have her case reconsidered.

The news comes after Konopka learned just last week that she's under investigation by her local police department. The details of that investigation remain unclear. 

A judge in Merrimack County Superior Court has dismissed a case brought by a New London doctor who said she was forced to close her practice under pressure from the state.

Dr. Anna Konopka agreed to surrender her license this fall to settle allegations from the New Hampshire Board of Medicine. The details of those allegations are sealed, but Konopka admits she failed to use an online database required for doctors prescribing opioids. In her mid-80s, Konopka does not use a computer.