Healthcare

Robinson: How Do We Attract Doctors And Healthcare Workers? Think Tank Has A Plan

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By SHERRY ROBINSON
All She Wrote
©2024 New Mexico News Services

How long does it take you to get an appointment with your doctor? If your answer is weeks or months, or “What doctor?” Think New Mexico has you in mind.

The nonpartisan think tank recently published a plan to solve New Mexico’s healthcare worker shortage. The group has done its usual thorough work of defining the problem and presenting a potentially do-able solution.

Most riveting, I thought, is the part about reforming the state’s medical malpractice act. This 48-year-old law, its changes and loopholes are a giveaway to malpractice Read More

Catch Of The Week: UMC Ransomware Attack

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By REBECCA RUTHERFORD
Los Alamos
For the Los Alamos Daily Post

Nobody likes going to the hospital, but what if you became seriously ill or injured and the hospital had to turn you away at the door?

That’s exactly what happened at University Medical System (UMC) in Lubbock, Texas after they recently suffered a ransomware attack and had to divert incoming patients to other hospitals.

What is ransomware?

Ransomware is a malicious software designed to block access to computer systems until a sum of money is paid. The first documented ransomware attack occurred in 1989 when attendees of the World Health Read More

Denish: Abortion, A Personal Story

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By DIANE DENISH
Corner to Corner
© 2024 New Mexico News Services

On August 8 in a press conference, Donald Trump said he believed abortion has become “much less of an issue” and that it would be a “very small issue” in the general election. He is wrong.

Just a reminder: Donald Trump appointed justices committed to ending a woman’s right to make her own healthcare decisions. He is proud of getting Roe v. Wade overturned. As a result, almost half the states now either ban or severely restrict women’s right to abortion and reproductive care.

Trump has forgotten about the women of my generation who were Read More

Scenes From LAMC’s Free Drive-Thru Flu Shot Clinic

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Los Alamos Medical Center (LAMC) Nurse Karen administers a free flu vaccine this morning as Vickie Martinez prepares a Band-Aid to apply afterward during LAMC’s Free Drive-Thru Flu Shot Clinic underway until noon today. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

Vehicles line up this morning at LAMC’s Free Drive-Thru Flu Shot Clinic underway until noon today. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

RN Nurse James administrators a flu shot this morning during LAMC’s Free Drive-Thru Flu Shot Clinic underway until noon today. Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

Welcoming drivers this morning Read More

DEA Issues Warning About Illegal Online Pharmacies

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DEA News:

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has seen an increase in illegal online pharmacies selling and shipping counterfeit pills made with fentanyl and methamphetamine to unsuspecting customers in the United States who believe they are purchasing real pharmaceutical drugs such as Oxycodone, Adderall, Xanax, and other drugs from legitimate pharmacies.

As Americans increasingly turn to online pharmacies to purchase necessary medications [1], DEA is issuing this Public Safety Alert to warn of an increase in illegal online, often foreign-based websites that are deceptively Read More

State OSI Announces 2025 Qualified Health Plan Rates … A Dozen Healthcare Plans For Less Than $10 A Month

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Alice T. Kane

From the Office of the Superintendent of Insurance:

SANTA FE – The Office of the Superintendent of Insurance (OSI) completed its review of 2025 Qualified Health Plan (QHP) rates for New Mexico residents. 

The OSI reviewed Individual Market – Medical applications from Health Care Service Corporation (dba BCBSNM), Molina Healthcare of New Mexico, Inc, Presbyterian Health Plan, Inc. and United Healthcare of New Mexico, Inc.

Overall, in 2025, New Mexicans will see a 10.2% rate increase in the individual market and 9% in the small group market. Despite these rate increases, subsidies Read More

County Blood Drive Underway In Muni Bldg. Parking Lot

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Los Alamos County, in collaboration with Vitalant, is hosting a blood drive until 3 p.m today, Oct. 1 at this bloodmobile parked in the Municipal Building parking lot at 1000 Central Ave. The drive is to address the declining number of blood donations in the United States. Blood donations are essential for saving lives, as there is no substitute for human blood. Many patients, including those undergoing surgeries, battling cancer, or facing emergencies, rely on blood transfusions for survival. However, the number of Americans who donate blood is decreasing, posing a significant challenge Read More

Breast Cancer Awareness Month: What To Know About Your Mammogram

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By JANET SANDY, FNP
Los Alamos Women’s Health
Los Alamos Medical Center

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month – a time for all of us to acknowledge the impact breast cancer can have on our lives, and to learn about the ways we can keep ourselves healthy. Breast cancer is a health risk for many people, with one in eight women expected to develop the disease during her lifetime. Thankfully, breast cancer is very treatable – if detected early. For women who are at risk, scheduling screening mammograms on a regular basis is an essential part of managing your health.

This October, add Breast Cancer Awareness Read More