INSIGHTS AND PERSPECTIVES

WASHINGTON — The economic recession attributed to a mere 4% rise in healthcare spending, the slowest rate of growth in the 50-year history of the National Health Expenditure Accounts, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

That number translates to $2.5 trillion, or about $8,086 per person.

CMS added that, despite the slowdown, healthcare spending growth continued to outpace overall economic growth, which declined 1.7% in 2009, as measured by nominal Gross Domestic Product.

WASHINGTON — The Food Marketing Institute and the Grocery Manufacturers Association on Wednesday announced their support for a research study about how consumers use brand websites and how the use of these websites impacts shoppers’ in-store buying behavior.

DENVER — Omega-3 fatty acids from seafood may reduce inflammation and symptoms of gum disease and risk of abnormal heartbeats, according to recent articles in the December 2010 PUFA Newsletter and Fats of Life e-newsletters for health professionals and consumers.

NEW YORK — More than 25% of children and teens take at least one medication on a daily basis, and nearly 7% are on two or more drugs, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing 2009 data from Medco Health Solutions. Drawing additional data from IMS Health, the article noted that prescriptions for hypertension in people under the age of 20 years could reach 5.5 million for 2010 by the time year-end results are tabulated, which would mark a rise of 17% since 2007. 

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — The industry has a lot to learn in order to determine how to most effectively use electronic communications to improve patient medication adherence, as few studies show how health information technology can be leveraged to motivate patients to take medications as prescribed, according to research sponsored by CVS Caremark.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT’S IMPORTANT — Everyone likes to be proven right. And Walgreens' leaders are justifiably proud of the company’s record performance in first quarter fiscal 2011.

(THE NEWS: Walgreens drives accelerating renewal program. For the full story, click here)

BOSTON — Scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health and collaborators from other institutions have identified a natural substance in dairy fat that substantially may reduce the risk of Type 2 diabetes. 

Reporting in the Dec. 21 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, investigators led by Dariush Mozaffarian, associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology at HSPH, explained that the compound trans-palmitoleic acid is a fatty acid found in milk, cheese, yogurt and butter that is not produced by the body.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT’S IMPORTANT — The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board just delivered a rather large lump of coal to those 30-some-odd supermarkets carrying these wine kiosks, especially as retail wine sales for 2010 appear to be on a significant upswing since Thanksgiving.

(THE NEWS: Pa. supermarket wine kiosks taken off-line. For the full story, click here)