Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JP Morgan Chase join forces to tackle employees’ health-care costs

By Carolyn Y. Johnson January 30 at 8:31 AM - Washington Post

Three major employers, Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JP Morgan Chase, announced Tuesday they were  partnering to create an independent company aimed at reining in health- care costs for their employees.

The independent company would be jointly led by executives from all three companies and would be focused on technology that could increase transparency and simplify health care, according to the joint announcement. It will be free from the need to deliver a profit.

"The ballooning costs of healthcare act as a hungry tapeworm on the American economy. Our group does not come to this problem with answers. But we also do not accept it as inevitable," Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway chairman said in a statement.

Few details were available about the new initiative, described as in the initial planning stages. The announcement comes amid anticipation that Amazon could disrupt health care as it has in other industries -- sending tremors through companies that make and supply prescription drugs.

“The healthcare system is complex, and we enter into this challenge open-eyed about the degree of difficulty,” Jeffrey P. Bezos, Amazon founder said in a statement. “Hard as it might be, reducing healthcare’s burden on the economy while improving outcomes for employees and their families would be worth the effort. Success is going to require talented experts, a beginner’s mind, and a long-term orientation.”

the original article can be found here

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US NEWS: Emergency Services Crews Often Unprepared for Diabetic Crises

By Serena Gordon
HealthDay Reporter

FRIDAY, Jan. 26, 2018 (HealthDay News) -- If you call 911, you expect to get the medical services you need.

But new research suggests that when it comes to severe low blood sugar episodes in people with diabetes, first responders might not be able to administer a potentially lifesaving medication called glucagon.

Glucagon is an injectable medication that prompts the liver to release stored glucose. This quickly raises blood sugar.

But paramedics can give the injections, said Dr. Craig Manifold, medical director of the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians. That's because paramedics get between 750 and 1,500 hours of education compared to about 100 to 150 hours of training for EMTs.

Low blood sugar levels (hypoglycemia) generally occur in people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes taking insulin or other blood sugar-lowering medications. Researchers said more than 100,000 serious hypoglycemia episodes occur each year.

Gabbay noted even U.S. Supreme Court justices aren't immune to this problem. Earlier this month, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who has type 1 diabetes, had to call emergency services for help with serious low blood sugar.

You can read the rest of the article here

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Noninvasive BG monitoring with Apple Watch, "considered to be years away".

There is a recent article circulating in the T1 community that in part reads, "Citing anonymous sources within Apple, reports in Bloomberg and the New York Times over the past weeks continue to add to the pile of leaks and rumors about two of Apple's currently under-development health devices: a wrist-worn glucose sensor and an EKG built into the Apple Watch."

The article goes on to call the glucose sensor a, "a noninvasive continuous glucose reader".

If you were to surf over to the New York Times link on the subject and read down you would see this...

“Separately, Apple is continuing research on a noninvasive continuous glucose reader, according to two people with knowledge of the project. The technology is still considered to be years away, industry experts said.”

— New York Times

"considered to be years away..."

That's pretty much it. I don't want to be a Debbie Downer and I'm certainly not a Negative Nancy but I didn't want you all to feel like this was coming with the next version of the Apple Watch. 

Now on to some good news...

I have a new giveaway for you to check out.

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UCLA-led study blames mental lapses on sleep-deprived brain cells

From UCLA.edu

Ever sleep poorly and then walk out of the house without your keys? Or space out while driving to work and nearly hit a stalled car?

A new study led by UCLA’s Dr. Itzhak Fried is the first to reveal how sleep deprivation disrupts brain cells’ ability to communicate with each other. Fried and his colleagues believe that disruption leads to temporary mental lapses that affect memory and visual perception. Their findings are published online today by Nature Medicine.

“Lack of sleep interfered with the neurons’ ability to encode information and translate visual input into conscious thought.”

“We discovered that starving the body of sleep also robs neurons of the ability to function properly,” said Fried, the study’s senior author, a professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Tel Aviv University. “This leads to cognitive lapses in how we perceive and react to the world around us.”

The remainder of the article is found here.

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Did Eli Lilly just get into the insulin pump game?

from Drug Delivery Business

Dexcom said today that it inked a development deal with Eli Lilly to include its continuous glucose monitor in the insulin-maker’s connected delivery devices.

The pair plans to start clinical trials by the end of this year, adding that they hope to position the combination of their technologies as a comprehensive solution for people with diabetes.

“Lilly’s Connected Diabetes Ecosystem promises to drive a significant step forward in diabetes management. As technology converges in our industry, we believe that connected systems will become the standard of care over time,” Kevin Sayer, Dexcom president & CEO said in prepared remarks.

“By combining devices, drugs and technology, we can deliver solutions that adapt to each person’s unique needs in managing their diabetes while also providing compelling advancements for both physicians and payers.”

“The Connected Diabetes Ecosystem relies not only on Lilly’s core diabetes expertise, but also the strength of our key partners such as Dexcom,” Enrique Conterno, president of Lilly Diabetes and Lilly USA, added. “Dexcom will be an important collaborator in our mission to improve outcomes and reduce the daily burden for people with diabetes.”

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