The Future of Health Care in AZ
AHCCCS will host public meetings across the state to provide additional information regarding the future of Arizona’s Medicaid program. Here's the Public Meeting Schedule and more information.
Community Water Fluoridation – An Evidence Review
I've written a few times about fluoridation - about it being an inexpensive public health intervention and the benefits of fluoride when the EPA and HHS changed the how much they recommend to add to the water supply. But it's always an interesting topic to revisit. Recently, the University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College [...]
Breastfeeding & Cannabis
Some AZ health care providers and parents have asked questions about whether medical marijuana is safe for use while breastfeeding. The short answer is no, because the active chemical in marijuana is passed to the baby through breast milk. For this reason, most experts, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC advise moms not to use marijuana [...]
Dispensary Drawing Procedures Report Published
We carefully planned our processes for randomly selecting medical marijuana registration certificates in competitive districts to make sure the process was fair and transparent. Part of our planning included contracting with Henry & Horne, LLP to independently observe the entire process. The contract included a requirement to develop a final report documenting their observations. The [...]
Think Before You Ink
Many of you have probably seen the signs around town about the Tattoo Expo that is happening this weekend in Phoenix. Tattoos have been growing in popularity over the past decade, but that doesn't mean they’re completely safe. Recently there was a recall of tattoo ink because the ink was contaminated with an unusual (and stubborn) bacteria [...]
Global Stakeholders
I often get good feedback about the things that we're accomplishing and the decisions that we're making... but it's not often that I get feedback from the other side of the globe- but that's just what happened this week. Kyoung-Jun Song, MD, an emergency physician in South Korea sent me an e-mail this week thanking [...]
SAMHSA Standards
We’re happy to announce that we’re officially adopting four evidence-based practice models endorsed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) including Assertive Community Treatment (ACT); Supported Employment; Permanent Supportive Housing; and Consumer-Operated Services. We’re adopting these evidence-based best practice models because they resonate with our core commitment to a system of care [...]
New “Home-Grown” ITS Programs
Team ITS delivered and deployed 2 more new web modules for the Medical Marijuana application this week: the 1) dispensary agent processing module; and 2) a new version of the Verification System which more efficiently facilitates card verification for law enforcement officers and employers in real time. Thanks much to everyone who assisted in the development of these modules. From ITS, [...]
Introducing our Newest Assistant Director
I’m happy to announce that we’ve been able to draft Pat Benchik to serve as our new Assistant Director for Behavioral Health Services. Pat's had a long career in behavioral health here in Arizona. He started his career in the 1980s working as an administrator at La Frontera in Tucson. He worked at the Pima [...]
Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze Health Plans
The Affordable Care Act will establish various tiers of health insurance coverage beginning in 2014. The baseline “tier” will be a minimum amount of coverage that people need to have to satisfy the federal mandate to have health insurance (or face a tax penalty). Insurers will be required to offer plans that fit within four levels [...]