2012-02-10T10:01:43Z Copyright (c) 2012, The RAND Corporation RAND Corporation http://www.rand.org/news/press.html http://www.rand.org/news/press/2012/02/08/index2.html 2012-02-08T16:01:00Z 2012-02-08T16:01:00Z

Rules that allow some small employers to avoid regulation under the federal Affordable Care Act are unlikely to have a major impact on the future cost of health insurance unless those rules are relaxed to allow more businesses to opt out.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2012/02/08/index1.html 2012-02-08T16:00:00Z 2012-02-08T16:00:00Z

The financial burden Americans face paying out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs has declined, although prescription costs remain a significant challenge for people with lower incomes and those with public insurance.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2012/02/08.html 2012-02-08T13:54:00Z 2012-02-08T13:54:00Z

If prevention researchers build programs with developmentally relevant content, and provide this content in an engaging, confidential, and non-judgmental way, it can help middle school-aged children avoid alcohol.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2012/01/26.html 2012-01-26T16:00:00Z 2012-01-26T16:00:00Z

The first evaluation of the California Injury and Illness Prevention Program found evidence that it reduces workplace injuries, but only at businesses that had been cited for not addressing the regulation's more-specific safety mandates. Higher penalties could enhance compliance but having inspectors conduct more in-depth assessments and linking the violations and injuries to the program would have more impact.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2012/01/20.html 2012-01-20T00:01:00Z 2012-01-20T00:01:00Z

A review of recent Israeli military conflicts indicates the United States may be ill-prepared for "hybrid" warfare against state-sponsored adversaries who have a modicum of training and small force numbers, but possess advanced weapons and enough expertise to challenge the U.S. military.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2012/01/11.html 2012-01-11T09:01:00Z 2012-01-11T09:01:00Z

Promoting immunizations as a part of routine office-based medical practice is needed to improve adult vaccination rates, a highly effective way to curb the spread of diseases across communities, prevent needless illness and deaths, and lower health care costs.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2012/01/05.html 2012-01-05T00:01:00Z 2012-01-05T00:01:00Z

The United States should engage in activities that increase understanding about how a deterrence relationship between Israel and Iran may evolve, and encourage direct communication between Israelis and Iranians through informal diplomatic channels.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/12/15.html 2011-12-15T15:30:00Z 2011-12-15T15:30:00Z

When it comes to designing a new submarine, Australia has considerable expertise, but some gaps still exist.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/12/14/index1.html 2011-12-14T14:00:00Z 2011-12-14T14:00:00Z

With the need for HIV services in developing countries rising and the availability of funding flat or declining, existing resources should be better leveraged to help provide life-saving services to more people in need.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/12/14.html 2011-12-14T13:30:00Z 2011-12-14T13:30:00Z

A new online guide is available from the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to help hospitals and other health care organizations anticipate, avoid and address problems that can occur when adopting and using electronic health records.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/12/05.html 2011-12-05T16:00:00Z 2011-12-05T16:00:00Z

The number of people aged 23 to 26—primarily women—who became registered nurses increased by 62 percent from 2002 to 2009, approaching numbers not seen since the mid-1980s. This trend should ease some of the concern about a looming nursing shortage in the United States.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/11/28.html 2011-11-28T11:00:00Z 2011-11-28T11:00:00Z

An attack on Iranian nuclear facilities by the United States or Israel would make it more, not less difficult to contain Iran's nuclear ambitions. The sympathy aroused for Iran would make containment of Iranian influence much more difficult for Israel, for the U.S., and for the Arab regimes currently allied with Washington.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/11/22.html 2011-11-22T14:42:00Z 2011-11-22T14:42:00Z

Use of retail medical clinics located in pharmacies and other retail settings increased tenfold between 2007 and 2009. The determining factors in choosing one over a physician's office were found to be age, health status, income, and proximity to the clinic.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/11/16.html 2011-11-16T12:41:00Z 2011-11-16T12:41:00Z

With the health care safety net in California under stress from the state's continuing financial crisis, jurisdictions across the state face unprecedented challenges caring for the health and social service needs of people released from state prisons.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/11/09.html 2011-11-09T09:00:00Z 2011-11-09T09:00:00Z

Despite the recent drawdown in Iraq, the high operational tempo of the past decade that has included longer and more-frequent deployments has resulted in significant mental health problems among some service members. More than 200 programs are available to help treat psychological health and traumatic brain injury issues, but better coordination of those efforts is needed.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/11/07.html 2011-11-07T16:00:00Z 2011-11-07T16:00:00Z

Under bundled payments, doctors, hospitals, and other providers share one fee for treating all aspects of a procedure such as a hip replacement or a chronic disease like diabetes. The approach should eliminate unnecessary care and improve quality, but putting it into practice is proving to be more difficult than anticipated.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/10/28.html 2011-10-28T14:03:00Z 2011-10-28T14:03:00Z

Three leaders with broad backgrounds in public service and business have been elected to the RAND Corporation Board of Trustees, RAND President and CEO James A. Thomson announced today. The new members are transportation and highway administrator Mary E. Peters, investor David K. Richards and health care leader Leonard D. Schaeffer.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/10/24.html 2011-10-24T12:00:00Z 2011-10-24T12:00:00Z

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/10/19.html 2011-10-19T16:01:00Z 2011-10-19T16:01:00Z

Treating U.S. veterans with mental illness and substance use disorders is more expensive than caring for those with other medical conditions but the quality of mental health care offered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is as good as or better than that reported by privately insured, Medicare, or Medicaid populations.

http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/10/18.html 2011-10-18T15:00:00Z 2011-10-18T15:00:00Z

Mexican citizens are living longer and overall have experienced an improvement in the quality of life compared to that of prior generations. However, the demographic transition in Mexico combined with the lack of formal sources of income in retirement place many older persons in a state of financial insecurity.