Skim Health December 16, 2016

Top health articles of interest circulating in the media this week, 12.16.16.

• People who are frequently active but may spend an equal amount of time sitting display similar risks for disease and early death– even more so than their less active peers, according to this New York Times Well piece.
• Despite a general increase in lifespan for Americans, the gap between low-income and wealthy Americans is beginning to reflect in many other areas of health, according to the Brookings Institution- particularly when it comes to obesity rates, stress levels, and self-assessments of health. A report via The Hamilton Project.
• Those who have spent time in prison are typically sicker than the average American. Studies based out of Ohio and Texas suggest that more than 8 in 10 returning prisoners have a chronic medical condition, often untreated, due to lack of insurance or mistrust of physicians. NPR reports.
• Common perceptions surrounding type II diabetes is that it is the result of too much sugar and inactivity. But this startling documentary by executive producer Elliot Kirschner, director Adam Bolt, producer Jessica Harrop, and editor Regina Sobel, reveals that this is only part of the problem when it comes to looking at the growing- and treating- disease. Read more or watch the documentary via Motherboard.
• For those who do not qualify for Medicare or Medicaid and fall through the cracks of the Affordable Care Act, life can often feel like a living in a ‘dead zone.” For many living in the states that did not expand Medicaid, those who were supposed to benefit from Obamacare have emerged among the most forgotten. The New York Times captures a harrowing life lived in the coverage gap.

Barrier Islands Free Medical Clinic provides medical care to eligible patients, just like any family practitioner or internist – but it is free. We serve uninsured adults living at or below 200 % of the Federal poverty level who live or work on Johns, Wadmalaw or James Islands. You can follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.