County health summit to take place Sept. 25
The Citizens Health Advisory Council will host the fifth annual Health Summit of La Plata County on Sept. 25 at the DoubleTree Hotel, 501 Camino del Rio.
A breakfast buffet will begin at 7:15 a.m., and the presentations will take place from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Registration is available at www.chaclaplata.org and is open until Wednesday. There is no cost to attend the summit.
Speakers from the Pueblo Triple Aim Corporation, the Commonwealth Fund, the Center for Improving Value in Health Care and Pediatric Partners of the Southwest will speak about health-care changes happening locally, statewide and nationally.
Hospice of Mercy offers grief support group
Hospice of Mercy is offering a grief support group for adults who have experienced the loss of a loved one.
The group allows participants to share the experiences of their loss and to explore the processes of grief.
Meetings will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursdays beginning Oct. 2 and continue for eight to 10 weeks at the First United Methodist Church, 2917 Aspen Drive. Participation is free and group size is limited to 10.
To register and schedule an interview, call Kati Bachman at 382-2032 by Sept. 25.
Precautions advised to prevent enterovirus
Testing by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed specimens submitted by Children’s Hospital Colorado tested positive for enterovirus D68, an uncommon respiratory virus.
The illness is characterized by difficulty breathing, difficulty getting enough oxygen and wheezing in some patients. A minority of patients have a fever.
Medical providers are asked to report clusters or outbreaks of unexplained respiratory illnesses to San Juan Basin Health Department at 247-5702 or to Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. There are no vaccines to prevent EV D68 infections.
People can help protect themselves from respiratory illnesses by:
Washing hands often with soap and water for 20 seconds.
Avoiding touching their eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
Avoiding kissing, hugging and sharing cups and eating utensils with people who are sick.
Disinfecting frequently touched surfaces especially if someone is sick.
Making sure vaccinations, including the influenza vaccine, are up to date.
Anthem Blue Cross announces new plan
Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Colorado and HMO Colorado (Anthem) announce a new plan created in partnership with a local hospital and the region’s leading health-care provider aimed at lowering individual premiums in four mountain counties.
Working in collaboration with Vail Valley Medical Center in Eagle County and Centura Health – which includes Mercy Regional Medical Center, St. Anthony Summit Medical Center and a network of about 75 providers in Summit, La Plata and Montezuma counties – Anthem will offer its new Mountain Enhanced HMO plan to residents of those counties.
Once rates are approved by the Division of Insurance, Mountain Enhanced will be available to consumers interested in purchasing insurance both on and off the Colorado health-exchange marketplace, which begins 2015 enrollment on Nov. 15.
For more information, visit www.anthem.com or call (866) 777-0607.
Herald Staff
