INDIANAPOLIS — “Sound Medicine” announces its program for Sept. 22, with a conversation about young healthy adults and the Affordable Care Act, President Grover Cleveland’s secret surgery and designing a computer program to detect autism.
Why should “young invincibles” purchase health insurance? Beginning Oct. 1, millions of uninsured Americans will be able to start the enrollment process for insurance under the Affordable Care Act. “Sound Medicine” health care policy analyst Aaron Carroll, M.D., M.S., speaks with Barbara Lewis about why it’s crucial to get the 19 million uninsured “young invincibles” signed up, too. Dr. Carroll explains that “young invincibles” are young adults ages 18 to 34 who don’t have health insurance and don’t believe they need it. Dr. Carroll stresses the need for this demographic because their participation will balance the insurance pool with an equal number of healthy and sick individuals. Dr. Carroll is a professor of pediatrics and assistant dean for research mentoring at the Indiana University School of Medicine. He is also the director of the Center for Health Policy and Professionalism Research.
What is the Health Insurance Marketplace? Formerly called the Health Insurance Exchange, the Health Insurance Marketplace is a program run by the state and federal government that connects citizens with private insurance companies. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recently announced a partnership with public libraries across the nation that will provide consumers with information about the program and how to use it effectively. According to Jackie Garner, a consortium administrator for Medicaid and Children’s Health Operations for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, librarians are being trained on the Health Insurance Marketplace and will be able to assist consumers in navigating the system. A 24-hour Web chat is available at www.healthcare.gov, and a 24-hour call center at 800-318-2596, that consumers can use to get additional information about the marketplace system.
What was President Grover Cleveland’s secret? According to Matthew Algeo, author of “The President Is a Sick Man,” President Grover Cleveland may have been the only president to have secret surgery aboard a yacht. After locating a bump of the roof of his mouth, Cleveland and some of the country’s best doctors sailed across Long Island Sound to conduct his surgery for oral cancer in secret. After the surgery, Cleveland wore a rubber prosthesis and never mentioned the event; even his vice president was kept in the dark. When E.J. Edwards, a journalist from Philadelphia, got wind of the story, he was trashed by the president’s office and his reputation was tarnished for the reminder of his career. Twenty-four years later, one of the physicians confessed and produced the preserved tumor as evidence of the risky operation. Cleveland’s tumor is on display for visitors at the Mutter Museum in Philadelphia.
How can a computer program detect autism? The Indiana University School of Medicine and Rutgers University have collaborated to help create a new screening tool that can more accurately diagnose autism in children as young as 3. Jorge Jose, D.Sc., vice president of research at Indiana University, is part of the research team developing the novel technology. By tracking and comparing the random movements of a child with autism to movements of other children, the program promises to help physicians and therapists create greater individualized therapy and treatments for children with autism.
How often should women be screened for osteoporosis? Ten million Americans have osteoporosis and over 30 million have the precursor, osteopenia. “Sound Medicine” healthy living expert Theresa Rohr-Kirchgraber, M.D., discusses how often women should be tested for osteoporosis. Dr. Rohr-Kirchgraber is an associate professor of clinical medicine and pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine. She also sees patients at Wishard Hospital.
Sex and Alzheimer’s: Where do we draw the line? In 2005, Sandra Day O’Connor resigned her position as a Supreme Court justice to care for her husband, who was suffering from Alzheimer’s. While on the Alzheimer’s unit, Justice O’Connor’s husband fell in love with another woman. Justice O’Connor gave the couple her blessing, but it created a media sensation. John Portman, Ph.D., the author of “The Ethics of Sex and Alzheimer’s,” discusses the complicated sexual and emotional relationships of the spouses of Alzheimer’s patients. Dr. Portman is an associate professor of religious studies at the University of Virginia.
“Sound Medicine” covers controversial ethics topics, breakthrough research studies and the day-to-day application of recent advancements in medicine. It’s also available via podcast and Stitcher Radio for mobile phones and iPads and posts updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Co-produced by the IU School of Medicine and WFYI Public Radio (90.1 FM) and underwritten in part by Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, “Sound Medicine ” airs on the following Indiana public radio stations: WBSB (Anderson, 89.5 FM), WFIU (Bloomington, 103.7 FM; Columbus, 100.7 FM; Kokomo, 106.1 FM; Terre Haute, 95.1 FM), WNDY (Crawfordsville, 91.3 FM), WVPE (Elkhart/South Bend, 88.1 FM), WNIN (Evansville, 88.3 FM), WBOI (Fort Wayne, 89.1 FM), WFCI (Franklin, 89.5 FM), WBSH (Hagerstown/New Castle, 91.1 FM), WFYI (Indianapolis), WBSW (Marion, 90.9 FM), WBST (Muncie, 92.1 FM), WBSJ (Portland, 91.7 FM), WLPR (Lake County, 89.1 FM) and WBAA (West Lafayette, 101.3 FM).
“Sound Medicine” is also broadcast on these public radio stations across the country: KSKA (Anchorage, Alaska), KTNA (Talkeetna, Alaska), KUHB (Pribilof Islands, Alaska), KUAF (Fayetteville and Fort Smith, Ark.), KIDE (Hoopa Valley, Calif.), KRCC (Colorado Springs, Colo.), KEDM (Monroe, La.), WCMU (Mount Pleasant, Mich.), WCNY and WRVO-1 (Syracuse, N.Y.), KMHA (Four Bears, N.D.), WYSU (Youngstown, Ohio), KPOV (Bend, Ore.) and KEOS (College Station, Texas).
Please check local listings for broadcast dates and times.