"Health & Medical News"

Washington — Medicare is facing a long-term financial meltdown, but health policy experts said Congress is not likely in this election year to take the broad actions needed to keep the program sustainable.

Both the physician and hospital portions of the program are in trouble, according to the 2008 Medicare trustees report, released late last month. Part B, of which spending on physician services constitutes about 30%, does not face insolvency because it automatically is funded by general tax revenues and beneficiary premiums.

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Rates of post-storm addiction and mental-health problems among Hurricane Katrina and Rita survivors can be directly correlated to how long they were displaced from their homes, according to new research from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

The study found that while most survivors displayed great resiliency after the storms, the rate of addiction and mental-health programs was much higher among those who had been forced from their homes for two weeks or more.

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In an effort to crack down on establishments that may serve drinks to already intoxicated customers, New Jersey is instructing police officers to ask motorists they stop on suspicion of drunk driving where they consumed their last drink, USA Today reported on Nov. 27.

Police then send the information to the New Jersey Alcoholic Beverage Control Agency, who are sending investigators to the establishments most frequently cited by drivers as the location of their last drink.? 

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