AGING, FUNCTION, AND REHABILITATION: WORKSHOP PROCEEDINGS
With recent medical, technological, and socioeconomic developments, individuals are living longer. The rising average age of the world’s population presents an opportunity to develop health policy that prioritizes functioning as a goal of healthy aging. In February 2024, the National Academies convened a hybrid workshop at the University of Lucerne in Switzerland to host a discussion focused on the World Health Organization's concept of functioning. Speakers paid particular focus to healthy aging and the future of rehabilitation as a health strategy. Experts emphasized that the need for rehabilitation is increasing due to rapid population aging accompanied by a rise in physical and mental health conditions, limitations, and injuries. The associated economic and practical obstacles of optimizing functioning across the life course also were discussed. A Proceedings of a Workshop summarizes discussions from this event. An accompanying Workshop Highlights provides a concise overview of key messages. The Proceedings are here.
RACE AND ETHNICITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION: 2024 STATUS REPORT
U.S. postsecondary education currently is facing challenges and opportunities presented by a growing and highly diverse population. Between 2002 and 2022, the population of the U.S. grew from about 282 million to approximately 329 million inhabitants. It not only increased, but also became more racially and ethnically diverse. The American Council on Education (ACE)’s Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education project fills the need for a singular source from which policymakers, researchers, higher education practitioners, and others can access these types of data combined in a straightforward and reliable format. Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education: 2024 Status Report examines over 200 indicators to determine who accesses a variety of educational environments and experiences, to explore how student trajectories and outcomes differ by race and ethnicity, and to provide an overview of the racial and ethnic backgrounds of faculty, staff, and college presidents. Many indicators present a snapshot of the most recent publicly available data, while others depict data over time. In addition to the Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education project’s traditional focus on disaggregating data by demographic characteristics, this report includes for the first time information on enrollment, completion, and financing by Carnegie Classification. Additionally, graduate enrollment trends in this report were analyzed by R1 doctoral, other doctoral, and master’s institutions to offer a more nuanced view into graduate school completion. The report is here.
UNFORESEEN HEALTH CARE BILLS AND COVERAGE DENIALS
A Commonwealth Fund report published on August 1, 2024 examines how frequently insured, working-age adults are denied care by insurers; how often they are billed for services they believed were covered; and their experiences challenging such bills or care denials. The report shows that 45% of insured, working-age adults reported receiving a medical bill or being charged a copayment in the past year for a service they thought should have been free or covered by their insurance. Among other findings, 17% of respondents said that their insurer denied coverage for care that was recommended by their doctor, and nearly six of 10 adults who experienced a coverage denial said their care was delayed as a result. The report examines whether patients challenged such errors or coverage denials, the reasons why they did not do so, and the implications for their health and well-being. Individuals were grouped by the coverage source they reported at the time of the survey, such as employer or individual market or marketplace, although it should be noted that some may have switched insurance plans during the year. The report is here.