Akron Children’s Hospital is hitting the local airwaves this week to lift its donations.
The 13th annual Have a Heart, Do Your Part radiothon kicks off Thursday on 98.1-FM (WKDD).
The event is the nonprofit pediatric hospital’s largest fundraiser each year. Last year, the radiothon and its associated activities raised $445,360 for Children’s.
WKDD morning show co-hosts Keith Kennedy and Jenn Ryan will broadcast from the hospital lobby throughout the three-day event. The radiothon also will feature stories about current and former patients at Children’s.
The radiothon will air from 5:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday and from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday.
To make a pledge during the radiothon, call 330-543-0981 or 866-543-0981.
Donations also can be made through the hospital’s website, www.akronchildrens.org.
Health disparities growing
A study by researchers at Ohio State University has found evidence of growing health-care disparities among people with similar socioeconomic backgrounds.
Health disparities typically have been greatest among the “haves” and the “have-nots.” But the researchers found growing differences in health among people with similar levels of education, income and other socioeconomic factors.
The study found, for example, that health disparities among men who were employed increased, while the differences among men who are employed and unemployed decreased.
“People with the same socioeconomic status differ much more from each other in terms of health than they did 20 or so years ago,” Hui Zheng, lead author of the study and assistant professor of sociology at Ohio State University, said in a news release. “This is an issue that really hasn’t been studied before and needs to be examined more closely.”
The researchers said several factors could be contributing to the trend, including an increase of men working only part time, declining unionization and an increasing number of people with low-wage jobs or positions that aren’t secure.
The study was based on data from the National Health Interview Survey, in which people were asked from 1984 to 2007 to rate their health on a five-point scale from poor to excellent. The results appear in the March issue of the professional journal Social Science Research.
‘Doughnut hole’ narrowing
Changes to Medicare prescription drug coverage saved 185,014 Ohio residents nearly $94.8 million in 2011, according to data recently released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Under federal health-care reforms, the gap in coverage known as the “doughnut hole” is slowly being eliminated for people covered by Medicare Part D prescription drug plans.
This year, participants who reach the gap in coverage get a 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs and a 14 percent discount on generics during the doughnut hole. Last year, they received 50 percent off brand-name drugs and 7 percent off generics.
The federal government estimates the changes through health-care reform will save an estimated $4,200 per Medicare participant by 2021.
Cheryl Powell can be reached at 330-996-3902 or chpowell@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow Powell on Twitter at twitter.com/abjcherylpowell.
