Daily Rounds: Payroll Package Hits Hospitals; HPV Vaccine For Boys; Mass. Work Stress; Sleeping Pill Risks?

Tax deal reduces funds for hospitals - The Boston Globe - The recent payroll tax cut package passed by Congress - heralded as a bipartisan nod to working families - has Massachusetts hospitals reeling over a little-noted section that will cost them tens of millions of dollars. Tucked into the legislation are cuts to the rates paid to hospitals to care for the elderly and poor, as well as a provision slicing a new preventive care fund by about a third. The cuts amount to at least $62 million over 10 years in Massachusetts." (The Boston Globe)

Pediatricians recommend HPV vaccination for boys - NPR - "The leading group of U.S. pediatricians says it's now time for boys, as well as girls, to be vaccinated against human papillomavirus. The American Academy of Pediatrics has updated its guidance to parents and doctors in favor of routine immunization for boys against the virus Previously, the group had said it was OK to vaccinate boys against the HPV, but it only became part of the pediatricians' official schedule of recommended vaccines this month." (NPR-Shots)

Survey: Work stress sinks Massachusetts health rankings - Boston Business Journal - "Despite ranking number 1 of all 50 states in access to health care, and some of the lowest rates of chronic illness such as obesity, Massachusetts failed to make the top 10 healthiest states this year in the Gallup    -Healthways 2011 U.S. Well-Being Index. The Index surveyed more than 350,000 people around the country on a variety of physical and emotional health measures. The culprit is Massachusetts workers’ declining perception of their well-being in their work environments, according to the survey." (Boston Business Journal)

Sleeping pills linked to raised risk of death, cancer: Study - iVillage - Prescription sleeping pills may help you get some much needed rest at night, but using them routinely might also make it more likely that you will die or develop certain types of cancer, research suggests. A new study suggests that those who take these medications are four times more likely to die than people who don't take them...The new study only shows an association between the sleeping aids and death risk, not cause-and-effect, and many experts are urging caution in jumping to any conclusions from the findings." (iVillage)