“How Often Should Women Have Bone Tests?”
Experts recommend that older women have regular bone density tests to screen for osteoporosis. But it’s been unclear how often to repeat the tests. A study of nearly 5,000 women now reports that patients with healthy bone density on their first test might safely wait 15 years before getting rescreened.
Osteoporosis is a disorder marked by weakened bones and an increased risk of fractures. More than 40 million people nationwide either have osteoporosis or are at increased risk for broken bones because of low bone mineral density (osteopenia).
Osteoporosis is often called a “silent disease” because it usually progresses slowly and without symptoms until a fracture occurs. When low bone density is identified early through screening, lifestyle changes and therapies can help protect bone health and reduce the risk of fractures. That’s why the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends routine screening of bone mineral density for women ages 65 and older.
To help doctors decide how often to repeat bone density tests in women who don’t have osteoporosis at their initial screening, a research team led by Dr. Margaret Gourlay of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill analyzed data on nearly 5,000 women, age 67 or older. The women were participants in the Study of Osteoporotic Fractures, a long-term nationwide study supported by NIH’s National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), National Institute on Aging (NIA) and National Center for Research Resources (NCRR).
Researchers divided the women divided into 4 groups based on initial bone density tests that were either normal or showed mild, moderate or advanced osteopenia. They were given 2 to 5 bone density tests at varying intervals during the 15-year study period.
As reported in the January 19, 2012, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, the scientists found that less than 1% of women who initially had normal bone mineral density went on to develop osteoporosis during the study. Only 5% of those with mildly low bone density at the start made the transition to osteoporosis. Overall, the data suggest that women in these 2 categories might safely wait about 15 years before being rescreened for osteoporosis.
FROM: nih.gov/researchmatters/january2012/01302012bone.htm
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Consumers the News is: “After This Year, No More Tax Refund Loans”
1/20/12 | Updated with elaboration on loan terms and comment from Republic Bank and Jackson Hewitt.
This is the last tax season that any banks will be offering “refund anticipation loans,” according to the National Consumer Law Center. The loans, called R.A.L.’s in the industry, are short term, repaid with a borrower’s income tax refund. Typically, the loans carried fat fees and were marketed through tax-preparation outlets to lower-income borrowers who wanted fast cash.
Recent action by federal regulators means that just one bank, the Republic Bank & Trust Company of Louisville, Ky., is offering the loans this tax season. But it won’t be doing so next year, under a settlement with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. (It’s possible that some smaller payday lenders, which until recently haven’t had much federal oversight, may still offer some version of the loans.) This year, according to the consumer law center, filers who get a $1,500 refund anticipation loan from Republic through the Jackson Hewitt tax preparation chain will pay $61.22, which translates into an annual percentage rate of 149 percent for a 10-day term.
A Jackson Hewitt spokesman, David Weselcouch, confirmed that his company would offer the loans again this year and added, “Our clients have a choice of various products and services and can choose the options that best suit their needs.” (Bill Nelson, president of tax refund solutions for Republic, said the number disclosed to borrowers in loan documents is a 124 percent A.P.R., based on a 12-day loan — because the bank’s own data shows the average time for receipt of a tax refund is 12 days.)
An estimated five million people received the loans in the 2010 tax filing season, according to the National Consumer Law Center. But there are cheaper or even free ways for tax filers to get the cash expected from their refunds relatively quickly, said Chi Chi Wu, a staff lawyer at the center.
FROM: bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/19/after-this-year-no-more-tax-refund-loans/
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