Medical savings accounts: opportunities for cost savings?

Interest in medical savings accounts (MSAs) as a potential tool to reduce healthcare costs has been widespread. A small number of countries have either implemented or run pilot programs of MSAs, and vigorous policy debates have taken place in several other countries about the potential merits of introducing MSAs as a method of paying for health care. In this paper we develop a model to assess the cost saving potential of MSAs in a publicly funded healthcare system. We assume that the public healthcare payer may choose between reimbursing healthcare expenditures through an MSA or through a form of third‐party payer insurance. We use the model to identify the conditions under which MSAs may reduce costs. We illustrate using data on healthcare expenditures from Canada.     

可交易水权改革若干问题的思考

从水权制度变迁理论分析入手,认定水权制度的改革不仅是一个简单的资源配置或生产力布局问题,更是涉及制度建设和一个国家管理体制的演化的问题。通过对已建立可交易水权为基础的水权制度改革作进一步探讨,提出了建立“准市场”和“地方政治民主协商”机制、构建合约化的水权交易市场、加快水权市场的布设与推广等相应的建议。     

Effects of Surface Concentration on Drying Behavior of Carbohydrate Solutions

As the surface properties of the drying materials are very important not only for the drying rate but also for the quality change during drying, the effects of surface concentration on the drying behavior of liquid foods (sugar solutions) were investigated by isothermal drying experiments and by numerical calculation experiments. The isothermal drying experiments with gelled sugar solution systems (sucrose and maltodextrin) were carried out at various relative humidity (RH) values (RH = 0 to 84%). Separate experiments were carried out for determination of the desorption isotherms.

The isothermal drying curves of sugar solutions at RH = 0 to 51% were very similar. Numerical simulations also showed that the drying curves of these sugars at the surface concentration = 0 and 0.1 are almost the same, although the concentration distributions are different.

When a small amount of gelatin was added to sugar solutions, the drying rate decreased remarkably as the gelatin might form a thin film (skin) near the surface, and consequently the retention of ethanol increased.     

安徽省水资源宏观经济优化模型研究

以水资源可持续发展为出发点,探讨了一种可以同时兼顾经济发展、水资源利用和社会效益的多目标水资源宏观经济模型的建立方法,通过引入带权2-模评价函数,将多目标优化问题转变成单目标优化问题。以2002年为现状水平年,对安徽省2010年的产业结构及产业规模进行优化分析。结果表明,多目标模型求得的总用水量较单目标模型明显降低,而两模型优化的产业规模与结构差别不大,体现了高用水效率行业优先发展的要求。     

环境敏感因素对电站正常蓄水位选择的影响

卜寺沟水电站预可阶段正常蓄水位是考虑规划成果、地形、地质务件、梯级衔接、水库淹没、筑坝技术、水能资源利用等因素综合初选的.从理论角度分析,水库淹没时水库内寺庙的影响,按全部淹没进行经济补偿处理代价较小;其社会环境敏感因素对正常蓄水位的选择不应起决定性作用.但是,考虑到少数民族群众、僧侣和地方政府的要求,适当降低正常蓄水位,以减少对扎西日岗寺庙的影响,将带来较积极的社会影响.     

调整水量法(代用法)测定水泥标准稠度用水量方法的改进

结合兰州市的水泥标准稠度用水量方法测定 (代用法 )的实例 ,分析代用法测定标准稠度用水量的缺点 ,并对此方法提出了一些改进措施     

Life cycle of hydroprocessing catalysts and total catalyst management

Hydroprocessing catalysts based on Ni, Co, Mo and W are used in various refinery processing applications where several deactivation mechanisms become of importance (coke formation, active phase sintering, metals deposition, poisoning) in the catalyst's life cycle. The life cycle of commercial hydroprocessing catalysts is very complex and includes the catalyst production, sulfidation, use, oxidative regeneration followed by re-sulfidation and reuse or, if reuse is not possible, recycling or disposal. To understand the changes in catalyst properties taking place during a life cycle, the catalyst quality in the different stages can be best monitored by using advanced analytical techniques. The catalyst's life cycle is further complicated by numerous technical, environmental and organizational issues involved. In principle, different companies can be involved in each of the life cycle steps. Leading catalyst manufacturers, together with specialized firms, offer refineries a total catalyst management concept, starting with the purchase of the fresh catalyst and ending with its final recycling or disposal. Total catalyst management includes a broad range of services, ensuring optimal timing during the change-out process, reliable, smooth and safe operations, minimal downtime and maximum catalyst and unit performance.     

Conceptual damage-sensitive features for structural health monitoring: Laboratory and field demonstrations

The use of damage-sensitive features to evaluate structural condition or health is a very critical aspect of structural health monitoring. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the potential of two different damage-sensitive features for detecting damage. Different damage scenarios are simulated on a large-scale laboratory structure and a three-span highway bridge for demonstration. The features presented in this paper are the modal flexibility-based deflection and curvature both of which are obtained directly from dynamic properties. In the literature, flexibility associated with mode shapes and mode shapes curvatures have been mostly explored. In this study, multi-input–multi-output dynamic data are used to obtain modal flexibility, which is a close approximation to the actual flexibility. A main novelty is that the curvature is calculated from the deflected shapes using the modal flexibility as opposed to using modal vectors. In this paper, the theory of the methodology is explained and then experimental studies and results are presented. For the experimental studies, the laboratory specimen and the three-span bridge were gradually damaged. It is shown that both deflection and curvature are conceptual and physically meaningful features for damage detection and localization. The issues and the requirements for these features to perform successfully are also presented.     

Life cycle cost analysis of alternative vehicles and fuels in Thailand

High crude oil prices and pollution problems have drawn attention to alternative vehicle technologies and fuels for the transportation sector. The question is: What are the benefits/costs of these technologies for society? To answer this question in a quantitative way, a web-based model (http://vehiclesandfuels.memebot.com) has been developed to calculate the societal life cycle costs, the consumer life cycle costs and the tax for different vehicle technologies. By comparing these costs it is possible to draw conclusions about the social benefit and the related tax structure. The model should help to guide decisions toward optimality, which refers to maximum social benefit. The model was applied to the case of Thailand. The life cycle cost of 13 different alternative vehicle technologies in Thailand have been calculated and the tax structure analyzed.     

HACCP在保健食品西洋参口服液生产中的应用

保健食品行业GMP的实施有利HACCP的应用推广。本文应用HACCP于传统保健食品西洋参口服液生产过程中，将生产及加工过程中危害因素降最低限度，以确保产品的质量与安全。