Surplus Solid Angle as an Imprint of Horava-Lifshitz Gravity

We consider the electrostatic field of a point charge coupled to Horava-Lifshitz gravity and find an exact solution describing the space with a surplus (or deficit) solid angle. Although, theoretically in general relativity, a surplus angle is hardly to be obtained in the presence of ordinary matter with positive energy distribution, it seems natural in Horava-Lifshitz gravity. We present the sudden disappearance and reappearance of a star image as an astrophysical effect of a surplus angle. We also consider matter configurations of all possible power law behaviors coupled to Horava-Lifshitz gravity and obtain a series of exact solutions.Comment: 23 pages, 1 figure; minor changes, published versio

Density of Yang-Lee zeros for the Ising ferromagnet

The densities of Yang-Lee zeros for the Ising ferromagnet on the $L\times L$ square lattice are evaluated from the exact grand partition functions ($L=3\sim16$). The properties of the density of Yang-Lee zeros are discussed as a function of temperature $T$ and system size $L$. The three different classes of phase transitions for the Ising ferromagnet, first-order phase transition, second-order phase transition, and Yang-Lee edge singularity, are clearly distinguished by estimating the magnetic scaling exponent $y_h$ from the densities of zeros for finite-size systems. The divergence of the density of zeros at Yang-Lee edge in high temperatures (Yang-Lee edge singularity), which has been detected only by the series expansion until now for the square-lattice Ising ferromagnet, is obtained from the finite-size data. The identification of the orders of phase transitions in small systems is also discussed using the density of Yang-Lee zeros.Comment: to appear in Physical Review

Restricted Access and Delays to HCV Treatment Among Medicaid Patients in Louisiana

Background: Many people living with chronic Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) have seen delays in accessing treatment or been denied entirely due to Medicaid restrictions requiring patients to meet certain criteria prior to receiving approval for medication pre-authorization. Methods: This study identified a cohort of Medicaid-insured patients with chronic HCV infection within New Orleans, LA. Patient medical records were reviewed and information regarding HCV care was gathered. This study sought to determine the degree to which HCV care was delayed for this population and describe common reasons for prior-authorization denials for direct-acting antiviral (DAA) medications. Results: For this population of Medicaid-insured patients with HCV RNA assay-confirmed chronic infection, the average number of days it took to reach a specialist was three-times greater than the number of days it took to reach a primary care physician. After attending an appointment with a specialist to seek HCV care, patients experienced wait periods of an average of 150 days before being deemed eligible for treatment per Medicaid requirements. After being deemed eligible for treatment, patients experienced an average wait period of 194.4 days to initiation of treatment, with low fibrosis status being cited as the most common reason for treatment delay. Conclusion: This population of Medicaid-insured patients in New Orleans, LA with chronic HCV infection experienced delays in treatment related to reduced accessibility of a specialist who was eligible to request DAA prior-authorization. Prior-authorization was most frequently denied based on low fibrosis status or recent alcohol/drug use

Studies of a thermally averaged p-wave Sommerfeld factor

Thermal pair annihilation of heavy particles, such as dark matter or its co-annihilation partners, can be strongly influenced by attractive interactions. We investigate the case that pair annihilation proceeds through a velocity-suppressed $p$-wave operator, in the presence of an SU(3) gauge force. Making use of a non-relativistic effective theory, the thermal average of the pair-annihilation rate is estimated both through a resummed perturbative computation and through lattice simulation, in the range $M/T \sim 10 ... 30$. Bound states contribute to the annihilation process and enhancement factors of up to $\sim 100$ can be found.Comment: 15 page