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New findings on "successful aging"

What, exactly, does "successful aging" mean? For more than a half century, researchers and gerontologists have argued whether successful aging is better defined subjectively or objectively (physical disease-related disability or mental decline). Answering this question is more than an academic exercise. As the first members of the famed "baby boom generation" reach age 65, understanding what it means to remain healthy and independent in later life could have an enormous impact on health care delivery and medical policy.

23 Jul 2010

Funding for new medical ventures improving

The Dallas Morning News reports on the funding climate for health care technology startups.

23 Jul 2010

KHN column -- Massachusetts shows federal reform headed for trouble

In this Kaiser Health News column, Grace-Marie Turner writes that Massachusetts' health reform has increased demand without increasing the supply of health care providers, it continues to keep people in the dark about the true cost of health care and health insurance, and has not changed incentives for people to seek more affordable options or for a truly competitive marketplace.

23 Jul 2010

Today's OpEds: The challenge of medicare spending; Two views of Massachussets; Regulating premiums

Health reform can be assessed from the perspective of four groups that collectively include most Americans. For those who are now in Medicaid or who are uninsured, reform will be a major gain. For those who obtain health insurance in the individual and small-group markets, reform should bring improvements. For those who have health insurance from midsize- and large-group insurers, reform will bring little change. Finally, for Medicare beneficiaries, reform promises to bring positive change.

23 Jul 2010

Drugs can save African infants' lives

Researchers at the University of Sydney have found the combined intake of iron-folic acid supplements with World Health Organisation (WHO)-endorsed anti-malarial drugs during pregnancy could reduce early infant mortality in sub-Saharan Africa by a quarter.

22 Jul 2010

Bristol-Myers Squibb second-quarter net sales increase 2% to $4.8 billion

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company today reported results for the second quarter of 2010 which featured data on key marketed and investigational compounds in its oncology, diabetes and cardiovascular franchises, and growth in sales and EPS. The company also confirmed guidance for 2010 and minimum guidance for non-GAAP EPS in 2013.

22 Jul 2010

3M second-quarter global sales increase 17.7% to $6.7 billion

3M today reported record second-quarter earnings of $1.54 per share on sales of $6.7 billion. Sales and per-share earnings increased 17.7 percent and 37.5 percent, respectively, versus the second quarter of 2009. Excluding special items recorded in the second quarter of 2009, earnings per share rose 28.3 percent.

22 Jul 2010

First Edition: July 22, 2010

Today's headlines reflect news about health reform implementation activities, health information technology and sparring opinions about the Massachusetts experience.

22 Jul 2010

Four areas that impact weight, obesity in women identified

The information gap and general lack of understanding of obesity's unique and disproportionate impact on women contributes to the challenges of the 65 million American women who are considered overweight or obese, said the Strategies to Overcome and Prevent (STOP) Obesity Alliance Task Force on Women at a meeting on Capitol Hill today.

22 Jul 2010

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield launches initiative to educate consumers on how to best access ER alternatives

At a time when health care costs continue to rise and hospitals are advertising emergency room availability, it is becoming more important to educate consumers on how to best access ER alternatives and receive the same care with less out-of-pocket cost. If a primary care physician isn't available, retail health clinics, walk-in doctor offices and urgent care centers can take less time and cost about the same as a regular doctor visit.

22 Jul 2010

Correlates of HIV stigma in HIV-positive women: Study

For some women, planning a family can be the first step towards one of life's most rewarding experiences. But a study led by Ryerson University researchers has found strong evidence that some HIV-positive women feel that they are being judged negatively by their healthcare providers for wanting to become moms and feel stigmatized by their physicians due to their medical condition.

22 Jul 2010

VA approves $2.8M for Gulf War Veterans' illness research program

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has approved $2.8 million to fund three new research projects that focus on testing or developing new treatments for illnesses affecting Veterans who served in the Gulf War 1990-1991. The research incorporates recommendations of the department's Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Task Force.

22 Jul 2010

Study: Patient-centered health care lowers death rates from heart attacks

In 2001, the Institutes of Medicine named patient-centered health care — based on patient preferences and needs — as a major and necessary change in America's health care system to improve the quality of medical care.

22 Jul 2010

Study: 17% of homeless people in Toronto report unmet health care needs

Most studies of healthcare for homeless people have been conducted in the United States, where it's not surprising that lack of money and insurance are the main barriers.

22 Jul 2010

UMHS selects Epic Systems for medical information technology overhaul

The University of Michigan Health System has just embarked on a multi-year journey to completely transform the way its physicians, nurses, other care providers and administrators use information technology in every U-M hospital, clinic and office.

22 Jul 2010

Sec. of State Clinton addresses Afghan women's rights during visit to Kabul

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton "used part of her address to a key conference in Kabul on Tuesday to defend Afghan women concerned that peace efforts with the Taliban could jeopardise their rights," Agence France-Presse reports.

22 Jul 2010

Penn. official urges Bill to prohibit 'health profiling' and limit rate hikes; Nev., Ariz. wrestle with rising costs for public employees' benefits; McCollum releases health plan

"Pennsylvania's insurance commissioner is urging state legislators to pass a bill that would prohibit 'health profiling' and limit rate increases in advance of the 2014 enactment of the main provisions of the federal health-care reform law. Testifying before the House Insurance Committee, ... Joel Ario said he arrived at those recommendations following the department's investigation on the rating practices and premium increases of the top nine health insurance companies operating in Pennsylvania" (Toland, 7/21).

22 Jul 2010

Saskatchewan nursing homes to test improvement program to increase patient care time in hospitals

Three Saskatchewan nursing homes will be the first long-term care facilities to test the effectiveness of an improvement program that has been shown to increase the amount of time providers spend on direct patient care in hospitals.

22 Jul 2010

Calif.'s Anthem Blue Cross president resigns following sharp criticism of rate increases

The Los Angeles Times: Leslie Margolin, the president of California's Anthem Blue Cross, is resigning. "During her 2 1/2-year tenure at the helm of California's largest for-profit insurer, Margolin tried to cast Anthem as a responsible corporate leader that cared for customers and sought to contain costs by forging collaborative relationships with hospitals, doctors and other medical providers.

22 Jul 2010

New telepathology system connects UHN pathologists to Northern Ontario communities

Physicians in three Northern Ontario communities are now virtually linked at all times to pathology specialists at University Health Network (UHN), thanks to a revolutionary new way of diagnosing pathology cases over the Internet.

22 Jul 2010