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Today's OpEds: WSJ on Virginia court ruling; Health law politics; For-profit insurers; Mass. doc shortage; Physician errors

All the smart people in the political, media and legal classes know that ObamaCare is constitutional and anyone who says otherwise is frivolous. This faux consensus, however, does not include a U.S. district court judge in Virginia, who yesterday rejected the Administration's argument that one of the key constitutional challenges should be dismissed outright. Now the case will proceed to arguments on the merits this fall (8/3).

4 Aug 2010

ImpactRx launches smart-phone application for physicians

ImpactRx, Inc., the pioneering force in measuring the impact of pharmaceutical promotion on the behavior of the nation's highest prescribing physicians, today announced the launch of an application for physicians that provides pharmaceutical companies with timely and actionable insight into drug therapy promotion and treatment activity. ImpactRx is leveraging the capabilities of this newly available smart-phone application by using iPhone with its longitudinal physician network.

3 Aug 2010

Advocate Health Care deploys Fusionfx physician portal

More than 5,000 physicians at Advocate Health Care, the largest fully integrated not-for-profit healthcare delivery system in Illinois, will have streamlined access to patient information across Advocate's 11 Chicago-area hospitals with the implementation of Fusionfx, a portal-based workflow solution from Carefx Corporation.

3 Aug 2010

First Edition: August 3, 2010

Today's headlines include reports about a federal judge's ruling regarding the Virginia challenge to the health reform law and about the Senate's latest delay in consideration of a state aid package that includes Medicaid assistance.

3 Aug 2010

Elsevier makes available key articles in support of World Breastfeeding Week 2010

In support of World Breastfeeding Week 2010, Elsevier - the world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services - is pleased to open access to selected articles related to breastfeeding from the Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health, Midwifery and the Journal of Pediatric Health Care. Midwives and pediatric nurse practitioners play a central role in supporting and advocating for breastfeeding.

3 Aug 2010

TFAH commends U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee's $1.27B approval for prevention and public health

The Trust for America's Health (TFAH) commended the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee for approving an historic $1.27 billion for prevention and public health for fiscal year 2011. This proposed funding would include $750 million, the second installment of the new Prevention and Public Health Fund that was created by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

3 Aug 2010

White House predicts overhaul will save $8 billion for Medicare by the end of 2011

The White House says the new health law will save Medicare about $8 billion by the end of next year and $575 billion during the rest of the decade, according to a new report the Obama administration is releasing Monday, The Associated Press reports.

3 Aug 2010

Life insurance company introduces Productivity Solutions program for disability, healthcare management

Greater Georgia Life Insurance Company is pleased to introduce Productivity Solutions – an innovative program that integrates health care programs with short-term disability programs for employer groups with 51 or more employees. Productivity Solutions leverages all of the integration points across health, absence and disability management programs to help improve employee health and productivity, as well as the organization's bottom-line.

3 Aug 2010

Hospitals participate in CMS "pay-for-reporting" program

Beginning next year, consumers across the country will be able to find out how their hospital stacks up when it comes to preventing certain infections under new hospital acquired infection reporting regulations adopted by the Department of Health & Human Services.

3 Aug 2010

Pennsylvania to open high-risk insurance program for uninsured individuals with pre-existing medical conditions

As part of the national health insurance reform, Pennsylvania this week will open a high-risk insurance program for uninsured individuals who have pre-existing medical conditions, Insurance Commissioner Joel Ario said today.

3 Aug 2010

White House report predicts immediate health law benefits for Medicare's solvency; GOP lawmaker reacts

In a report released Monday, the Obama administration said "[t]he new health overhaul law will start producing savings for Medicare right away, and over time add 12 years of solvency to the program's giant trust fund for inpatient care." According to the report, Medicare savings by the end of next year will tally about $8 billion. Savings for rest of the decade would be an estimated $575 billion.

3 Aug 2010

Republicans plan to block health law by withholding implementation funds

Republicans may not have the numbers to repeal the health overhaul, even after the election, but they are increasingly likely to try to "deny the Obama administration the money it needs to implement the law," Politico reports.

3 Aug 2010

Sebelius tries to soothe state worries about health reform

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is trying to soothe the fiscal and administrative concerns of officials in states who have considerable power in implementing the nation's attempt at health reform, The Wall Street Journal reports. "The law puts heavy demands on Ms. Sebelius — it has more than 1,000 references to actions that the 'secretary shall' take. But much of the responsibility for actually implementing the changes falls to states, so the Obama administration's top health official has been working to guide them."

3 Aug 2010

Federal judge says Virginia challenge to health reform law may proceed

USA Today On Deadline Blog: "A federal judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the state of Virginia that challenges the new health care reform act, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports." The suit, filed by Ken Cuccinelli, Virginia's state attorney general, "challenged a provision of the health care act that requires individuals to buy health insurance or pay a penalty" (Stanglin, 8/2).

3 Aug 2010

NCI awards LSUHSC-NOLA Louisiana Tumor Registry $12 million SEER contract

The Louisiana Tumor Registry (LTR) at the LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Public Health has been awarded a $12 million contract over seven years by the National Cancer Institute to continue its work as a SEER (Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results) Program-designated cancer registry. There are 18 competitively awarded SEER cancer registries in the United States.

3 Aug 2010

Vanguard signs definitive agreement to acquire Arizona Heart Institute

Vanguard Health Systems and Arizona Heart Institute (AHI) announced today that they have signed a definitive agreement for Vanguard to acquire Arizona Heart Institute, one of the world's leading providers of cardiovascular care. Through this agreement, AHI will align with Abrazo Health Care, a Phoenix-based subsidiary of Vanguard, to become part of its distributive cardiovascular network of community-based physicians, providing future opportunities to greatly expand cardiovascular services and patient base throughout the region.

3 Aug 2010

Percutaneous heart valve replacement may be an alternative for open heart surgery

A newer, less invasive method of heart valve replacement shows promise and may be appropriate for patients who cannot tolerate traditional open heart surgery, but research is needed to understand its potential risks and benefits, according to a new study funded by HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

3 Aug 2010

'Medical homes' bolster primary care and cut emergency costs

Several news outlets look at efforts to manage care for Medicaid patients and the uninsured better.

3 Aug 2010

Researchers develop techniques to identify evolution of drug resistance strains of malaria

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University developed techniques to quickly identify evolution of drug resistance in strains of malaria. Their goal is to enable the medical community to react quickly to inevitable resistance and thereby save lives while increasing the lifespan of drugs used against the disease.Currently, disease monitoring requires months of clinical trials. The new methods can provide more information in just days, and far cheaper.

3 Aug 2010

Tips for caregivers to better manage their loved one's health care

According to the National Alliance for Caregiving, more than 65 million people in the United States serve as informal caregivers, typically for family members. This equates to more than one out of every four people serving as unpaid caregivers.

2 Aug 2010

Health Care News and Research

Today's OpEds: WSJ on Virginia court ruling; Health law politics; For-profit insurers; Mass. doc shortage; Physician errors

ImpactRx launches smart-phone application for physicians

Advocate Health Care deploys Fusionfx physician portal

First Edition: August 3, 2010

Elsevier makes available key articles in support of World Breastfeeding Week 2010

TFAH commends U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee's $1.27B approval for prevention and public health

White House predicts overhaul will save $8 billion for Medicare by the end of 2011

Life insurance company introduces Productivity Solutions program for disability, healthcare management

Hospitals participate in CMS "pay-for-reporting" program

Pennsylvania to open high-risk insurance program for uninsured individuals with pre-existing medical conditions

White House report predicts immediate health law benefits for Medicare's solvency; GOP lawmaker reacts

Republicans plan to block health law by withholding implementation funds

Sebelius tries to soothe state worries about health reform

Federal judge says Virginia challenge to health reform law may proceed

NCI awards LSUHSC-NOLA Louisiana Tumor Registry $12 million SEER contract

Vanguard signs definitive agreement to acquire Arizona Heart Institute

Percutaneous heart valve replacement may be an alternative for open heart surgery

'Medical homes' bolster primary care and cut emergency costs

Researchers develop techniques to identify evolution of drug resistance strains of malaria

Tips for caregivers to better manage their loved one's health care

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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