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State roundup: Texas health assistance program closing; Florida's dangerous assisted living facilities

A reduction in prescription drug coverage under last year's state budget cuts means 292,000 New Yorkers will now be paying more at the pharmacy.

4 Jan 2012

Viewpoints: Giving states responsibility for 'essential benefits'; The cost of proton beam treatment; Health spending in 2012

The Obama administration surprised supporters and critics when it decided to let states define the "essential health benefits" that must be provided to their citizens under health care reform. ... Federal health officials will need to monitor developments during the transition period to make sure consumers and employers can easily compare the benefit packages offered by private insurers.

3 Jan 2012

First Edition: January 3, 2012

In today's headlines, reports that New York seniors are experiencing reduced prescription coverage and more California patients are being added to the health insurance rolls.

3 Jan 2012

Vitamins and omega 3 fatty acids in blood could stave off dementia: Study

A new study has shown that higher blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin B, vitamin C, vitamin D and vitamin E are associated with better mental functioning in the elderly.

3 Jan 2012

Aging suit from MIT to raise empathy for the elderly

A team of researchers in MIT's Agelab have created a suit to help people understand what it might be like to be in the shoes of an elderly person – literally. Called AGNES (Age Gain Now Empathy System), the suit replicates what it might be like to be in a 75-year-old body, replicating dexterity, flexibility, motor, and visual elements into a suit that can be worn by people of all ages.

3 Jan 2012

Economy beats health care, national debt and jobs as most critical issue facing America in 2012

A survey of 337 retirees on Medicare revealed that 45% believe the economy is the most critical issue facing America in 2012 - beating out the national debt (21%); jobs (19%); and health care (15%) for the top spot.

31 Dec 2011

CATCH Healthy Habits program will come to Albany in early 2012

Remember riding your bicycle all over town until dark and then coming home to a hot, healthy meal your mom prepared? Lots of adults do, and now many of them are volunteering to help the next generation – and in the process themselves – get and stay healthy through an innovative program called CATCH Healthy Habits.

31 Dec 2011

Seniors with higher levels of vitamins and omega 3 fatty acids perform better on mental acuity tests

New research has found that elderly people with higher levels of several vitamins and omega 3 fatty acids in their blood had better performance on mental acuity tests and less of the brain shrinkage typical of Alzheimer's disease - while "junk food" diets produced just the opposite result.

29 Dec 2011

Older people can respond faster in decision-making tasks

Both children and the elderly have slower response times when they have to make quick decisions in some settings. But recent research suggests that much of that slower response is a conscious choice to emphasize accuracy over speed.

28 Dec 2011

Study to understand and predict consumer behaviour in relation to food and health

Research is ongoing at Teagasc in collaboration with University College Cork, to better understand and predict consumer behaviour in relation to food and health.

26 Dec 2011

New report on shortfalls in Medicaid funding for Ohio SNFs

As skilled nursing facility (SNF) providers across Ohio face 2012, a new report reveals the depth of their financial challenges. Medicaid, the health program for low-income seniors and individuals with disabilities, underfunded Ohio SNFs by $262 million, or $14.31 per patient per day, in 2009.

26 Dec 2011

Medicare spending growth slows, but 2011 a profitable year for Medicare Advantage plans

Medicare spending growth is slowing, even as enrollment rises, The Washington Post reports. Meanwhile, several large Medicare Advantage plans turned a mighty profit in 2011, despite the volatility of the larger economy.

23 Dec 2011

Viewpoints: Picking the 'right fights'; Sebelius's 'special place' in history

Republicans do need to fight for their priorities, but it helps to pick the right fights. They should return in 2012 ready to make their differences clear on taxes, health care, regulation, and how to grow an economy (12/23).

23 Dec 2011

House GOP leaders accept short-term payroll tax cut extension

In an abrupt about-face, House Republican leaders agreed Thursday to a Senate proposal to extend the payroll tax cut and avert a scheduled payment cut to Medicare doctors for two months to allow lawmakers time to hammer out a longer-term agreement after the holidays.

23 Dec 2011

Viewpoints: Republicans' 'gift' to Obama; Essential benefits rule a 'lump of coal'

One photo snapped Wednesday on Capitol Hill captured the essence of Congress in 2011. It showed a group of senior House Republicans sitting on one side of a long table, waiting for their Senate counterparts to show up for a negotiating session the House had demanded. ... What viewers should really have seen in the photo was the Republican leadership team whose miscalculations may soon cause payroll taxes to go up - and unemployment benefits to be truncated, and payment rates to Medicare doctors slashed. That's on the verge of happening.

23 Dec 2011

Health care issues leaving mark on presidential race

President Obama is busy touting his health law, while Mitt Romney argues that an individual mandate in Massachusetts is a "conservative" idea. In the meantime, the Associated Press examines Newt Gingrich's past support of the Children's Health Insurance Program.

23 Dec 2011

First Edition: December 22, 2011

Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including articles on the Capitol Hill stalemate that threatens to cut Medicare payments to doctors and government efforts to keep details of a research experiment on bird flu secret.

22 Dec 2011

PolitiFact's 2011 Lie of the Year: 'Mediscare'

This marks the third year in a row that a health care claim has won this title. This time around, the Democrats take the prize for their assertions that Republicans had advanced policies to "end Medicare."

22 Dec 2011

Without resolution on payroll tax cut or 'doc fix,' congress packs up

House Republicans rejected the deal - approved by the Senate before it adjourned for the holidays - to extend the payroll tax cut. This event is the latest in a chain of ongoing congressional sagas marked by questions of what the government should fund and how it pay for it.

22 Dec 2011

Analyzing the politics and policies of the Wyden-Ryan Medicare plan

Politico reports on how the Medicare revamp proposal announced last week by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., may add to Ryan's conservative street cred. Meanwhile, Medscape reports on one of the cost controls included in the approach.

22 Dec 2011

Seniors News and Research

State roundup: Texas health assistance program closing; Florida's dangerous assisted living facilities

Viewpoints: Giving states responsibility for 'essential benefits'; The cost of proton beam treatment; Health spending in 2012

First Edition: January 3, 2012

Vitamins and omega 3 fatty acids in blood could stave off dementia: Study

Aging suit from MIT to raise empathy for the elderly

Economy beats health care, national debt and jobs as most critical issue facing America in 2012

CATCH Healthy Habits program will come to Albany in early 2012

Seniors with higher levels of vitamins and omega 3 fatty acids perform better on mental acuity tests

Older people can respond faster in decision-making tasks

Study to understand and predict consumer behaviour in relation to food and health

New report on shortfalls in Medicaid funding for Ohio SNFs

Medicare spending growth slows, but 2011 a profitable year for Medicare Advantage plans

Viewpoints: Picking the 'right fights'; Sebelius's 'special place' in history

House GOP leaders accept short-term payroll tax cut extension

Viewpoints: Republicans' 'gift' to Obama; Essential benefits rule a 'lump of coal'

Health care issues leaving mark on presidential race

First Edition: December 22, 2011

PolitiFact's 2011 Lie of the Year: 'Mediscare'

Without resolution on payroll tax cut or 'doc fix,' congress packs up

Analyzing the politics and policies of the Wyden-Ryan Medicare plan

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

How ELRIG Is Helping Mid-Career Scientists Navigate Leadership, Career Change and Redundancy

The role of UV-Vis in biopharma QC

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