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Saint Luke's Health System opens new free-standing, in-patient hospice facility

Saint Luke's Health System's new free-standing hospice facility, Saint Luke's Hospice House, opens its doors on Friday, July 19, 2013 with a grand opening ribbon cutting ceremony and plan to begin admitting patients July 24.

20 Jul 2013

Whittier IPA signs agreement with Alere Accountable Care Solutions to build community-wide HIE

Whittier Independent Practice Association, of Newburyport, Massachusetts, announced that it has signed an agreement with Alere Accountable Care Solutions to build a community-wide health information exchange.

20 Jul 2013

Cancer prehabilitation has potential to reduce problems, improve physical and mental health outcomes

For patients with cancer, "prehabilitation"— interventions given between the time of diagnosis and the start of treatment—has the potential to reduce complications from treatments and improve physical and mental health outcomes, according to a report in the August American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation.

19 Jul 2013

First Edition: July 19, 2013

Today's headlines include coverage of President Barack Obama's Thursday speech pitching the positives of the health law.

19 Jul 2013

Viewpoints: Baucus applauds 'listening to customers' on employer mandate delay; Unions 'wake up' to problems with health law; Medicare's 'two midnights' rule

Any successful business leader will tell you the importance of listening to customers, gathering their input and suggestions and always putting them first. That lesson was not lost on the Obama administration earlier this month when it correctly decided to push back the implementation of the Affordable Care Act's employer responsibility provision - the employer mandate - until 2015. I'm sure this was a tough call, but it was the right one. It shows the administration is listening to the business community and working to address its concerns, as well as the concerns of Congress (Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., 7/17).

19 Jul 2013

Funding for Native Americans' mental health services hit hard by sequestration

Centuries ago, tribes gave up much of their land to the federal government in exchange for promises of funded health care, education and housing. Time and time again those funds have been cut. The sequestration has been no exception.

19 Jul 2013

Michigan Senate leader says Medicaid expansion vote could come in August

Republican Randy Richardville says the debate will have to wait until a group of senators studying the issue submit their proposal.

19 Jul 2013

Small business owners anxious about health law, Chamber survey finds

Small business owners are increasingly concerned about the law's impact, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, while Karen Ignagni of the nation's biggest trade group of insurers says the nation's focus must move to reducing the cost of health care.

19 Jul 2013

State highlights: D.C. health care providers continue wait for payments; Ga. plans Medicaid managed care for kids; Hospital chain seeks insurer license in Calif.

A selection of health policy stories from Virginia, the District of Columbia, California, Wisconsin, Georgia, South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Washington.

19 Jul 2013

Study finds simple action to reduce healthcare costs

A study led by a Loyola University Medical Center ENT physician provides a case study of a simple action that can reduce healthcare costs without compromising care.

19 Jul 2013

Researchers receive $10M March of Dimes grant to study causes of premature birth

Researchers from Dartmouth's Institute for Quantitative Biomedical Sciences (iQBS), the Center for Integrative Biomedical Sciences, and the Center for Genomic Medicine at the Geisel School of Medicine are studying the unknown causes of premature birth, as part of a $10 million March of Dimes grant awarded to a research collaborative of seven U.S. universities and medical centers.

19 Jul 2013

Testing requirements could delay launch of state health exchanges

Government officials said Wednesday during a Capitol Hill hearing that the Oct. 1 deadline may not allow enough time to test the systems that are being put in place to run these online insurance marketplaces.

19 Jul 2013

UK Markey Cancer Center receives National Cancer Institute designation

The University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center was joined by national, state and local leaders last Friday to celebrate its designation as a National Cancer Institute cancer center.

19 Jul 2013

Coverage campaign: The White House effort 'to sell' the health law

The Washington Post details how the White House plans to sell the health law and to persuade young people to buy health insurance. Meanwhile, The Hill reports on how a public relations contract related to Obamacare is being boosted by $33 million.

19 Jul 2013

Study examines relationship between religious practices and obesity among Indian immigrants

Asian Indians are one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the United States, and roughly half a million people of Indian ancestry live in California - more than any other state. Individuals from this group are strongly predisposed to obesity-related conditions such as diabetes and heart disease, due in large part to physical inactivity, diets low in fruit and vegetables, and insulin resistance.

19 Jul 2013

Obama's Thursday speech to tout health law benefits

The president's chief spokesman said the speech will focus on how the overhaul is helping keep health-insurance rates low and resulting in rebates to some Americans.

19 Jul 2013

House votes to delay health law's mandates

Despite White House veto threats, House lawmakers on Wednesday OK'd two separate bills amending portions of the Affordable Care Act, the latest GOP moves to try to scuttle the health law. A measure putting off the employer mandate was approved 264-161 while a bill delaying the individual mandate passed 251-174.

19 Jul 2013

Health law supporters hail N.Y. announcement that insurance rates will drop

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that premiums for health policies purchased by individuals in the state's new online marketplace will fall on average 50 percent in 2014.

19 Jul 2013

Highmark Health Services creates Accountable Care Alliance to improve health care in Western Pennsylvania

Highmark Health Services is helping to improve health care through the formation of the Accountable Care Alliance, designed to not only improve care, but to also make it more affordable for patients in Western Pennsylvania.

19 Jul 2013

Health Affairs July 2013 issue describes health success stories outside US

Health Affairs July 2013 issue describes health success stories outside USOne, by Sema Sgaier of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and colleagues, is titled "How The Avahan HIV Prevention Program Transitioned From The Gates Foundation To The Government Of India."

19 Jul 2013