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States continue to react to health reform's high-risk insurance pools, individual insurance requirement

"Gov. Jan. Brewer told the Obama administration that Arizona can't afford an insurance program that would extend health coverage to Arizonans unable to purchase insurance because of pre-existing medical conditions. Arizona is among 19 states that have rejected federal funds to administer a high-risk insurance pool. That means the federal government will create and run such a pool on behalf of Arizona and the other states that have declined participation" (Alltucker, 5/5).

7 May 2010

Experts unveil roadmap to improve health and health delivery in the U.S.

A Commission of national health care experts convened by the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress has unveiled a roadmap and integrated approach that will put "health" back into our nation's health care system as well as address key opportunities following passage of health care reform legislation.

6 May 2010

Early Retiree Reinsurance Program in Affordable Care Act to be discussed in a webchat

.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke will host a webchat tomorrow, WEDNESDAY May 5, to discuss regulations issued yesterday establishing the Early Retiree Reinsurance Program in the Affordable Care Act.

6 May 2010

Round-up: Minnesota budget news; Coverage expansions in S.D. and Oregon; and states' opposition to federal health reform

The Minnesota House passed a bill on health care Tuesday that readies the state for implementing the federal health care overhaul and makes $170 million in cuts to mental health and other social programs, The (St. Paul, Minn.) Pioneer Press reports. Gov. Tim Pawlenty has promised to veto the bill over what he sees as a tax increase.

6 May 2010

Early extension of health insurance for some young adults faces legal roadblocks

The Associated Press reports, in a Q & A, that the provision in the health reform law that requires insurers to allow dependents to stay on plans up to the age of 26 is being enacted early by many health insurance companies but not all in the same way. "These voluntary extensions come with a host of qualifications. Whether your child gets one also can depend on your employer."

6 May 2010

Study finds medical homes help lower health care costs, maintain quality

Kaiser Health News: "Some health policy experts and clinicians have long maintained that, in the effort to reduce health care costs and improve patient outcomes, there's no place like (a medical) home. A new study in the May issue of the journal Health Affairs seems to validate that notion. Medical homes — where primary care doctors are held responsible for coordinating care for individual patients - are seen as a model for lowering costs without sacrificing quality.

6 May 2010

Each year up to 85% of health center patients experience unmet legal needs: Study

Each year, between 50 and 85 percent of health center patients - or between ten and seventeen million people - experience unmet legal needs, many of which negatively impact their health, according to a new study from the Geiger Gibson/RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative at The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.

5 May 2010

Health IT Roundup: Many obstacles, much promise

The Boston Globe: There is a lingering "professional resistance to electronic records systems that computerization advocates say threatens the goals of the new health care overhaul law. These advocates argue that using computers to track what care patients receive, for instance, is vital to deciding what medications and treatments work best."

5 May 2010

Most women pay for abortions out of pocket; Okla. and Fla. abortion restrictions in the news

"Most women getting abortions pay for them out of their own pockets, with private insurers picking up the cost for just 12%, according to a new survey" from the Guttmacher Institute. The Journal adds that abortion coverage was "a flash point" in the health reform debate, "with abortion opponents seeking to block plans that include abortions from the new federally mandated insurance exchanges set to launch in 2014."

5 May 2010

Fifth Community Pharmacy Agreement planned by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia

According to an Australian Financial Review report the major pharmaceutical companies have agreed to reduce the Australian government’s medicine bill by AUD $2 billion over the next four years only if they are assured of price modifications in future. The details of the agreement are to be revealed next week and experts believe it will reduce the burden on the federal budget which is still considering the source of funds to pay for its health reform package.

4 May 2010

First Edition: May 4, 2010

Today's headlines include stories about parts of the new health reform law dealing with long-term care, high risk insurance pools and early retiree health insurance.

4 May 2010

Pay-for-performance programs could end up widening medical disparities: RAND study

Rewarding primary care physicians for providing better care to patients could end up widening medical disparities experienced by poorer people and those belonging to racial and ethnic minorities, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

4 May 2010

Consumer Reports Health lays out next steps for consumers in variety of situations

With health reform now the law of the land, Consumer Reports Health lays out next steps for consumers in a variety of situations - those who are currently insured; Medicare and Medicaid recipients; people with pre-existing conditions; parents of children with pre-existing conditions; parents of uninsured young adults; and people who develop serious illnesses.

4 May 2010

$Waiting too long for surgery for skull fracture, family resorts to private treatment$

Waiting too long for surgery for skull fracture, family resorts to private treatment

A Gold Coast man has been waiting for the last three years for a surgery for his fractured skull. Queensland Health Minister Paul Lucas feels it is been too long a wait. He assured that Queensland Health would be happy to provide appropriate treatment.

4 May 2010

GOP, Democrats increasingly use health reform lessons to shape other policies

The Associated Press: Politics within the Republican Party are having a profound affect on sweeping policy issues "such as immigration, health care and deficit spending." The reason behind this development is that many incumbent Republicans are moving to the right to protect themselves against primary election challenges.

3 May 2010

Health law brings a 'host of new taxes' and billions in tax credits

The Washington Post/Fiscal Times: Tax credits and other breaks -- including $50 billion a year in subsidies for low-income people to buy insurance under the new health law -- were "worth more than $1 trillion to recipients last year. That's more than the government spent on Social Security, and nearly enough to balance the federal budget." These and other so-called "tax expenditures" could total $3 trillion by 2020.

3 May 2010

States decide on risk pools as first major health law decision

Politico reports that establishing high-risk insurance pools, the first major decision after the enactment of health care reform, "has come and gone with the decisions so far made mostly along party lines." Many Democratic governors "decided to help the Department of Health and Human Services by creating the pools themselves with federal funding.

3 May 2010

Health Reform News and Research

States continue to react to health reform's high-risk insurance pools, individual insurance requirement

Experts unveil roadmap to improve health and health delivery in the U.S.

Early Retiree Reinsurance Program in Affordable Care Act to be discussed in a webchat

Round-up: Minnesota budget news; Coverage expansions in S.D. and Oregon; and states' opposition to federal health reform

Early extension of health insurance for some young adults faces legal roadblocks

Study finds medical homes help lower health care costs, maintain quality

Each year up to 85% of health center patients experience unmet legal needs: Study

Health IT Roundup: Many obstacles, much promise

Most women pay for abortions out of pocket; Okla. and Fla. abortion restrictions in the news

Fifth Community Pharmacy Agreement planned by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia

First Edition: May 4, 2010

Pay-for-performance programs could end up widening medical disparities: RAND study

Consumer Reports Health lays out next steps for consumers in variety of situations

Waiting too long for surgery for skull fracture, family resorts to private treatment

GOP, Democrats increasingly use health reform lessons to shape other policies

Health law brings a 'host of new taxes' and billions in tax credits

States decide on risk pools as first major health law decision

First Edition: May 3, 2010

Federal deadline on state health insurance 'pools' sparks confrontations

Schwarzenegger expresses support for health law while Reid uses reform as campaign issue

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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