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On health reform law's anniversary: Pros, cons, waivers and state action

News organizations are noting the one-year anniversary of the health law, and covering developments in the states.

21 Mar 2011

Growing field of literature outlines necessary steps for elder disaster preparedness in emergency

The oldest segment of Japan's population will likely be the hardest hit as a result of the recent earthquake and subsequent tsunami, based on data from previous catastrophic events. Approximately 23 percent of Japanese citizens currently are age 65 and above.

19 Mar 2011

MPC urges everyone to program poison center phone number into mobiles

The Maryland Poison Center urges everyone to program the poison center phone number, 1-800-222-1222, into their mobile phones. The number automatically connects callers to a local poison center when it is dialed anywhere in the U.S.

19 Mar 2011

Scant high-quality research on hospice care in nursing homes

A new evidence review finds that there's scant high-quality research on the best comprehensive strategies for nursing homes hoping to ease the suffering of older patients through hospice care.

18 Mar 2011

Medicare officials signal no payment changes on anemia drugs

Medicare officials signaled Wednesday that they will not change a payment policy for biotech drugs made by Amgen and Johnson & Johnson when they are used to treat anemia in kidney disease patients, despite data suggesting heart risks for those patients.

18 Mar 2011

Conference addresses health and safety hazards in homes

Millions of U.S. families face health and safety hazards like mold, lead, pest infestation and the physical deterioration of their homes. These problems are particularly common among some of the nation's most vulnerable populations: children, seniors, the disabled and low-income families.

18 Mar 2011

$Guide to improving care of baby boomers' fragility fractures$

Guide to improving care of baby boomers' fragility fractures

Many Baby Boomers will experience a bone fracture as they age, and the current US healthcare system is not prepared to provide the necessary care required, according to a special monograph released in the January 2011 issue of Geriatric Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation (GOS), published by SAGE.

18 Mar 2011

ACP: Increase in internal medicine enrollment can ease primary care workforce shortage

The increase in the number of U.S. medical students choosing internal medicine residencies in 2011 is a positive sign toward easing the primary care workforce shortage, according to the American College of Physicians, the nation's second-largest doctors group.

18 Mar 2011

New IAF study identifies ten states as 'diabetes hot spots'

A new study conducted by the Institute for Alternative Futures identified California, Texas, Florida, New York, Ohio, Illinois, Georgia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Michigan as "diabetes hot spots," where the burden of diabetes will be greatest in the next 15 years.

18 Mar 2011

NAA expresses strong support of diagnostic code for seniors with ASD

The National Autism Association today expressed its strong support of a diagnostic code for disabled minors that have a serious history of wandering and elopement from safe environments.

18 Mar 2011

Home care and hospice nurses, aides and providers march on Washington to ensure the right of every American to be cared for in their home

Hundreds of home care and hospice providers will arrive in that nation’s capitol to keep the fight alive for the critical, high-value, high-quality care that is delivered every day to some of the nation’s most vulnerable individuals.

17 Mar 2011

Health law battle lines prominent as 1st anniversary approaches

Some Democrats say their party should embrace the law in the upcoming campaign season, just as some tea party lawmakers are questioning the GOP leadership's commitment to repeal it. In the background, "death panels" have again emerged as a topic of congressional investigation.

17 Mar 2011

PCMA ad campaign warns Mississippi legislators that SB 2445 can increase health care costs

A new ad campaign warns Mississippi legislators that SB 2445 would increase health care costs by granting the State Board of Pharmacy authority to regulate pharmacy benefit managers.

17 Mar 2011

UCI receives two-year grants to continue innovative work in elder abuse prevention

UC Irvine's Center of Excellence on Elder Abuse & Neglect has received a pair of two-year grants that will allow the university to continue its innovative work in elder abuse prevention.

16 Mar 2011

A Medicare mistake: Paying for Viagra

The Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General concluded that the program paid more than $3 million in 2007 and 2008 for this drug, even though it is against the law for Medicare to pay for Viagra prescriptions.

16 Mar 2011

Human growth, height, size: Reasons to be small

Almost everybody these days thinks that it is best to be tall, meaning much taller than the average traditional height of Asian populations, and even taller than the current average height of populations in high-income countries. It is also often believed – though people might be shy to admit this – that tall people are intrinsically superior to short people. The expressions 'look up to' and 'look down on' are significant.

15 Mar 2011

Taking health technology to the top

At the Innovations in Health and Community Care Forum at Old Parliament House on Thursday 3 March, leading health academics and professionals presented compelling arguments supporting the need for integrating assistive technology into health and community models of care.

14 Mar 2011

Hospice and Palliative care

The word hospice originated from the Latin hospitium, which means "to host or offer a place of shelter." In 2009, an estimated 1.56 million patients, more than 40 percent of deaths, received hospice services in the United States.

14 Mar 2011

Insurance influences final choice of seniors shopping for physician specialists

A February 2011 survey of 344 seniors 65 and older revealed that 71%1 have shopped for physicians, and 77% of those who do shop end up choosing a physician based on whether he or she accepts their insurance. The survey also revealed that the number one reason seniors shop for a physician, chosen by 63% of respondents, is to choose a specialist.

11 Mar 2011

Sebelius issues warning about impact of GOP tactics on Medicare

Her warning, which came in a letter to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., charges that the House temporary spending measure would force the Department of Health and Human Services to stop making Medicare Payments.

11 Mar 2011