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Study: Medicare 'donut hole' not linked to more heart attacks, related deaths

U.S. seniors forced to pay full price for their medications while in Medicare's so-called donut hole didn't suffer more heart attacks or deaths as a result, in a new study.

21 Aug 2012

Texas investigates dental Medicaid fraud; Access, cost hurting dental care in Va.

In Texas, officials are investigating dentists for applying for reimbursement for procedures they say Medicaid doesn't cover. Also, cost and a dentist shortage in Virginia is negatively affecting dental care in that state.

21 Aug 2012

HemoSep device significantly reduces need for blood transfusions during major surgeries

A pioneering surgical blood salvage technology developed at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, is set to transform the way major surgery is carried out by reducing blood loss in patients.

21 Aug 2012

We must demonstrate 'Olympian leadership' to improve global nutrition

In this post in the Chicago Council on Global Affairs' "Global Food For Thought" blog, Howarth Bouis, director of HarvestPlus, a global research program that develops and disseminates nutrient-rich staple food crops to improve nutrition globally, writes, "David Cameron's decision to tie a hunger summit to the Olympics was imaginative ... because Cameron saw how the Olympics, that celebrate the best of human athleticism and teamwork, could also be used to draw attention to those who will never ever come close to competing in an Olympics event."

21 Aug 2012

Indiana bid for Medicaid waiver extension denied; Managed care contracts make news

In Indiana, officials are denied an extension on a Bush-era Medicaid waiver just as New Mexico seeks to revise its Medicaid overhaul plan.

21 Aug 2012

Mali faces 'complex humanitarian emergency' as a result of displacement, food insecurity

"More than 435,000 people have been displaced in Mali, as the country faces a complex humanitarian emergency due to conflict and food insecurity, according to a new report released by the United Nations relief agency," the U.N. News Centre reports.

21 Aug 2012

New tools can help assess culturally competent and health-literate care

The latest additions to a set of surveys for evaluating patient experiences with medical care provide new tools for assessing culturally competent and health-literate care, according to a special September supplement to Medical Care.

21 Aug 2012

Declining rates of circumcision in US infant males could add billions to health care costs

A team of disease experts and health economists at Johns Hopkins warns that steadily declining rates of U.S. infant male circumcision could add more than $4.4 billion in avoidable health care costs if rates over the next decade drop to levels now seen in Europe.

21 Aug 2012

Blog posts address World Humanitarian Day

The following blog posts were published in recognition of World Humanitarian Day, which was observed on Sunday, August 19.

21 Aug 2012

World Humanitarian Day a time to pay tribute to those who risk their lives for the less fortunate

In a post marking World Humanitarian Day (observed August 19) in the Guardian's "Comment is Free" blog, Kristalina Georgieva, the European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, writes, "It is a day to pay tribute to all humanitarian personnel who have lost their lives in the line of duty and to all those who continue to take risks to relieve the suffering of the less fortunate."

21 Aug 2012

Views on Medicare debate: Krugman skewers Ryan's budget plan; WSJ says Obama setting a double standard

On the spending side, Mr. Ryan proposes huge cuts in Medicaid, turning it over to the states while sharply reducing funding relative to projections under current policy. That saves around $800 billion. He proposes similar harsh cuts in food stamps, saving a further $130 billion or so, plus a grab-bag of other cuts, such as reduced aid to college students.

21 Aug 2012

Spirituality often enhances health regardless of a person's faith

Despite differences in rituals and beliefs among the world's major religions, spirituality often enhances health regardless of a person's faith, according to University of Missouri researchers. The MU researchers believe that health care providers could take advantage of this correlation between health - particularly mental health - and spirituality by tailoring treatments and rehabilitation programs to accommodate an individual's spiritual inclinations.

21 Aug 2012

Mayo Clinic receives approval for construction of new building on Phoenix campus

Mayo Clinic has been granted approval for construction of a 217,200 square-foot building on its Phoenix campus, a major expansion that will create a single-site, integrated Cancer Center. Mayo Clinic Cancer Center is the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center with a multi-site, national presence, which allows us to serve a broad and diverse group of patients.

21 Aug 2012

Viewpoints: Insuring medical treatments are well researched; GOP Govs reluctance on exchanges may backfire

By 1990, many doctors were recommending hormone replacement therapy to healthy middle-aged women and P.S.A. screening for prostate cancer to older men. Both interventions had become standard medical practice. But in 2002, a randomized trial showed that preventive hormone replacement caused more problems (more heart disease and breast cancer) than it solved. ... Then, in 2009, trials showed that P.S.A. screening led to many unnecessary surgeries and had a dubious effect on prostate cancer deaths.

21 Aug 2012

Pregnant women have higher rate of undiagnosed depression

Major depression affects as many as 16% of reproductive-aged women in the U.S. Yet pregnant women have a higher rate of undiagnosed depression than nonpregnant women, according to a study published in Journal of Women's Health, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

21 Aug 2012

National approach can help manage drug shortages in Canada

Canada needs a national approach to managing its supply of pharmaceutical drugs, starting with a mandatory reporting system for drug shortages, argues an editorial in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) and CPJ (Canadian Pharmacists Journal).

21 Aug 2012

India's CNBC-TV18 examines implications of country's decision to issue compulsory license for Bayer cancer drug

"India's grant of a compulsory license to Natco for Bayer's kidney-cancer drug Nexavar has sent shockwaves across the globe," but "India has found a backer in the World Health Organization," CNBC-TV18's "moneycontrol.com" reports.

21 Aug 2012

Majority of Californians support health reform, Poll says; Gov. Brown plans special legislative session on health law

Californians support health reform, a new polls says, even as Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown seeks a special session from state lawmakers to deal with health reform issues, which he says can go no further without more federal guidance.

21 Aug 2012

Roundup: Abortion cases against Kan. Planned Parenthood dropped; Maine Readies session on money owed hospitals; Calif. suing doc over billing practices

The first criminal prosecution of Planned Parenthood came to an abrupt end Friday when Kansas prosecutors dropped all charges against a local affiliate accused of failing to determine the viability of fetuses before abortions were performed. ... They said that state law did not prohibit Planned Parenthood from using the gestational age of fetuses to determine whether they were viable or could survive outside of the womb.

21 Aug 2012

How's Medicare playing in the Florida Senate race

News outlets report on how Medicare is shaping the much-watched Florida Senate race as well as how this year's House candidates that are physicians also tend to be Democrats.

20 Aug 2012

Health Care News and Research

Study: Medicare 'donut hole' not linked to more heart attacks, related deaths

Texas investigates dental Medicaid fraud; Access, cost hurting dental care in Va.

HemoSep device significantly reduces need for blood transfusions during major surgeries

We must demonstrate 'Olympian leadership' to improve global nutrition

Indiana bid for Medicaid waiver extension denied; Managed care contracts make news

Mali faces 'complex humanitarian emergency' as a result of displacement, food insecurity

New tools can help assess culturally competent and health-literate care

Declining rates of circumcision in US infant males could add billions to health care costs

Blog posts address World Humanitarian Day

World Humanitarian Day a time to pay tribute to those who risk their lives for the less fortunate

Views on Medicare debate: Krugman skewers Ryan's budget plan; WSJ says Obama setting a double standard

Spirituality often enhances health regardless of a person's faith

Mayo Clinic receives approval for construction of new building on Phoenix campus

Viewpoints: Insuring medical treatments are well researched; GOP Govs reluctance on exchanges may backfire

Pregnant women have higher rate of undiagnosed depression

National approach can help manage drug shortages in Canada

India's CNBC-TV18 examines implications of country's decision to issue compulsory license for Bayer cancer drug

Majority of Californians support health reform, Poll says; Gov. Brown plans special legislative session on health law

Roundup: Abortion cases against Kan. Planned Parenthood dropped; Maine Readies session on money owed hospitals; Calif. suing doc over billing practices

How's Medicare playing in the Florida Senate race

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

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