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Supreme Court justices emerge as possible players in upcoming presidential election

Also in the news, President Obama talks about the health law while on the campaign trail, Vice President Joe Biden takes on GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney and health law supporters begin to embrace the term "Obamacare."

3 Apr 2012

Viewpoints: 'Outrageously high fee' for emergency services; Mysterious rise in autism cases

The calculus for medical charges in general is beyond comprehension, with outrageously high fees used as a starting point in a bizarre game of bargaining. Glenn Melnick, who teaches hospital finance at USC, told me it's as crazy as if he asked to buy the TV in my living room, and I gave him a price of $1 million to start the conversation.

3 Apr 2012

Funding shortfalls could hinder implementation of treatment as prevention strategies, Al Jazeera reports

Al Jazeera examines the administration of combination antiretroviral therapy (ART) worldwide, focusing on treatment as prevention (TasP), but says current funding levels are insufficient to implement the strategy.

3 Apr 2012

UNC to design and implement Hillman Scholars Program in Nursing Innovation

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing has been awarded $3 million over five years from the Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation to design and implement the Hillman Scholars Program in Nursing Innovation.

3 Apr 2012

U.S. government releases $120M in emergency assistance to help drought-affected West African countries

In a press statement released on Thursday, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the U.S. is "'deeply concerned' about the humanitarian situation in West Africa" and announced $120 million in emergency assistance, United Press International reports.

3 Apr 2012

State capitols: Social issues a hot topic; Iowa short on time for state budget; Kansas advances drug bills

Legislatures in Iowa and Kansas consider bills on health care, while Stateline looks at the social issues debates going on in many state capitols around the nation.

3 Apr 2012

TLR4/MD-2 protein complex triggers morphine-induced inflammation

A University of Colorado Boulder-led research team has discovered that two protein receptors in the central nervous system team up to respond to morphine and cause unwanted neuroinflammation, a finding with implications for improving the efficacy of the widely used painkiller while decreasing its abuse potential.

3 Apr 2012

Views on the Supreme Court review: No matter what the decision, reform will go on; The case threatens the court's legacy

Listening to the lawyers talking nonstop last week about health care gave me a headache, so I decided to consult one of the nation's top doctors. He offered a real-world diagnosis of what's happening in health care - and a reminder of how much it's changing, regardless of what the Supreme Court decides about Obamacare. My medical guru is Delos "Toby" Cosgrove, chief executive of Cleveland Clinic, a $6 billion network that's one of the biggest and best providers in the country.

3 Apr 2012

Health reform means ER use jumps in Colo.; Calif. insurance premiums rise; Ore. waits to see who wants in on coordinated care

Even people who just got health insurance use the emergency departments to access their care, according to a new study by University of Colorado School of Medicine researchers. It's not just people who lost insurance or people living long without it, the researchers note -- any change in health insurance status, whether positive or negative, tends to send people to the ER because they don't know where else to go.

3 Apr 2012

Texas hospitals ask for Medicaid money diversion; Wash. pauses plan to not pay for some ER visits; Adult day care transition starts in Calif.

Texas' public hospitals want some Medicaid money shifted to pay for the uninsured while a proposal in Washington state to stop paying for some Medicaid ER visits deemed unnecessary is paused. Ohio is also trying to save money on its Medicare and Medicaid dual-eligible population by restructuring the program.

3 Apr 2012

Perspectives on the health law: Santorum offers his plan for health freedom; Cardinal Dolan's meeting with Obama; Dems' and GOP's 'misconception'

As the Supreme Court considers the constitutionality of the individual mandate in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, we Americans need to remember that we have the freedom to make choices for ourselves. We, not our government, choose the food to eat, the clothes to wear, the ideas to believe. "ObamaCare" is the opposite of freedom. Under ObamaCare, the government, not the individual, has freedom. We can do better.

3 Apr 2012

Patients prefer immediate access to radiology reports

You've been experiencing severe back pain and weakness in your right leg. Your doctor orders a spinal MRI to help determine the cause. The radiology report diagnoses cancer. Would you rather read the detailed medical report right away at home or wait until your doctor was available to explain the test results, diagnosis and treatment options? This scenario was part of a study at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center designed to determine if patients wanted online access to radiology test results and, if so, how quickly.

3 Apr 2012

Clemson researcher to continue African sleeping sickness study

Clemson University researcher James Morris received a $360,079 competitive renewal grant from the National Institutes of Health to continue his study of Trypanosoma brucei, the single-celled parasite that causes African sleeping sickness.

3 Apr 2012

Humana acquires Arcadian Management Services

Humana Inc. announced today that it has completed its previously announced acquisition of Arcadian Management Services, an Oakland, Calif.-based company that, through its affiliates, operates Medicare Advantage HMO plans.

3 Apr 2012

Exclusive breastfeeding policy implemented in South Africa amidst criticism

On Sunday, South Africa's nine provinces began promoting the Tshwane Declaration, which "states unequivocal support for [exclusive breastfeeding (EBF)] for all infants up to six months, including HIV-exposed infants, who should receive antiretrovirals (ARVs) to prevent mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT), as recommended in the 2010 World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines," Inter Press Service reports.

2 Apr 2012

State-based health policies grab attention

With the federal law's fate uncertain, action taken so far by the states -- either to implement the national overhaul or to advance reforms of their own -- have claimed more significance and headlines.

2 Apr 2012

Medicaid long-term care restrictions tighten

The Wall Street Journal offers tips on how to preserve some assets while attempting to qualify for Medicaid assistance.

2 Apr 2012

CompCare's 2011 revenues increase to $71,210,000

Comprehensive Care Corporation, a leading behavioral health, substance abuse and psychotropic pharmacy management services provider for managed care companies throughout the U.S., is pleased to announce that its revenues for 2011 more than doubled to $71,210,000 compared to revenues of $35,214,000 in 2010.

2 Apr 2012

IPT has an ongoing protective effect against malaria in infants

Malaria infections among infants can be cut by up to 30 per cent when antimalarial drugs are given intermittently over a 12 month period, a three-year clinical trial in Papua New Guinea has shown.

2 Apr 2012

Democrats offer optimistic take on court's health law decision

Appearing on the Sunday talk shows, Vice President Joseph Biden and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., defended the health law and predicted it would be upheld by the high court.

2 Apr 2012

Health Care News and Research

Supreme Court justices emerge as possible players in upcoming presidential election

Viewpoints: 'Outrageously high fee' for emergency services; Mysterious rise in autism cases

Funding shortfalls could hinder implementation of treatment as prevention strategies, Al Jazeera reports

UNC to design and implement Hillman Scholars Program in Nursing Innovation

U.S. government releases $120M in emergency assistance to help drought-affected West African countries

State capitols: Social issues a hot topic; Iowa short on time for state budget; Kansas advances drug bills

TLR4/MD-2 protein complex triggers morphine-induced inflammation

Views on the Supreme Court review: No matter what the decision, reform will go on; The case threatens the court's legacy

Health reform means ER use jumps in Colo.; Calif. insurance premiums rise; Ore. waits to see who wants in on coordinated care

Texas hospitals ask for Medicaid money diversion; Wash. pauses plan to not pay for some ER visits; Adult day care transition starts in Calif.

Perspectives on the health law: Santorum offers his plan for health freedom; Cardinal Dolan's meeting with Obama; Dems' and GOP's 'misconception'

Patients prefer immediate access to radiology reports

Clemson researcher to continue African sleeping sickness study

Humana acquires Arcadian Management Services

Exclusive breastfeeding policy implemented in South Africa amidst criticism

State-based health policies grab attention

Medicaid long-term care restrictions tighten

CompCare's 2011 revenues increase to $71,210,000

IPT has an ongoing protective effect against malaria in infants

Democrats offer optimistic take on court's health law decision

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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