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CNN poll: Half of Americans say Obamacare has helped their families or others

A CNN poll finds that more than half the public says the health law helped their families or others, but fewer than one in five say they have personally benefited.

24 Jul 2014

Charles H. Hennekens wins prestigious Alton Ochnser Award

The Ochnser Clinic Foundation recently announced that the 29th annual recipient of the prestigious Alton Ochnser Award is Charles H. Hennekens, M.D., Dr.P.H., the first Sir Richard Doll professor and senior academic advisor to the dean in the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine at Florida Atlantic University.

11 Jul 2014

Prisons cut health care costs, but aging inmate population threatens budgets

Health care for prisoners has long taken a bite out of state budgets, but a new report from the Pew Charitable Trusts says prisons have cut back on those costs. They've outsourced some health services, used tele-medicine, and simply incarcerated fewer people. But the aging of the inmate population threatens to drive those costs right back up (Gorenstein, 7/9).

11 Jul 2014

First Edition: July 10, 2014

Today's headlines cover health policy headlines from the marketplace, the campaign trail and regarding the health law's implementation.

10 Jul 2014

AACN conference addresses educational, professional development goals for progressive care nurses

AACN Progressive Care Pathways, presented by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, is the only conference to address the distinct educational and professional development goals for the growing number of nurses who care for high acuity patients who are not in the ICU but require highly skilled nursing care.

26 Jun 2014

Preventing antibiotic side effects: an interview with Florence Séjourné, CEO, Da Volterra

Like all drugs, antibiotics can have side-effects when administered to people. The most common (and often benign) side effect people experience when taking antibiotics is “associated diarrhea”. This illustrates the fact that antibiotics have an impact on the intestine!

25 Jun 2014

Md. Governor closely watches how health marketplace plays in race for successor

Maryland voters' views of the roll-out of the online exchange could impact the primary election and have political implications for Gov. Martin O'Malley, who may be considering a presidential run. And in Mississippi, the incumbent senator's style on issues like the health law may be a disadvantage.

25 Jun 2014

First Edition: June 24, 2014

Today's headlines include news about the latest report detailing problems at the VA.

24 Jun 2014

Medicare faces cost tension with lawmakers, advocates

More than 130 lawmakers are urging the Obama administration to expand coverage for a lung-cancer test under Medicare that could cost the program billons, calling the screening important for vulnerable seniors. In a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the lawmakers called for a timely decision on coverage for low-dose CT scans for older patients at higher risk of developing lung cancer. ... A CMS spokesman said the agency's decision will be based on whether the test is "reasonable and necessary," without regard to its cost to Medicare (Yen, 6/17).

19 Jun 2014

Federal officials, software specialists working to simplify healthcare.gov enrollment application

Their goal is to make the process easier during the next enrollment season. Meanwhile, Enroll America held a meeting to rally its troops as the organization also looks ahead to the next sign-up period.

19 Jun 2014

Kansas Medicaid-CHIP enrollment rises despite tight eligibility standards

In Illinois, Medicaid coverage of adult dental and podiatry care is restored following a two-year cut. Unlike its neighboring states of Missouri and Nebraska, where significant decreases have been reported, Kansas has seen a significant jump in the number of people enrolled in its Medicaid-CHIP programs, even without loosening its relatively tight eligibility standards.

18 Jun 2014

Golden Door introduces new online destination of goldendoor.com.

Golden Door, the globally renowned wellness resort is pleased to introduce the new online destination of goldendoor.com.

6 Jun 2014

Medicaid rolls grow by 6 million since health law rollout

The total, which includes 1.1 million people who signed up in April alone, does not indicate how many people gained coverage through the law's expansion of Medicaid, a program pursued by 26 states. That's because individuals who were eligible for Medicaid before the law's passage, but not enrolled, also signed up.

6 Jun 2014

First Edition: June 5, 2014

Today's headlines include the latest developments regarding congressional action on the veterans' health care scandal as well as reports about the latest Medicaid enrollment figures in the context of the health law.

5 Jun 2014

States scramble to pay hefty tab for health exchange fixes

According to The Wall Street Journal, five states -- Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada and Oregon -- will look to their own funds, remaining federal grants and new federal funding requests to pay these costs.

5 Jun 2014

Study to investigate use of OCT in collaboration with Melanoma Institute of Australia

Michelson Diagnostics, the UK based medical device company focused on multi-beam Optical Coherence Tomography ('OCT') technology, has commenced a clinical study to investigate the use of OCT to diagnose basal cell carcinoma in collaboration with the Melanoma Institute of Australia using Michelson's Diagnostics VivoSight system.

19 May 2014

Docs often say colleagues prescribe unnecessary care

Elsewhere, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services sets a new date for doctors to adopt a new coding practice and Medicare may follow advice against giving smokers annual CT scans.

5 May 2014

Imaging technique may help understanding of chronic CSCR

Swept-source optical coherence tomography identifies the morphological features implicated in the underlying physiopathological mechanisms of chronic central serous chorioretinopathy, researchers report.

1 May 2014

Retinal measurements associated with Parkinson’s disease duration

The inner retinal layers in the eyes of patients with Parkinson’s disease are thinner than those of healthy people’s eyes, except for the inner nuclear layer, which is thicker, show the results of a prospective study involving the latest optical coherence tomography methods.

1 May 2014

Some Medicare beneficiaries have trouble getting extended nursing and therapy services

Under a 2012 court settlement, the Department of Health and Human Services agreed to relax rules that said seniors could get these services only if they continued to improve. But many providers are still unaware of the new regulations.

30 Apr 2014