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Abbott receives FDA approval for new Chagas assay

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the first test for use as an additional, more specific test on human serum or plasma specimens found to be positive for antibodies to Trypanosoma cruzi.

19 Nov 2011

Diabetes dashboard saves time, improves accuracy and enhances patient care

In the fast-paced world of health care, doctors are often pressed for time during patient visits. Researchers at the University of Missouri developed a tool that allows doctors to view electronic information about patients' health conditions related to diabetes on a single computer screen. A new study shows that this tool, the diabetes dashboard, saves time, improves accuracy and enhances patient care.

18 Nov 2011

VA to join National Family Caregivers Association

The Department of Veterans Affairs will join the National Family Caregivers Association to recognize and appreciate dedicated partners providing daily health care for Veterans during National Family Caregiver Month in November.

18 Nov 2011

NCQA to release standards and guidelines that compose new ACO Accreditation program

On November 21, the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) will release the standards and guidelines that compose its new Accountable Care Organization (ACO) Accreditation program.

18 Nov 2011

Political cartoon: 'Second Opinion?'

Kaiser Health News provides a fresh perspective on health policy developments with "Second Opinion?" by Gary Varvel.

18 Nov 2011

Political cartoon: 'Go Away?'

Kaiser Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with "Go Away?" by Milt Priggee.

18 Nov 2011

ACF selects HCI, AAP to establish center of excellence for Head Start

Amid reports that an increasing number of Americans are living below the poverty level, UCLA/Johnson & Johnson Health Care Institute (HCI) is expanding its efforts to help low-income families.

18 Nov 2011

Research roundup: The effect of heart drug costs; Doctors' financial incentives when ordering stress tests

The researchers examined whether drug costs for heart attack patients affects health. Half of a group of more than 5,000 patients were given prescription coverage that eliminated co-payments and expanded drug choices. The others had "usual prescription coverage."

18 Nov 2011

First Edition: November 18, 2011

In today's health policy headlines, reports indicate that the super committee continues to face difficulties and may not make its fast-approaching deadline.

18 Nov 2011

Pollution threatens health of Chinese population, UNEP report says

"The pollution that has accompanied China's spectacular rate of economic growth will have dire health consequences for its population, the United Nations has warned in a report," the International Business Times reports.

18 Nov 2011

Efforts to end AIDS could also reduce TB burden with proper funding

In response to Michael Gerson's November 11 column in which he said the end of AIDS is possible because of combination prevention and treatment innovations, David Bryden, the Stop TB advocacy officer at RESULTS, writes in a Washington Post letter to the editor, "Another benefit of [HIV] treatment is that it sharply reduces deaths from tuberculosis [TB], which is the primary killer of people living with HIV/AIDS."

18 Nov 2011

Bridging the gap between global health NGOs and local governments

In a post on Global Health Hub, blogger and medical student Abraar Karan examines the roles of global health non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and local government in the countries where they work with regard to development initiatives.

18 Nov 2011

Insurers seek health law exemption for plans sold to Americans overseas

Four health insurers led by Cigna Corp. have asked the Obama administration to exempt medical plans they sell to Americans overseas from the 2010 health law, saying a denial may imperil about 1,100 U.S. jobs.

18 Nov 2011

Press Ganey recognizes The Methodist Hospital with patient satisfaction award

The Methodist Hospital in Houston is one of three academic medical centers in the country to win a top patient satisfaction award from Press Ganey, a national consulting firm focused on improving health care performance.

18 Nov 2011

First-ever World Prematurity Day honors 13M infants born too soon worldwide

The nation's preterm birth rate slipped under 12 percent for the first time in nearly a decade, the fourth consecutive year it declined, potentially sparing tens of thousands of babies the serious health consequences of an early birth.

18 Nov 2011

Workplace perceptions about EMS safety may be reality

Poor perceptions about workplace safety culture among emergency medical services (EMS) workers is associated with negative patient and provider safety outcomes -- the first time such a link has been shown in the pre-hospital setting, according to a study by University of Pittsburgh researchers that now appears online in Prehospital Emergency Care and is scheduled to be published in the January-March print edition.

18 Nov 2011

Survey finds health care costs a key issue in presidential campaign

Healthcare and the national deficit tied as the second-most important issue after job creation in the 2012 U.S. presidential election, a new survey said. Forty-two percent of the 1,000 adults nationwide surveyed by PwC's Health Research Institute said they would prefer lower healthcare costs over an economic rebound. Nearly half said they made the decision to not seek healthcare or pay for medication at least once in the past year because of how much that care cost.

18 Nov 2011