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GAO: HHS okayed waivers mostly when high cost increases were projected

Democrats view the report as evidence that waivers were not given out by the administration as political rewards to labor unions and other allies.

16 Jun 2011

AFP says battle against AIDS not over in India

Though the country has reduced by half the number of new infections since 2001, "UNAIDS coordinator in India, Charles Gilks, said that while the authorities should be commended for tackling the problem, the country had not yet won the battle," the news agency reports.

16 Jun 2011

Study: Number of Americans caring for aging parents tripled since 1994

The percentage of Americans who provide care for their aging parents has tripled since 1994, according to a new study.

16 Jun 2011

Report: For-profit Medicaid managed care plans have higher admin costs

Commercial Medicaid managed care plans that are publicly traded may not be serving beneficiaries as well as other plans, according a report released Wednesday by the Commonwealth Fund.

16 Jun 2011

Senate Dems signal hard line on Medicare in budget talks

Although Vice President Joe Biden offered an optimistic assessment of progress in the budget talks that he has been leading, Senate Democratic leadership reiterated yesterday that Medicare cuts should not be on the table during these negotiations.

16 Jun 2011

British government revises health care overhaul plan

The initial blueprint by Prime Minister David Cameron drew criticism from providers and members of his own coalition government, who argued it equaled "partial privatization of the system."

16 Jun 2011

State roundup: Mass. health spending's rise; huge Ky. hospital merger

A new report from the state Division of Health Care Finance and Policy shows that: ... "Spending per member on privately insured people grew 6 percent from 2007 to 2008 and another 10 percent from 2008 to 2009. This rate of growth was substantially higher than the increase in national personal health care expenditures per capita of 4.6 percent from 2008 to 2009. Spending by private payers also grew faster than spending by public payers".

16 Jun 2011

Women who make their sexual debut as young teens more likely to divorce

A University of Iowa study found that women who make their sexual debut as young teens are more likely to divorce, especially if "the first time" was unwanted, or if she had mixed feelings about it.

16 Jun 2011

Brain research funds crisis: Report

According to the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology there is a dramatic drop in private and public funding for research in brain diseases that has led to a “withdrawal of hope” for millions of sufferers and could delay the search for treatments and cures by 30 years.

16 Jun 2011

Viewpoints: Hiaasen on 'insane' insurance; residential facilities' budget nightmares; safety at VA hospitals

If Obama's healthcare plan is struck down in court, lots of politicians will celebrate it as a victory over big government. The dubious reward for taxpayers will be to continue footing the medical bills for 50 million uninsured Americans, and watching the dangerous deficit swell.

16 Jun 2011

NIH awards $20 million research grant to University of Kentucky

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), the largest government funding source for biomedical research in the United States, has awarded $20 million to the University of Kentucky to move research discoveries to health care solutions more quickly.

15 Jun 2011

First Edition: June 15, 2011

Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including a report that GOP governors are pushing back against federal Medicaid rules.

15 Jun 2011

Infosys introduces Health Benefit Exchange

Infosys today announced the availability of Infosys Health Benefit Exchange, a cost effective solution designed to help states set up the insurance exchanges mandated in the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

15 Jun 2011

Essential benefits rule, McKinsey study continue to draw headlines

Also, Neal Katyal, the acting solicitor general who has argued four of the cases challenging the health law before appeals courts, has announced that he will leave the Department of Justice at the conclusion of the current Supreme Court term.

15 Jun 2011

California's rural elders more likely to be obese, physically inactive and food insecure

Despite living in the countryside, where open space is plentiful and there is often significant agricultural production, California's more than half a million rural elders are far more likely to be overweight or obese, physically inactive and food insecure than their suburban counterparts, according to a new policy brief from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

15 Jun 2011

Meeting promotes partnership to end malnutrition in first 1,000 days of life

Government officials, nutrition and health experts, as well as civil society advocates from around the world, met in Washington, D.C., on Monday to promote the 1,000 Days Partnership, which launched in September 2010, VOA News reports in a piece featuring quotes from U.S. officials about efforts to end child deaths from malnutrition.

15 Jun 2011

Improve water access to avoid serious public health crisis in Pakistan

Haider Warraich, a research fellow at Harvard Medical School, examines how a "lack of access to water in Pakistan only exacerbates the country's already dire public health situation" in this post on Foreign Policy's "AfPak Channel" blog.

15 Jun 2011

Obama administration regulatory review won't include health law rules

An official from the Department of Health and Human Services told a House oversight subcommittee that the health law's regulations are too new for a second look. However, some Republican members of the panel disagreed, saying that the waivers that have been granted are reason enough for such examination.

15 Jun 2011

Editorial, opinion pieces respond to GAVI pledging conference

Editorials and opinion pieces are responding to the GAVI Alliance pledging conference, which raised $4.3 billion for childhood vaccinations.

15 Jun 2011

Studies examine surgery survival odds, hospital readmission risks

News outlets report on a pair of studies related to Medicare populations. The first concludes that the odds for a Medicare patient surviving a complex surgery are improving. Meanwhile, a second study found that better informed patients have lower costs, do better managing their medications and can slow the rate of readmissions.

15 Jun 2011