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House passes restrictive abortion measure, includes limits on insurance policies that cover abortions

In other House action, the chamber also approved another bill related to stripping funds from the health law. This one targeted money for a program in last year's health care law providing for construction of school-based health clinics.

6 May 2011

'Confluence of circumstances' resulted in Haitian cholera outbreak, U.N.-appointed panel says

Haiti's cholera outbreak, which started last October, "was caused by a South Asian strain that contaminated a river where tens of thousands of people wash, bath, drink and play," a report from an independent U.N.-appointed panel said on Wednesday, the Associated Press reports.

6 May 2011

New rules regarding hospice stays respond to patients with unpredictable illnesses like Alzheimer's and heart failure

New government rules — enforcement kicked in last month — require hospices to send doctors or nurse practitioners for face-to-face visits with Medicare patients who have been on hospice more than six months to certify that the patients are really sick enough to need the program.

6 May 2011

26 states ask court to uphold Florida federal judge's decision to overturn health overhaul

More than two dozen states challenging the health care overhaul urged a U.S. appeals court on Wednesday to strike down the Obama administration's landmark law, arguing it far exceeds the federal government's powers. The motion, filed on behalf of 26 states, urges the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta to uphold a Florida federal judge's ruling that the overhaul's core requirement is unconstitutional.

6 May 2011

Longer looks: States creating health compacts; IPAB under fire; is GOP redefining rape?

In late April, Colorado and Oklahoma became the latest states to vote on whether to join an interstate agreement with like-minded legislatures to put health care decisions more firmly into the hands of state governments.

6 May 2011

UPMC signs affiliation agreement with Aetna to expand health plan access in Pittsburgh

Aetna and UPMC announced today that they have reached agreement on a contract that expands access to include all of UPMC's hospitals and affiliated physicians in Aetna's Western Pennsylvania network for the first time since 2001.

6 May 2011

SAS Health Care & Life Sciences Executive Conference to discuss clinical research best practices

Drug developers are challenged as never before to deliver innovative medicines through a business model that boosts the bottom line. Optimizing clinical trial design and portfolio management is paramount for managing outcomes and costs, and for rapidly advancing new drugs to the marketplace.

6 May 2011

TB medication variations in private markets could harm treatment efforts, study says

A wide variation in the dosages and forms of medicines prescribed by private physicians to patients with tuberculosis in developing countries could lead to the development of more drug-resistant strains of the bacterial infection, according to a study published online Wednesday in PLoS One, the Financial Times reports.

6 May 2011

Quinnipiac poll finds voters dislike GOP plans to revamp Medicare, Medicaid

The Wall Street Journal's Washington Wire reports that, based on these results, Republicans have some selling to do, and The Washington Post gets back to basics with a primer on Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

6 May 2011

Opinions: U.S. support for maternal, child health; infection control at borders; the AMFm model; International Affairs budget; organizations supporting women

When Mother's Day is recognized on Sunday, "let's honor motherhood itself by giving all moms the gift they want most - the chance to deliver and raise healthy children," former Sens. Bill Frist and Jon Corzine, who serve as co-chairs of the Save the Children's Newborn and Child Survival Campaign, write in The Hill's "Congress Blog."

6 May 2011

Kaiser Permanente awards $7.7 million as 217 grants during first quarter, 2011

Kaiser Permanente, one of the country's largest not-for-profit health care organizations, announced today that it has funded 217 grants nationwide, totaling approximately $7.7 million in the first quarter of 2011.

6 May 2011

U.S. Army and VA team up to provide simulation-based training for medical staff

The Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of the Army are working together to provide cutting-edge simulation-based training for medical staff to enhance the quality of patient care at VA medical facilities across the Nation.

6 May 2011

'Bad cholesterol' needed to gain more muscle mass

The so-called "bad cholesterol" - low-density lipoprotein commonly called LDL - may not be so bad after all, shows a Texas A&M University study that casts new light on the cholesterol debate, particularly among adults who exercise.

6 May 2011

Lawmakers question U.S. aid program to Pakistan in wake of Bin Laden's death

Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas) on Wednesday "urged a halt to an aid program for flood victims in Pakistan in the wake of revelations that slain al-Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden lived there unperturbed for years," Agence France-Presse reports.

6 May 2011

Opponents offer dire warnings about Medicaid block grant proposal

The plan advanced by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., to transform this program has been the subject of much of the concern. However, another alternative, this one offered by Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and based on "global cap" for federal spending, is also getting negative reviews from Medicaid advocates.

6 May 2011

Patent expiries, generic pricing policies may be factors in slow drug spending growth

Although drugs remain an important cost driver in Canada's health system, growth in spending has slowed to its lowest rate in 14 years, according to a new report released today by the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

6 May 2011

New SCAI position statement calls for changes in percutaneous coronary intervention care

A new position statement released today by the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions calls for changes in the way quality of percutaneous coronary intervention care is measured and publically reported.

6 May 2011

Regence introduces flexible health plans for small employers in Oregon

Small employers are traditionally faced with a difficult choice when providing health coverage for their employees: they can either choose benefits that are affordable, or spend more and offer their employees a choice.

6 May 2011

House hearing will include effort to revive 'balance billing'

Testimony will come from the nation's largest physician organizations, which will tell a House subcommittee about the need to replace Medicare's current payment system. Meanwhile, on the personnel front, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has a new chief medical officer and Berwick is talking about his "service."

6 May 2011

Pregnant Latinas who endure partner violence more likely to suffer postpartum depression

Latinas who endure violence at the hands of a partner during or within a year of pregnancy are five times more likely to suffer postpartum depression than women who have not experienced such violence, according to a new study by researchers at the UCLA Center for Culture, Trauma and Mental Health Disparities.

6 May 2011

Health Care News and Research

House passes restrictive abortion measure, includes limits on insurance policies that cover abortions

'Confluence of circumstances' resulted in Haitian cholera outbreak, U.N.-appointed panel says

New rules regarding hospice stays respond to patients with unpredictable illnesses like Alzheimer's and heart failure

26 states ask court to uphold Florida federal judge's decision to overturn health overhaul

Longer looks: States creating health compacts; IPAB under fire; is GOP redefining rape?

UPMC signs affiliation agreement with Aetna to expand health plan access in Pittsburgh

SAS Health Care & Life Sciences Executive Conference to discuss clinical research best practices

TB medication variations in private markets could harm treatment efforts, study says

Quinnipiac poll finds voters dislike GOP plans to revamp Medicare, Medicaid

Opinions: U.S. support for maternal, child health; infection control at borders; the AMFm model; International Affairs budget; organizations supporting women

Kaiser Permanente awards $7.7 million as 217 grants during first quarter, 2011

U.S. Army and VA team up to provide simulation-based training for medical staff

'Bad cholesterol' needed to gain more muscle mass

Lawmakers question U.S. aid program to Pakistan in wake of Bin Laden's death

Opponents offer dire warnings about Medicaid block grant proposal

Patent expiries, generic pricing policies may be factors in slow drug spending growth

New SCAI position statement calls for changes in percutaneous coronary intervention care

Regence introduces flexible health plans for small employers in Oregon

House hearing will include effort to revive 'balance billing'

Pregnant Latinas who endure partner violence more likely to suffer postpartum depression

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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