Health Care News and Research

RSS

With today's speech, Romney hopes to inoculate himself on health care issues

Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts and a likely GOP presidential hopeful, will deliver a speech today in which he will confront his biggest political vulnerability — the fact that the state health reform he signed into law as governor is often considered a prototype for the federal health law.

12 May 2011

Insurer rates spark attention

In Connecticut, Aetna is proposing rate cuts for this year, a move that reflects, at least partially, the impact of the federal health law. Meanwhile, The Hill reports that consumer groups are anxiously awaiting regulations that will allow the Department of Health and Human Services to review rates. These regs are likely to be out by the end of the month.

12 May 2011

InTouch Health applauds FDA for recent announcement on Medical Device Data Systems

In response to the recent announcement issued by the Food and Drug Administration regarding Medical Device Data Systems, InTouch Health affirms its position of compliance, and applauds the agency for issuing regulations governing the use of hardware and software in the healthcare information technology space.

12 May 2011

Antiretroviral therapy can reduce risk of HIV transmission in couples

When one partner in a couple is infected with HIV and the other is not, treatment with antiretroviral drugs can dramatically lower the chances of the infected partner passing along the disease to his or her mate, a new evidence review finds.

12 May 2011

Court finds feds fell short in providing veterans with mental health services

A federal appeals court Tuesday lambasted the Department of Veterans Affairs for failing to care for those suffering post-traumatic stress disorder and ordered a major overhaul of the behemoth agency. Treatment delays for PTSD and other combat-related mental illnesses are so "egregious" that they violate veterans' constitutional rights and contribute to the despair behind many of the 6,500 suicides among veterans each year, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said in its 2-1 ruling.

12 May 2011

Florida's largest insurer enters Medicaid system; Texas may ask feds for block grant

In a potentially huge change, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida plans to enter the Medicaid program and compete in what likely will become a statewide managed-care system. Blue Cross, the state's largest health insurer, has stayed out of Medicaid in the past. But its new stance comes as Florida lawmakers seek to enroll almost all Medicaid beneficiaries in managed-care plans -- and as last year's federal health law prepares to funnel more people into the system.

12 May 2011

Marylanders trust traditional media for health and medical research information

Most Maryland residents trust the health and medical research information provided by traditional media-newspapers (77%), television (71%), magazines (68%), radio (66%)-and the Internet (also 66%), according to a new state poll commissioned by Research!America.

12 May 2011

Appeals Court judges appear skeptical of health law arguments, pepper lawyers with frequent questions

The first federal appeals court hearing related to the health overhaul offered a preview of how the Obama administration will likely approach the case before the Supreme Court, which is expected to be its final destination.

12 May 2011

Two new reports recommend core competencies for interprofessional education in health professions

Two new reports released today by six national health professions associations and three private foundations recommend new competencies for interprofessional education in the health professions, and action strategies to implement them in institutions across the country.

12 May 2011

HHS announces new initiatives to improve patient care and reduce Medicaid costs

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services today announced a series of initiatives to work with states to save money and better coordinate care for the 9 million Americans enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid.

12 May 2011

NGOs urge Ugandan parliament to reject bill criminalizing homosexuality

Nongovernmental organizations on Wednesday called on the Ugandan parliament to reject a "proposed law that seeks to criminalize homosexuality ahead of an expected vote on a revised version of the legislation," Bloomberg reports.

12 May 2011

Fourth U.N. Conference on the Least Developed Countries continues to examine development possibilities for LDCs

"More than 8,000 people - representatives of governments, international agencies, development partners and civil society - are attending the Fourth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC-IV), outlining a plan to lessen the burden of poverty, hunger and disease on the world's most vulnerable people," Inter Press Service reports.

12 May 2011

Minister for Health and Children launches first results from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing

The first results from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing, a national study of 8,000 older people aged 50 and over in Ireland, were launched this week by the Minister for Health and Children, Dr James Reilly.

12 May 2011

Researchers look for surrogate endpoints to predict early benefit of cancer drugs

Great hopes are always placed in new cancer therapies. However, whether new surgical techniques, drugs or radiation therapies actually prolong the life of cancer patients, or even cure them, can often only be reliably assessed after several years' of testing. Researchers are therefore looking for proxy markers that after initiation of cancer therapy can reliably predict as quickly as possible whether the treatment has a benefit.

12 May 2011

LogisticsWeek examines PEPFAR's Supply Chain Management System

LogisticsWeek looks at how "PEPFAR's Supply Chain Management System, a project made up of 13 health and development institutions working to procure and provide quality essential medicines at affordable prices," has been able to assist countries in quickly scaling up HIV/AIDS treatment.

12 May 2011

State roundup: Daniels signs Ind. law to ban Planned Parenthood funding

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, a Republican considering a run for president, signed legislation Tuesday to bar Planned Parenthood from receiving federal funding in his state, a move widely seen as a bid to woo influential social conservatives. Planned Parenthood of Indiana and the American Civil Liberties Union went to court to try to block the measure from taking effect.

12 May 2011

Next stop for health law appeal includes two GOP-appointed judges

As news outlets were chewing over Tuesday's hearing on the health law, the next appeal panel, with two Republican-nominated judges, was announced.

12 May 2011

School-based prevention programs can help reduce alcohol problems in young people

School prevention programs aimed at curbing alcohol misuse in children are somewhat helpful, enough so to deserve consideration for widespread use, according to a large, international systematic review.

12 May 2011

Viewpoints: Tea Party on entitlement reform; Boehner's 'trillions' demand; California's silver tsunami

In a speech on Monday, the speaker of the House said that Republicans would insist on trillions of dollars in spending cuts in exchange for votes to raise the debt limit. He did not mention a time frame. He also did not offer specifics on how he planned to make those cuts. After the beating Republicans took for their plan to slash Medicare, he clearly decided generalities were politically safer. There is no way to solve the country's fiscal ills without an accurate diagnosis and rigorous prescriptions for a cure. Mr. Boehner's speech was devoid of both.

12 May 2011

Plans for Medicare, deficit reduction continue to be political flashpoints

President Barack Obama will welcome Democratic congressional leaders to the White House this week to discuss the continuing budget debate.

11 May 2011

Health Care News and Research

With today's speech, Romney hopes to inoculate himself on health care issues

Insurer rates spark attention

InTouch Health applauds FDA for recent announcement on Medical Device Data Systems

Antiretroviral therapy can reduce risk of HIV transmission in couples

Court finds feds fell short in providing veterans with mental health services

Florida's largest insurer enters Medicaid system; Texas may ask feds for block grant

Marylanders trust traditional media for health and medical research information

Appeals Court judges appear skeptical of health law arguments, pepper lawyers with frequent questions

Two new reports recommend core competencies for interprofessional education in health professions

HHS announces new initiatives to improve patient care and reduce Medicaid costs

NGOs urge Ugandan parliament to reject bill criminalizing homosexuality

Fourth U.N. Conference on the Least Developed Countries continues to examine development possibilities for LDCs

Minister for Health and Children launches first results from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing

Researchers look for surrogate endpoints to predict early benefit of cancer drugs

LogisticsWeek examines PEPFAR's Supply Chain Management System

State roundup: Daniels signs Ind. law to ban Planned Parenthood funding

Next stop for health law appeal includes two GOP-appointed judges

School-based prevention programs can help reduce alcohol problems in young people

Viewpoints: Tea Party on entitlement reform; Boehner's 'trillions' demand; California's silver tsunami

Plans for Medicare, deficit reduction continue to be political flashpoints

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

Latest News