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Lawmakers face constituents' health care flak

Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, "lashed out at protester who held a poster depicting President Obama with a Hitler-style mustache during a heated town hall meeting on federal health care reform," The Associated Press reports.

20 Aug 2009

State round-up: New Jersey hospitals, Utah's Medicaid troubles, and more

Wednesday's state news includes a hospital demonstration in New Jersey, Medicaid fraud in Utah, an abortion ruling in Oklahoma, and a White House decision to maintain Wisconsin's unique drug program for seniors.

20 Aug 2009

Nutrisystem's 28-Day program maintains an affordable per-meal cost

Nutrisystem, Inc., a leading provider of weight management products and services that are delivered directly to the customers' doors, announced today that its popular 28-Day Nutrisystem Select program now includes an additional week of delicious fresh-frozen entrees - all for the same low monthly cost.

20 Aug 2009

PACE programs focus on health and wellness of senior citizens

In celebration of National Senior Citizens Day, this Friday, August 21(st), the National PACE Association is working with many of the individual Programs of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) around the country to educate their surrounding communities about PACE through health fairs and open houses.

20 Aug 2009

Poll reveals that thin majority of Americans continue to support health care reforms

A slim majority of Americans continues to favor moving forward on health care reform now despite an intensifying ad war and a political climate of contentious town hall meetings that coincide with rising concerns about the reform effort, according to the August Kaiser Health Tracking Poll.

20 Aug 2009

Polls: Americans less confident about their future health care, skeptical about reform proposals

"A monthly survey of consumer sentiment on health care issues shows that Americans' confidence in insurance coverage, affordability and access dropped more than 5 points in July, after having risen slightly in June," The Associated Press/CBS News reports.

19 Aug 2009

Cutting Medicare Advantage costs may be politically difficult

The Los Angeles Times reports: "President Obama, struggling to discredit bogus charges that his healthcare overhaul would create 'death panels,' soon could face another emotionally charged obstacle -- a plan to trim the federal subsidy for a program used by nearly a quarter of Medicare beneficiaries.

19 Aug 2009

Seniors in U.S. overwhelmingly satisfied with their current Medicare coverage

Seniors in the U.S. are overwhelmingly satisfied with their current Medicare coverage, according to a survey released today by Silverlink Communications and Suffolk University in Boston. Of the more than 2,600 Medicare beneficiaries surveyed, more than 94% indicate that they are satisfied with their coverage, with just 6% expressing dissatisfaction.

19 Aug 2009

Boehner blasts PhRMA on deal with White House

KHN reports that Minority Leader John Boehner is taking issue with "the drug industry's decision to agree to $80 billion in concessions to the White House."

19 Aug 2009

ASA members upset with Medicare cuts

CBS News "has learned that up to 60,000 people have cancelled their AARP memberships since July 1, angered over the group's" support of Democratic health care proposals. "Many are switching to the American Seniors Association, a group that calls itself the conservative alternative … 'I think that probably the seniors are most upset with cuts in Medicare,' said ASA President Stuart Barton. The American Seniors Association is flat-out against President Obama's plan, which calls for $313 billion dollars in Medicare cuts over ten years ... Last week, Obama told a town meeting in Portsmouth, NH, 'We have the AARP on board because they know this is a good deal for our seniors'" (Attkisson, 8/17).

19 Aug 2009

Boehner blasts Phrma on deal with White House

The drug industry’s decision to agree to $80 billion in concessions to the White House was short-sighted, will hurt drug manufacturers and their customers, and "has all the markings of a deal gone sour," House Minority Leader John Boehner wrote Monday to his former colleague, Billy Tauzin, who now heads the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.

17 Aug 2009

Abuse, self-neglect places seniors at increased risk for premature death

Older adults who are subjected to abuse or self-neglect face a greater risk of premature death than other seniors, according to a study published in the medical journal JAMA.

16 Aug 2009

Grassley's doubts, coupled with cost control issues, could complicate Dems' overhaul efforts

Politico reports that, despite saying last week that he was "confident" President Obama was working towards a bipartisan health bill, Sen. Charles Grassley "told local voters, 'I'm not walking away from the table; I'm being pushed away from the table.' ... Grassley's Iowa road show shows just why Democrats feared this August recess.

16 Aug 2009

Palin defends 'death panel' claim; Clinton, Dean, Giuliani, Murkowski weigh in

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin defends her "death panel" claim, which is sparking reaction from powerful people.

16 Aug 2009

Obama criticizes media coverage, insurance companies during Montana Town Hall meeting

Reuters: "U.S. President Barack Obama, pushing for healthcare reform during a trip to conservative Montana, said on Friday the country was 'held hostage' by insurance companies that deny coverage to sick people." In what Reuters described as a "half-work, half-play trip with his family," Obama will highlight the benefits of his "$1 trillion plan to overhaul the insurance industry, expand healthcare coverage and cut costs to consumers."

16 Aug 2009

Seniors and Medicare at center of debate

President Obama is seeking to relieve concerns about possible Medicare changes and, at his New Hampshire town hall this week, highlighted issues affecting seniors.

13 Aug 2009

Kill Grandma? Debunking a health bill scare tactic

It's not, however, because people aren't saying it. The most notable spokeswoman for the cause is Elizabeth McCaughey, the former lieutenant governor of New York. McCaughey's last brush with major public prominence came during the debate over then-President Bill Clinton's health plan, when she wrote a highly controversial critique of the proposal published in The New Republic arguing the bill would have bound everyone inside the new system.

13 Aug 2009

Despite officials' efforts to clear air, fears about end-of-life care remain

Rumors and controversy continue to swirl around end-of-life issues and health care reform as President Barack Obama and others try to calm fears.

12 Aug 2009

Many seniors worry health reform could hurt instead of help

"Democrats have a senior citizen problem," Politico reports. "Frustrated older Americans are packing the town halls on health care. They are incredibly passionate about their Medicare benefits. Polls show senior citizens largely disapprove of health care reform ideas so far. And of course, they vote — in larger numbers than any other demographic."

12 Aug 2009

Transcript: President Obama Town Hall meeting in New Hampshire

President Barack Obama continued his press for public support of health reform initiatives at what the White House called a "Health Insurance Reform Town Hall" meeting at Portsmouth High School in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

12 Aug 2009