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GOP wants to restore some military retiree pensions, tie it to debt-limit raise, extend Medicare cuts

Republicans are considering tying an increase in the debt ceiling to restoring pension cuts for military retirees and paying for it by extending automatic cuts to programs, including Medicare.

12 Feb 2014

Walgreens collaborates with NMAC to improve treatment outcomes for African Americans with HIV

In collaboration with the National Minority AIDS Council, Walgreens is furthering its commitment to improve HIV treatment outcomes for African Americans living with HIV by deepening pharmacists' training and expanding access to the pneumococcal vaccination specifically indicated for persons living with HIV as incidents of flu and pneumonia rise.

11 Feb 2014

MedAptus releases Risk Severity Toolkit to help provider groups manage disease burden of patients

MedAptus today announced that it has released a Risk Severity Toolkit to help provider groups measure and manage the disease burden of patients covered under risk-based contracts. The initial version focuses on the Medicare Advantage (MA) patient population where premiums paid to MA health plans are based on enrollees' severity history using the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Hierarchical Condition Categories (HCC) model.

11 Feb 2014

First Edition: February 11, 2014

Today's headlines include detailed coverage of the Obama administration's announcement that it will delay a health law requirement that mid-sized employers provide health insurance to workers while also allowing larger employers more flexibility.

11 Feb 2014

Triple-S announces consolidated revenues of $587.7 and net loss of $1.7 million for Q4 2013

Triple-S Management Corporation (NYSE: GTS), the leading managed care company in Puerto Rico, today announced consolidated revenues of $587.7 million and a consolidated net loss of $1.7 million for the three months ended December 31, 2013.

11 Feb 2014

Viewpoints: The debate at AOL about a baby's medical costs; Gov. Jindal says economy's verdict on health law is not good

Late last week, Tim Armstrong, the chief executive officer of AOL, landed himself in a media firestorm when he held a town hall with employees to explain why he was paring their retirement benefits. After initially blaming Obamacare for driving up the company's health care costs, he pointed the finger at an unlikely target: babies. Specifically, my baby. ... ... She weighed 1 pound, 9 ounces. ... I take issue with how he reduced my daughter to a "distressed baby" who cost the company too much money. How he blamed the saving of her life for his decision to scale back employee benefits. How he exposed the most searing experience of our lives, one that my husband and I still struggle to discuss with anyone but each other, for no other purpose than an absurd justification for corporate cost-cutting (Deanna Fei, 2/9)

11 Feb 2014

Federal appeals court rules against Unitedhealthcare on Conn. Medicare advantage case

In the meantime, some consumers must re-enroll in traditional Medicare to keep seeing doctors UnitedHealthcare dropped in New Haven, Conn.

11 Feb 2014

MIND program may enable older people with dementia to stay safely in their homes

An 18-month pilot program that brought resources and counselors to elderly Baltimore residents with dementia and other memory disorders significantly increased the length of time they lived successfully at home, according to Johns Hopkins researchers.

11 Feb 2014

On Capitol Hill, some debt limit solutions include 'doc fix'

In other congressional news, health insurers are upping their efforts to fight Medicare Advantage cuts. A handful of bargaining ideas have emerged, with a proposal to restore recently cut military benefits in exchange for a one-year extension as a leading option. Other ideas, such as tying a debt-limit extension to the "doc fix," which would alter the way doctors are reimbursed for Medicare treatments, are in the mix.

11 Feb 2014

Leaving behind Medicaid expansion leaves coverage gaps, hospitals short on payments

The Wall Street Journal examines the gap created by some states deciding not to expand their Medicaid programs and what that decision means for hospitals' bottom lines. Also, Republican lawmakers consider "bailouts" for hospitals after they decided not to expand Medicaid. In the meantime, Arkansas' lawmakers get ready to debate the state's Medicaid experiment.

10 Feb 2014

Obamacare tweaks continue amid complaints

The government will allow consumers who experience life changes, such as a marriage or the birth of a child, to update their plan choices, the administration said. It is also looking at requiring insurers to accept third-party payments, such as those made under the Ryan White CARE Act, to help people with HIV/AIDS pay for expensive drugs. Meanwhile, The Washington Post examines the history of Accenture, the contractor hired to fix healthcare.gov, and finds troubled projects and allegations of ethical lapses.

10 Feb 2014

Acentia announces acquisition of Business Computer Applications

Acentia, a premier provider of technology and management solutions, today announced it has acquired Atlanta-based Business Computer Applications, Inc., a provider of information technology (IT) services and solutions to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health agencies.

10 Feb 2014

First Edition: February 10, 2014

Today's headlines include stories about the health law's coverage gap.

10 Feb 2014

GOP considers asking for 'doc fix,' other proposals, in return for debt-ceiling raise

House Republicans are considering their options on tying proposals they want to see to passing an increase in the debt ceiling, among them fixing the way Medicare pays doctors.

10 Feb 2014

Research roundup: Value-based insurance; telemedicine in nursing homes; advance care planning

Each week, KHN compiles a selection of recently released health policy studies and briefs.

10 Feb 2014

New bill would expand health law subsidies for those in high-cost areas

The bill would tie subsidy levels to cost of living around the nation instead of to the national federal poverty level. In the meantime, a lawmaker from Colorado introduces a bill to speed construction of VA hospitals.

9 Feb 2014

Despite jump in enrollment, Aetna says it faces losses from health law marketplaces

Aetna Inc. said it expects to lose money on its business in the health-law marketplaces this year, with the demographics of enrollees skewing slightly more than expected toward people likely to rack up higher costs. The insurer, which is participating in public consumer exchanges in 16 states and the District of Columbia, the most of any carrier, said it has signed up about 135,000 paid members through the end of January (Mathews, 2/6).

9 Feb 2014

Medicare News and Research

GOP wants to restore some military retiree pensions, tie it to debt-limit raise, extend Medicare cuts

Walgreens collaborates with NMAC to improve treatment outcomes for African Americans with HIV

MedAptus releases Risk Severity Toolkit to help provider groups manage disease burden of patients

First Edition: February 11, 2014

Triple-S announces consolidated revenues of $587.7 and net loss of $1.7 million for Q4 2013

Viewpoints: The debate at AOL about a baby's medical costs; Gov. Jindal says economy's verdict on health law is not good

Federal appeals court rules against Unitedhealthcare on Conn. Medicare advantage case

MIND program may enable older people with dementia to stay safely in their homes

On Capitol Hill, some debt limit solutions include 'doc fix'

Leaving behind Medicaid expansion leaves coverage gaps, hospitals short on payments

Obamacare tweaks continue amid complaints

Acentia announces acquisition of Business Computer Applications

First Edition: February 10, 2014

GOP considers asking for 'doc fix,' other proposals, in return for debt-ceiling raise

Research roundup: Value-based insurance; telemedicine in nursing homes; advance care planning

New bill would expand health law subsidies for those in high-cost areas

Despite jump in enrollment, Aetna says it faces losses from health law marketplaces

Hill committee leaders reach deal on replacing Medicare doctor pay formula

First Edition: February 7, 2014

Humana posts loss but says new members are younger than expected

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

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