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Repeal, replace and revise are the new health overhaul buzzwords as congressional power changes hands

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and 32 other GOP senators officially filed a brief on Thursday in favor of a court case challenging healthcare reform. McConnell filed a 16-page brief in a federal case based in Florida arguing that a key part of the new healthcare law, the requirement that all individuals have health insurance, was unconstitutional.

20 Nov 2010

Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals decides to voluntarily remove propoxyphene from the U.S. market

Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals Inc. which makes Darvon and Darvocet, the brand version of the prescription pain medication propoxyphene, has agreed to withdraw the medication from the U.S. market at the request of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The FDA has also informed the generic manufacturers of propoxyphene-containing products of Xanodyne's decision and requested that they voluntarily remove their products as well.

20 Nov 2010

Health industry players offer insights, expectations about overhaul's impact

Republicans made major gains in the midterm election, running vowing to "repeal and replace" the health law passed with solely Democratic votes earlier this year.

20 Nov 2010

Insurers payments to hospitals vary significantly by region

Kaiser Health News staff writer Jordan Rau reports: Adding another piece to the argument that some hospitals are making huge profits from insurers, a new study finds great differences in hospital rates, with San Francisco the most expensive of eight areas that were examined (Rau, 11/18).

20 Nov 2010

No agreement on health cost containment at bipartisan commission

The Obama administration's bipartisan commission studying efforts to reduce the nation's debt remained at odds after three days of closed door meetings - on how to deal with health care costs.

20 Nov 2010

States focus on Medicaid budget challenges

Nearly missed in the noise from newly elected politicians vowing to upend the Obama administrations health care reform law was a federal decision allowing California to start implementing it and improve its fiscal situation in the process. On Election Day, California got word it would receive $10 billion in federal Medicaid money to extend coverage to some 500,000 people who are currently uninsured. ...

20 Nov 2010

Senate acts on Medicare doctor pay fix

Although the Senate agreed to postpone for one month cuts in Medicare physician payments, the House must still act, too, in order to delay a scheduled fee reduction that will kick in Dec. 1.This very short-term approach is likely to frustrate the physician community.

20 Nov 2010

Recent releases in Global Health

New This Week In The Kaiser Global Health Policy Tracker: The President's Malaria Initiative announced a new focus country and USAID released a new fact sheet on the agency's reform initiative. Kaiser's Policy Tracker provides a timely single reference point for the latest information on congressional and administration action on global health.

20 Nov 2010

A hospital chiefs tough task in tough times: cut costs, improve quality

Kaiser Health News staff writer Peggy Girshman spoke with Judy Rich, president and CEO of the Tucson Medical Center.

20 Nov 2010

CMS grants Qutenza J-code to NeurogesX

NeurogesX, Inc. a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing novel pain management therapies, today announced that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has granted a unique, Level II Health Care Common Procedural Coding System (Level II HCPCS), commonly referred to as a J-code, for Qutenza (capsaicin) 8% patch.

19 Nov 2010

State roundup: California PPOs 'low marks'; Geriatric nursing; Physician shortages

News outlets covered a range of developments including workforce issues in Minnesota and California, and a Kentucky order for insurers to provide child-only policies.

19 Nov 2010

Political cartoon: Mayberry R.F.D.?

Kaiser Health News provides a political cartoonist's perspective on health policy developments with "Mayberry R.F.D.?" by Eric Allie.

19 Nov 2010

U.S. falling short of its goals to improve access to clean water, sanitation worldwide, report says

The U.S. is falling short on its goal of improving conditions for the 2.6 billion people worldwide without access to clean water and sanitation despite the fact the Water for the Poor Act became law in 2005, according to a report released Thursday by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), WaterAid, CARE and 11 other organization, Food Safety News reports.

19 Nov 2010

World Bank report examines member banks' response to global economic downturn, highlights effect on global poverty

By the end of this year, an additional 64 million people will fall into extreme poverty as a result of the global economic downturn that started in 2008, the World Bank said in a study on "member banks' response" to the situation, Reuters reports.

19 Nov 2010

Today's OpEds: Opposing views on hospital medical errors; lesson for Andy Harris; Dems and abortion

If a 747 jetliner crashed every day, killing all 500 people aboard, there would be a national uproar over aviation safety and an all-out mobilization to fix the problem. In the nation's hospitals, though, about the same number of people die on average every day from medical "adverse events," many of them preventable errors such as infections or incorrect medications.

19 Nov 2010

AARP urges Idaho to put families, children & elderly ahead of special interests when tackling budget woes

On the heels of grim news from Idaho's Joint Finance-Appropriation Committee regarding a $340 million shortfall that could mean deep cuts to critical programs and services, AARP is urging state lawmakers to refocus the looming debate to protect the education and health needs of Idaho's families, children and elderly. The Association is calling for lawmakers to get creative when it comes to possible sources of needed revenue to stave off possible cuts.

19 Nov 2010

Report examines how health care reform affects personal costs, coverage, quality of service

Although most people's knowledge of the new health care law is limited, their opinion on how it will affect their health care depends on what type of private health insurance plan they currently have and their political affiliation, according to a recent report issued today by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute.

19 Nov 2010

MedStart Summer Enrichment Program helps students better understand medical conditions: Studies

Two new studies have shown that a unique program in East Harlem that helps middle school students learn practical health skills and gain a better understanding of medical conditions, such as diabetes and hypertension, resulted in increased interest in college attendance and medical careers among the students who attended the program.

19 Nov 2010

SAMHSA: 4.8% U.S. adults suffer from serious mental illness

According to new results from a national survey, 19.9 percent of American adults in the United States (45.1 million) have experienced mental illness over the past year. The survey conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) indicates that 11 million adults (4.8 percent) in the U.S. suffered serious mental illness in the past year a diagnosable mental disorder has substantially interfered with, or limited one or more major life activities.

19 Nov 2010

UNICEF report identifies factors helping, hindering efforts to drive down FGM/C in five African countries

A report released on Thursday by UNICEF highlights the recent progress made in reducing the practice of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) despite ongoing social pressures to continue the practice in five African countries, Deutsche Presse-Agentur/M&C reports (11/18).

19 Nov 2010

Health Care News and Research

Repeal, replace and revise are the new health overhaul buzzwords as congressional power changes hands

Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals decides to voluntarily remove propoxyphene from the U.S. market

Health industry players offer insights, expectations about overhaul's impact

Insurers payments to hospitals vary significantly by region

No agreement on health cost containment at bipartisan commission

States focus on Medicaid budget challenges

Senate acts on Medicare doctor pay fix

Recent releases in Global Health

A hospital chiefs tough task in tough times: cut costs, improve quality

CMS grants Qutenza J-code to NeurogesX

State roundup: California PPOs 'low marks'; Geriatric nursing; Physician shortages

Political cartoon: Mayberry R.F.D.?

U.S. falling short of its goals to improve access to clean water, sanitation worldwide, report says

World Bank report examines member banks' response to global economic downturn, highlights effect on global poverty

Today's OpEds: Opposing views on hospital medical errors; lesson for Andy Harris; Dems and abortion

AARP urges Idaho to put families, children & elderly ahead of special interests when tackling budget woes

Report examines how health care reform affects personal costs, coverage, quality of service

MedStart Summer Enrichment Program helps students better understand medical conditions: Studies

SAMHSA: 4.8% U.S. adults suffer from serious mental illness

UNICEF report identifies factors helping, hindering efforts to drive down FGM/C in five African countries

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

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