Medicare News and Research

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First Edition: December 9, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about new sticker-shock concerns over costs for coverage purchased through the health law's new online insurance marketplaces.

9 Dec 2013

Research roundup: 'Substantial' Medicare savings from avoiding ERs; new ways for primary care; trends in kids' fast food consumption

Some Medicare beneficiaries who place 911 calls to request an ambulance might safely be cared for in settings other than the emergency department at lower cost. Using 2005–09 Medicare claims data and a validated algorithm, we estimated that 12.9–16.2 percent of Medicare-covered 911 emergency medical services transports involved conditions that were probably nonemergent or primary care treatable.

9 Dec 2013

Obamacare error rate means many may not be signed up for coverage

The administration said that 25 percent of people who signed up in October and November and 10 percent of Dec. enrollees could have errors in their forms.

9 Dec 2013

Congress closes in on modest budget deal

Officials say negotiators are cobbling together a deal that offsets planned sequester cuts, but which includes none of the big reductions in Medicare or other entitlements sought by Republicans, nor any of the tax increases sought by Democrats. Instead, it includes targeted measures, such as increased fees for airport-security and federal guarantees of private pensions.

9 Dec 2013

Silverlink, UnitedHealthcare recognized for increasing colorectal cancer screenings among minorities

Silverlink Communications, Inc., and UnitedHealthcare's program to increase colorectal cancer screenings among minority populations earned the companies a 2013 Outstanding Leadership in Population Health Award from the Care Continuum Alliance at the recent CCA Forum 2013.

6 Dec 2013

Huntsville Hospital Health System chooses Caradigm HIE for integrated care across community

Huntsville Hospital Health System, the nation's fifth largest publicly owned healthcare organization, has selected the Caradigm Health Information Exchange, powered by Orion Health, to provide the backbone for integrated care across the community, with a vision to ultimately connect care across the entire northern Alabama region.

6 Dec 2013

First Edition: December 6, 2103

Today's headlines include news about how both the federal and state-based health insurance websites are doing.

6 Dec 2013

Hopes dim for Medicare doctor payment fix this year, short-term 'patch' is likely

Lawmakers are proposing another "patch" to temporarily fix the "Sustainable Growth Rate," while a permanent fix is being readied in Senate and House committees.

6 Dec 2013

Medicaid signups may be affected by website glitches

The federal government has been unable to transfer full Medicaid applications to the 36 states participating in healthcare.gov, potentially leaving some who sign up for Medicaid without coverage.

5 Dec 2013

First Edition: December 5, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about how President Barack Obama is trying to connect with young adults and urge them to sign up for health coverage.

5 Dec 2013

First Databank starts publishing NADAC pricing file released by CMS

First Databank (FDB), the leading provider of clinical drug knowledge that helps improve medication-related decisions and patient outcomes, today announced it has begun publishing the National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC) pricing file recently released by The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

5 Dec 2013

New, improved healthcare.gov gets praise, but problems persist

Administration officials lauded the website fixes and said that 750,000 users logged on Monday, but insurers continued to have concerns about the transfer of inaccurate data and automated subsidy calculations.

5 Dec 2013

1.46 million enroll in Medicaid through health law exchanges

The Obama administration said Tuesday that more than 1.46 million people have been found eligible and signed up for Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program in October.

5 Dec 2013

First Edition: December 4, 2013

Today's headlines spotlight the White House's push to defend the health law and advance positive messages about its benefits.

4 Dec 2013

Update on reimbursement coverage for Percutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation procedures

Uroplasty, Inc. a medical device company that develops, manufactures and markets innovative proprietary products for the treatment of voiding dysfunctions, today provided an update on reimbursement coverage for Percutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation (PTNS) procedures delivered via the Company's Urgent® PC Neuromodulation System for treatment of overactive bladder (OAB) and associated symptoms of urinary urgency, urinary frequency and urge incontinence.

4 Dec 2013

Electronic informational technologies provide better means of transparency in health care costs

-The "shroud of secrecy" once draped across private health care service costs could be lifted with innovative information technologies, Princeton University professor Uwe Reinhardt wrote in a review published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

4 Dec 2013

State highlights: Okla. gov. looks for cuts to cover $60M more in health care costs; Miss. gov. wants to offer hospitals money to offset health law

A selection of health policy stories from Oklahoma, Mississippi, Wisconsin, Delaware, Texas, Colorado, Massachusetts, Georgia and California.

4 Dec 2013

Takeda and Teva announce agreement related to commercialization of glatiramer acetate in Japan

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Takeda) today announced the signing earlier this year of an agreement in which Teva licensed to Takeda the right to commercialize Teva's innovative glatiramer acetate ( active ingredient) formulation for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, in Japan.

4 Dec 2013

Reviews mixed for 'fixed' health care website

Some said the Monday's healthcare.gov relaunch -- marked by heavy traffic -- was "rocky" and "bumpy," but administration officials maintained the user experience was much smoother as a result of fixes.

4 Dec 2013

Reimbursement cuts for image-guided breast biopsies may reduce women's access to mammography

Drastic reimbursement cuts for image-guided breast biopsies, and other medical imaging techniques in the 2014 Medicare Fee Schedule Final Rule, may further reduce women's access to mammography and other breast cancer services. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services directly cut imaging reimbursement every year since 2007. This, along with 12 Medicare imaging cuts in the last six years due to legislation, increasingly threatens patient care.

3 Dec 2013

Medicare News and Research

First Edition: December 9, 2013

Research roundup: 'Substantial' Medicare savings from avoiding ERs; new ways for primary care; trends in kids' fast food consumption

Obamacare error rate means many may not be signed up for coverage

Congress closes in on modest budget deal

Silverlink, UnitedHealthcare recognized for increasing colorectal cancer screenings among minorities

Huntsville Hospital Health System chooses Caradigm HIE for integrated care across community

First Edition: December 6, 2103

Hopes dim for Medicare doctor payment fix this year, short-term 'patch' is likely

Medicaid signups may be affected by website glitches

First Edition: December 5, 2013

First Databank starts publishing NADAC pricing file released by CMS

New, improved healthcare.gov gets praise, but problems persist

1.46 million enroll in Medicaid through health law exchanges

First Edition: December 4, 2013

Update on reimbursement coverage for Percutaneous Tibial Nerve Stimulation procedures

Electronic informational technologies provide better means of transparency in health care costs

State highlights: Okla. gov. looks for cuts to cover $60M more in health care costs; Miss. gov. wants to offer hospitals money to offset health law

Takeda and Teva announce agreement related to commercialization of glatiramer acetate in Japan

Reviews mixed for 'fixed' health care website

Reimbursement cuts for image-guided breast biopsies may reduce women's access to mammography

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