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Seattle non-profit recommends 'national strategy' for improving U.S. foreign aid efficacy

"[T]he United States needs a national strategy to clarify the goals of foreign aid, trade policy consistent with those goals, an easier process for small businesses to participate and support for international education programs," according to a set of recommendations for improving the effectiveness of U.S. foreign aid assistance released Tuesday by the Seattle-based non-profit Global Washington, the Seattle Times reports.

8 Jul 2010

Heart attack death rates drop in hospitals; CDC reports increase in colon cancer screening rate

USA Today: Hospital heart attack death rates fell, according to new Medicare data. "Death rates at 4,569 hospitals that treat Medicare patients who suffer heart attacks fell by almost half a percentage point, from a national average of 16.6% last year to 16.2%. Death rates for most hospitals ranged from about 14.5% to 17.9%. ...

8 Jul 2010

HQA applauds public availability of hospital quality information at Hospital Compare website

The Hospital Quality Alliance today applauded the public availability of new information on hospital quality of care at the Hospital Compare website. The HQA is a broad working group of hospitals, consumer representatives, physician and nursing organizations, employers and payers, oversight organizations and government agencies dedicated to improving health care quality and making useful and understandable information about hospital quality available to the public.

8 Jul 2010

Obama uses recess appointment to install Berwick as head of Medicare, Medicaid

President Barack Obama Wednesday will use a recess appointment to install Harvard Professor Donald Berwick to run the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the White House announced Tuesday.

8 Jul 2010

Drug initiative granted rights to develop TB compounds for potential treatment of NTDs

The Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative now has the rights to "develop a class of potential anti-[tuberculosis] compounds" for the treatment of Chagas disease, African sleeping sickness and leishmaniasis, Reuters reports (Nebehay, 7/7).

8 Jul 2010

Patients willing to travel for cheaper, better care; Especially when the boss pays

Employers, in search of better deals on surgeries, are in some cases sending employees they insure hundreds of miles for medical care, Kaiser Health News/USA Today reports. "Forget about traveling to Thailand or India for low-cost surgery. … By steering workers to facilities with high-quality care and lower prices, employers say they can reduce their costs 20% to 40% — more than enough to cover the travel expenses."

8 Jul 2010

Asian Development Bank, U.N. call on Asia-Pacific countries to increase agriculture funding to ensure food security

Countries in Asia and the Pacific should increase investment in agriculture by $120 billion annually through 2050 to address hunger and prevent major food price increases, U.N. and Asian Development Bank (ADB) officials said Wednesday, the Associated Press reports. According to the officials, the "onus for funding the investments would be on private sources and governments," the news service writes (7/7).

8 Jul 2010

Pelosi urges Democrats to talk up health care; Businesses feel early impact of law

"Speaker Nancy Pelosi is doubling down on healthcare reform, betting that it will do Democrats more good than harm in November's elections," The Hill reports.

8 Jul 2010

Advocates continue to push for Michigan to opt out of federal health law despite setback

The Detroit News: "A Michigan Healthcare Freedom Act allowing Michiganians to opt out of the federal healthcare bill will be introduced when the Legislature resumes session July 21." The proposal was announced Tuesday, after a petition drive against the federal healthcare plan fell short. The grassroots organizers of that effort "hoped to get a question on the November election ballot asking Michigan voters to decide if they want to opt out of the federal health care overhaul, but they failed to collect enough petition signatures by Monday's deadline".

8 Jul 2010

States, federal government move forward with high-risk pools

The federal government began accepting applications for the high risk pools it will run in 29 states and the District of Columbia last Thursday, PBS Newshour reports. The other 21 states chose to run their own pools and may be on different schedules.

8 Jul 2010

Experts propose solution to burden of medical school debt

The Wall Street Journal Health Blog: "Educational debt is a serious burden for young [and middle-aged] doctors — the median amount owed for both premedical and medical school was $145,000 for those graduating from public med schools in 2008 and a whopping $180,000 for private school grads.

8 Jul 2010

HealthPlan Holdings announces acquisition of GEMGroup

HealthPlan Holdings, Inc., a leading provider of outsourcing solutions to insurers in the individual, small business and union trust markets, announced today that it has acquired GEMGroup. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, GEMGroup specializes in accounting, pension and 401(k) administration software and services to self-funded and Taft-Hartley employee benefit plans for unionized workers.

8 Jul 2010

Patients cope with navigating the health care system

Americans who lose employer coverage between now and 2014, when much of the health overhaul kicks in, "may find buying insurance on their own unaffordable." But for those without coverage and who can't afford to buy it "there are ways to cope."

8 Jul 2010

What do EMRs mean for patient privacy?

The Miami Herald: The federal government is spending billions to make electronic medical records a standard feature of physician offices and hospitals, but the change is not without a cost — to doctors' balance sheets, and possibly to patient privacy.

8 Jul 2010

Finance Committee lawmakers press insurer on failing to pay Part D claims

In a recent letter, Senate Finance Committee leaders Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, demanded that an insurer that was kicked out of the Medicare Part D drug program pay its outstanding claims.

8 Jul 2010

Crooks defraud health care system with fake insurance plans and phony Medicare, Medicaid claims

"Massive unemployment and a changing health care system is creating a breeding ground for con artists." Fake health insurance is one of the "fastest growing scams." Advertisements for such products are "stapled to neighborhood telephone polls, flyers left on your car or maybe you'll get a phone call from someone who's selling health insurance at extremely low rates, as low as $29.99 a month in some cases, says Jim Quiggle of the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud. The sad truth is that often these bogus policies pay little or nothing on claims, leaving consumers with exorbitant medical bills" (Haley, 7/6).

8 Jul 2010

Australian health makeover over the next few years planned

Australian health is about to get a massive make over according to the four year time schedule and plans announced by the Federal Government. The plans include major reforms that will be undertaken over the next two years.

7 Jul 2010

First Edition: July 7, 2010

Today's biggest health policy news surrounds an announcement by the White House that President Obama will install a new Medicare and Medicaid chief with a recess appointment the bypasses the confirmation process.

7 Jul 2010

McCarthy Capital leads $50M investment in Life Care Companies

McCarthy Capital Corporation recently led a $50 million investment in a privately-held company, Life Care Companies LLC. Headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, the company does business as Life Care Services (LCS) and is a national leader in providing services to senior living communities.

7 Jul 2010

OTN signs agreement to integrate PharmaTrust's technology into telemedicine service offering

PharmaTrust, makers of the world's leading remote prescription drug dispensing technology, has signed an agreement with the Ontario Telemedicine Network that will enable OTN's Members, including hospitals, to integrate PharmaTrust's technology into their telemedicine service offering. This new development will expand access to valuable pharmacy services for Ontarians.

7 Jul 2010

Health Care News and Research

Seattle non-profit recommends 'national strategy' for improving U.S. foreign aid efficacy

Heart attack death rates drop in hospitals; CDC reports increase in colon cancer screening rate

HQA applauds public availability of hospital quality information at Hospital Compare website

Obama uses recess appointment to install Berwick as head of Medicare, Medicaid

Drug initiative granted rights to develop TB compounds for potential treatment of NTDs

Patients willing to travel for cheaper, better care; Especially when the boss pays

Asian Development Bank, U.N. call on Asia-Pacific countries to increase agriculture funding to ensure food security

Pelosi urges Democrats to talk up health care; Businesses feel early impact of law

Advocates continue to push for Michigan to opt out of federal health law despite setback

States, federal government move forward with high-risk pools

Experts propose solution to burden of medical school debt

HealthPlan Holdings announces acquisition of GEMGroup

Patients cope with navigating the health care system

What do EMRs mean for patient privacy?

Finance Committee lawmakers press insurer on failing to pay Part D claims

Crooks defraud health care system with fake insurance plans and phony Medicare, Medicaid claims

Australian health makeover over the next few years planned

First Edition: July 7, 2010

McCarthy Capital leads $50M investment in Life Care Companies

OTN signs agreement to integrate PharmaTrust's technology into telemedicine service offering

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

How ELRIG Is Helping Mid-Career Scientists Navigate Leadership, Career Change and Redundancy

The role of UV-Vis in biopharma QC

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