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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

Nearly 60% of Ontarians with rheumatoid arthritis fail to receive needed care from specialists: Study

Nearly 60 per cent of Ontarians with rheumatoid arthritis - an autoimmune disease that causes chronic inflammation of the joints - were not seen by a specialist within a one year period to treat the debilitating disease, according to a new study. Even more concerning is that women of child-bearing age are less likely to see a specialist than women 45 or older, say researchers from St. Michael's Hospital, the Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences, and Women's College Hospital

7 Jul 2010

Experts develop HVI method for assessing hunger

World hunger is often seen as the result of overpopulation, bad geography or natural or human-made disasters. But a new book, "The Atlas of World Hunger," reveals that the contours and causes of hunger are more complex - and in some ways more easily addressed - than those old assumptions suggest.

7 Jul 2010

Medicare reimbursement rates for outpatient repair of anal fistulas increased by 6%

Hospitals nationwide will receive six percent higher reimbursement payments for outpatient repair of anal fistulas using Cook Medical's Biodesign® Fistula Plug, a device designed specifically to treat this painful and embarrassing disorder of the lower GI tract. According to new Medicare payment schedules effective January 1st, hospital outpatient surgery departments will receive approximately $2,200 per procedure, while freestanding ambulatory surgery centers will be paid about $1,300 on average.

7 Jul 2010

MedClean Technologies signs Partnership Agreement with Bear Consulting

MedClean Technologies, the leading provider of on-site technology for the treatment and disposal of medical waste and the destruction of confidential documents and related media, today announced it has signed a Partnership Agreement with Bear Consulting aimed at implementing an expense reduction program that could save the Federal Government more than $100 million over the next decade.

7 Jul 2010

Health Care News and Research

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

Nearly 60% of Ontarians with rheumatoid arthritis fail to receive needed care from specialists: Study

Experts develop HVI method for assessing hunger

Medicare reimbursement rates for outpatient repair of anal fistulas increased by 6%

MedClean Technologies signs Partnership Agreement with Bear Consulting

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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