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National study of factors related to unmet health needs among homeless people

The vast majority of homeless adults surveyed in a national study had trouble accessing at least one type of needed health care service in the preceding year, according to a study that will appear in the July American Journal of Public Health and is now available online.

15 May 2010

Lobbyists turn focus to how health law will be regulated

"Now that the health care bill is law, an array of groups -- representing doctors, insurers, small businesses and others -- have switched to their post-passage game plans. Among their top goals: Helping shape the all-important regulations being written by the Obama administration," according to Kaiser Health News/The Washington Post.

15 May 2010

Recent releases in Global Health

As the 193 WHO member states gather at next week's World Health Assembly (WHA) "a draft global code of practice on the international recruitment of health personnel will be on the agenda. Negotiation and adoption of a WHO code of practice is an unprecedented opportunity to advance global consensus to address the critical challenges of migration of health workers and its effect on health systems worldwide," the authors of a Lancet Comment write.

15 May 2010

GOP launches new challenge to health law with coordinated messaging

Republicans are starting a new bid to undermine Democratic attempts at touting a new health law. The GOP effort includes attacks on both President Barack Obama's pick to run Medicare and on claims that implementation is going smoothly.

15 May 2010

Democrats weary of health changes, mull new health bills, 'doc fix'

Democrats are feeling health care "fatigue" and are doubting that Congress will consider any more health-related legislation this year. "Measures in jeopardy include bills that would require more information on healthcare prices, empower federal regulators to sign off on premium increases and strip insurers of their exemption from anti-trust laws."

15 May 2010

NFIB to join lawsuit against health law

"The nation's most influential small business lobby is joining a court challenge to President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, arguing that Americans cannot be required under the Constitution to obtain insurance coverage," The Associated Press reports.

14 May 2010

Obama administration cracks down on health care fraud

Modern Healthcare: "The government's efforts to rein in Medicare fraud and abuse recovered $2.5 billion for the program in fiscal 2009, up 29% from $1.9 billion the previous year, according to a new annual report. ... The $2.5 billion collected in fiscal 2009 is attributed to judgments and settlements in previous years as well as 2009, according to the report of the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program.

14 May 2010

Heart defibrillators complicate end-of-life care

Heart defibrillators, "small implants that save lives by sending an electrical jolt to interrupt a potentially fatal heart rhythm and restore normal beating," can pose a "challenge near life's end, for both patients and their families," The New York Times reports.

14 May 2010

Hospitals plan joint efforts to increase efficiency

An association of California hospitals has proposed creating a foundation to supply doctors to at least 20 of its 160 members, with more likely to join if the project takes off, The Wall Street Journal reports. The foundation "would own clinics and centralize administrative matters including billing and electronic medical records," and it shows another step in efforts to align "doctors and hospitals, a trend expected to be accelerated by the health overhaul."

14 May 2010

New research shows healthy retirees face higher total health care costs

Healthy retirees actually face higher total health care costs over their remaining lifetime than the unhealthy, according to new research conducted by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College and underwritten by Prudential Financial.

14 May 2010

New initiative to reduce health inequities

A major new initiative by the University of Maryland aims to eliminate health disparities in the state and extend the impact of health reform. The university's School of Public Health has recruited a team of nationally recognized faculty-researchers who will create action programs to improve primary care and expand public health outreach, so as to reduce the high rates of chronic disease in Maryland's medically underserved communities.

14 May 2010

First Edition: May 14, 2010

Today's headlines suggest that, even as congressional Democrats appear to be suffering from "health reform fatigue" and shying away from other health-related legislation, the G.O.P. is applying newfound vigor and skepticism to the White House's pick to head the agency that runs Medicare and to the administration's claims that the implementation phase of reform is going smoothly.

14 May 2010

11 leading medical societies support Health Care Truth and Transparency Act of 2010

As the United States prepares to add 32 million more patients to the health care system through health care reform, 11 of the leading medical societies in the country joined together today to publicly support the introduction of the Health Care Truth and Transparency Act of 2010.

14 May 2010

Redesigning way of using energy can help hospitals achieve 60% reduction in energy utility use

A new study presented at the CleanMed conference in Baltimore this week shows how hospitals, which account for four percent of all energy consumed in the U.S., can achieve a 60 percent reduction in energy utility use by redesigning the way they use energy. A newly constructed, code-compliant hospital can expect to save around $730,000 a year, according to the report.

14 May 2010

Medtronic releases Virtual ICD study data

Medtronic, Inc. released the Virtual ICD study data today that predicted 98 percent of studied implantable defibrillator patients would be free of inappropriate shocks one year after implant and 92 percent at five years post-implant.

14 May 2010

Practice Greenhealth honors SRI Surgical with Champion for Change Award

SRI/Surgical Express, Inc., a leading provider of reusable surgical products and reprocessing services supporting the healthcare industry, announced today that Practice Greenhealth presented its "Champion for Change Award" to SRI Surgical for outstanding contributions to environmentally responsible health care.

14 May 2010

NPAF commends extension of health care coverage for young adults

The National Patient Advocate Foundation (NPAF) – a national, non-profit organization dedicated to the mission of creating avenues of improved patient access to health care through public policy reform at the state and federal levels – today praised the Obama Administration for extending health care coverage for young adults under the new "Affordable Care Act" through a new provision allowing them to stay on their parents' health insurance plans until age twenty-six. This proposed regulation will affect an estimated 1.2 million Americans.

14 May 2010

Health law guarantees protections for emergency room visits

Kaiser Health News' Maggie Mertens writes: "When Kelly Arellanes fell off a horse and suffered a severe head injury in rural Arkansas, medics said she would need to be airlifted immediately to the nearest hospital—50 miles away in Fort Smith.

14 May 2010

Ambulance fees will deter emergency calls for help and risks lives: Study

Multiple data sources, including scientific survey data, medical studies and analyses of data in regions that have imposed ambulance fees, indicate that ambulance fees will discourage calls to emergency services for help, risking the health and safety of those experiencing medical emergencies.

14 May 2010

Media Line/All Headline News examines agriculture investment gap in Middle East

"Arab countries need to invest some $144 billion in agriculture over the next 20 years to meet the food demands of the growing population, an Arab agricultural organization has said," the Media Line/All Headline News reports in a piece that examines the contributing factors to gaps in food security in the region.

14 May 2010