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Senate immigration bill would ease restrictions on foreign health workers; Measure advances to increase scrutiny on compounding pharmacies

On Capitol Hill, several legislative efforts are moving forward on health issues. Among them is an effort by the Massachusetts delegation to keep bonus Medicare payments for the state's hospitals, while House Republicans are looking for another way to deal with a bill to fund high-risk insurance pools.

24 May 2013

Viewpoints: Sen. Alexander sees reflections of Oliver North in Sebelius' quest to raise funds; vaccine scare's legacy

Major news outlets in recent days have reported that U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is raising money from the private sector -- including from health care executives -- for use by a private entity that is helping to implement ObamaCare. ... Is Ms. Sebelius raising funds for a private entity and then coordinating with that entity to do something Congress has refused to authorize, or for which it has refused to appropriate funds?

24 May 2013

New report examines growth of senior hunger in US

HMS, a wholly owned subsidiary of HMS Holdings Corp., applauded today the release of a new report the company helped support. Spotlight on Senior Hunger is based on research commissioned and underwritten by the National Foundation to End Senior Hunger.

24 May 2013

HHS report finds uptick in doctors' use of electronic health records

Also in the news, the Pentagon is in search of a new system for veterans' health care while San Francisco is "leading the way" in new health data applications.

24 May 2013

HealthSouth plans to construct 50-bed inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Georgia

HealthSouth Corporation announced today that it plans to build a 50-bed comprehensive inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Newnan, Ga.

23 May 2013

New data highlights urgent crisis posed on US healthcare system by DFUs and VLUs

Organogenesis Inc., a commercial leader in the field of regenerative medicine, presented new data generated in collaboration with a team of expert economists from Analysis Group (a leading health economics consultancy) demonstrating the significant healthcare resource and economic burden that diabetic foot ulcers and venous leg ulcers place upon the US healthcare system.

23 May 2013

First Edition: May 23, 2013

Today's headlines include various status updates about state activity regarding the health law's online insurance marketplaces.

23 May 2013

American Heart Association: Costs to treat stroke may increase to $183.13 billion in 2030

Costs to treat stroke are projected to more than double and the number of people having strokes may increase 20 percent by 2030, according to the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

23 May 2013

Cancer risk to increase following CT scans in younger patients, study reveals

Study leader, Professor John Mathews from the University of Melbourne said this small increase in cancer risk must be weighed against the undoubted benefits from CT scans in diagnosing and monitoring disease.

23 May 2013

As Hill panels focus on Medicare, marketplace examines how Part D changed the pharmaceutical industry

Medicare is a topic of conversation on Capitol Hill as a Senate committee holds a hearing on the Medicare Part D drug program. Meanwhile, on the House side, members of the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee heard testimony on patient cost-sharing that triggered a broad discussion of health care incentives within the program.

23 May 2013

Viewpoints: Mass. experience may not be true test for national health law; 'Dishonest' campaign by medical device makers

Massachusetts is often held up as a window into America's health insurance future, because it embarked on what came to be called the Romneycare reform six years ago. Like the Affordable Care Act provisions going into effect nationwide next year, Romneycare aimed to increase the fraction of the population with health insurance by imposing mandates on employers and employees and by subsidizing health insurance plans for middle-class families without employer plans.

23 May 2013

Hospitals earn nearly nine times more for treating patients who develop CLABSIs, study reports

Johns Hopkins researchers report that hospitals may be reaping enormous income for patients whose hospital stays are complicated by preventable bloodstream infections contracted in their intensive care units.

23 May 2013

Medicaid expansion popular in Southern states, despite govs' opposition

A poll by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies found popular support for this and other health law provisions in five southern states despite the conservative political climate. Meanwhile, expansion supporters are strategizing about their next moves in states where they have not been successful.

23 May 2013

Health issues play a part in House immigration talks, budget cuts

Politico reports that issues related to the health benefits made available to undocumented immigrants as they seek citizenship could muddy House negotiations. In addition, House Republicans have pressed forward with budget cuts that would impact Indian health care and a number of other domestic programs.

23 May 2013

First Edition: May 22, 2013

Today's headlines include reports about how the Medicaid expansion is shaking out in Virginia and Texas, as well as a report about the role health care is playing as the House attempts to negotiate an immigration reform measure.

22 May 2013

Viewpoints: Slowing health costs; What causes genetic testing to be so expensive; Iowa governor offers Medicaid supports a 'glimmer of hope'

We have done it. We have decreased the increase in the cost of healthcare. ... Is this decline the desperately needed bend in the healthcare cost curve or just the impact of the depressed economy? ... A slower growth of healthcare cost would mean less burden on the individual family, freeing that family to invest in and live a higher quality of life.

22 May 2013

Research suggests that IMRT may not be more effective in patients who had prostatectomy

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy has become the most commonly used type of radiation in prostate cancer, but research from the University of North Carolina suggests that the therapy may not be more effective than older, less expensive forms of radiation therapy in patients who have had a prostatectomy.

22 May 2013

New analysis finds more seniors living in poverty

The estimate, which takes health spending and other factors into account, concluded that 1 in 7 seniors lives in poverty. Projections indicate that number could go up if certain Medicare reforms took effect.

22 May 2013

First Edition: May 21, 2013

Today's headlines include stories examining how the approaching implementation of some health law provisions is highlighting key policy questions.

21 May 2013

No significant benefit differences between IMRT and CRT therapies after prostatectomy

Use of the newer, more expensive intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and use of the older conformal radiotherapy (CRT) after surgical removal of all or part of the prostate gland were associated with similar morbidity and cancer control outcomes, according to a study published Online First by JAMA Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication.

21 May 2013

Medicare News and Research

Senate immigration bill would ease restrictions on foreign health workers; Measure advances to increase scrutiny on compounding pharmacies

Viewpoints: Sen. Alexander sees reflections of Oliver North in Sebelius' quest to raise funds; vaccine scare's legacy

New report examines growth of senior hunger in US

HHS report finds uptick in doctors' use of electronic health records

HealthSouth plans to construct 50-bed inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Georgia

New data highlights urgent crisis posed on US healthcare system by DFUs and VLUs

First Edition: May 23, 2013

American Heart Association: Costs to treat stroke may increase to $183.13 billion in 2030

Cancer risk to increase following CT scans in younger patients, study reveals

As Hill panels focus on Medicare, marketplace examines how Part D changed the pharmaceutical industry

Viewpoints: Mass. experience may not be true test for national health law; 'Dishonest' campaign by medical device makers

Hospitals earn nearly nine times more for treating patients who develop CLABSIs, study reports

Medicaid expansion popular in Southern states, despite govs' opposition

Health issues play a part in House immigration talks, budget cuts

First Edition: May 22, 2013

Viewpoints: Slowing health costs; What causes genetic testing to be so expensive; Iowa governor offers Medicaid supports a 'glimmer of hope'

Research suggests that IMRT may not be more effective in patients who had prostatectomy

New analysis finds more seniors living in poverty

First Edition: May 21, 2013

No significant benefit differences between IMRT and CRT therapies after prostatectomy

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