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Cardiovascular disease: Major cause of death in Europe

Despite the decline of heart disease mortality registered in the past 30 years, cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the N.1 killer in Europe and in the World. In the EU, experts reveal that striking disparities still exist between countries not only in terms of CVD incidence, but also with regard to national prevention policies.

25 Sep 2009

Vermont Information Technology Leaders to collaborate with Allscripts

Vermont Information Technology Leaders, Inc., the non-profit organization facilitating the expanded use of health information technology in Vermont, and Allscripts, the leading U.S. health information technology provider with a major facility located in South Burlington, Vermont, today announced their intention to enter into a strategic alliance.

25 Sep 2009

House passes bill to eliminate Medicare premium hike

"The House voted overwhelmingly Thursday to eliminate monthly premium increases for millions of Medicare patients next year," The Associated Press reports. "It voted 406 to 18 to send the bill to the Senate, which is expected to act soon. Lawmakers said older Americans shouldn't have to pay higher Medicare Part B premiums because they are not expected to get a cost of living increase from Social Security."

25 Sep 2009

Democrats face high stakes, GOP seeks advantage

As Democrats struggle with the health reform proposal from Sen. Max Baucus, the GOP is hoping to seize the advantage.

25 Sep 2009

Students live with elder residents as part of the Learning by Living project

A geriatric training method pioneered by Marilyn R. Gugliucci, PhD, president of the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education (the educational branch of The Gerontological Society of America) has proved successful enough that she plans to implement it on a national level.

25 Sep 2009

Kerry, Lugar letter calls for Obama to appoint USAID leader quickly

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry, D-Mass., and the ranking Republican Senator Richard Lugar, R-Ind., have sent a letter to President Barack Obama "urging" him to nominate a candidate - who has already been screened - for the vacant USAID administrator position "as quickly as possible," CQ reports. According to the senators, the "leadership vacuum" is impeding USAID's efforts in foreign, development and humanitarian aid, and it is the "last major agency in the U.S. government to remain unfilled," CQ writes.

25 Sep 2009

Profile of Grady Memorial Hospital highlights the difficulties faced by safety net facilities

The New York Times: Illegal immigrants say an effort to close the dialysis center at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta could synch their only source of care. The closure may foreshadow broader problems "safety-net" hospitals could face under the health care overhaul.

25 Sep 2009

Senators fight over Medicare spending cuts, what it would mean for beneficiaries

Senators on the Senate Finance Committee spent much of Wednesday duking it out over proposed Medicare cuts that would fund part of a Democratic push at health care reform. The intensity of the debate highlights the political importance of the senior citizen demographic.

25 Sep 2009

Mayo Clinic's views on how to get high-value health care

Mayo Clinic's perspective about how to get high-value health care is the focus of a Perspectives article in the New England Journal of Medicine, published online on Sept. 23, 2009, and in the print issue on Oct. 1, 2009.

25 Sep 2009

Senate Finance Panel rejects amendment to squeeze drug makers

"Senators rebuffed an attempt to squeeze more money from the drug industry Thursday after two Democrats warned it would undermine the fragile political coalition pushing a sweeping health care overhaul," The Associated Press reports.

25 Sep 2009

Divide deepens between Senate Finance Democrats and Republicans

"Senate Democrats swatted down Republican attempts to make fundamental changes in their health care legislation on Wednesday as the Finance Committee voted on a wide range of amendments that highlighted the deep partisan divide over the bill."

25 Sep 2009

New poll shows only 20 percent say health care is their biggest concern

A new poll shows only one in five respondents say health care is the biggest concern for their family. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports: "Want to know why President Obama continues to have trouble gaining traction in the national debate about health-care reform? A Franklin & Marshall College poll to be released today offers a few key clues."

25 Sep 2009

States worry over Medicaid expansion; Montana expands kids coverage

State officials continue to worry about additional costs that would stem from a Medicaid expansion. Meanwhile, Montana unveils a plan to expand health insurance for children and Iowa Republicans are touting their own alternative to a federal health care overhaul.

25 Sep 2009

Perot Systems to provide Revenue Cycle services to the West Georgia Health System

West Georgia Health System and Perot Systems today announced that Perot Systems will provide Revenue Cycle services to the LaGrange, Georgia-based hospital organization. The agreement will enable WGHS to utilize Perot Systems' revenue cycle technology and its proven best practices for revenue cycle improvements.

25 Sep 2009

Heads of Indian Health Service, Hispanic doctors speak out on reform

NPR interviews Dr. Elana Rios, president of the National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA), on the one-third of Hispanics in the U.S. who are uninsured. She says the reasons are cultural as well as economic: "Hispanics have health beliefs that are unique, lots of traditional ways of taking care of disease with teas and herbs and other things.

25 Sep 2009

Senators urge the CMS to spare funding cuts for radiation oncology services

Cancer physicians and cancer care advocates applauded a bipartisan letter led by Senators Richard Burr (R-NC) and Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) sent to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius yesterday urging that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) spare life-saving radiation oncology services from a major Medicare funding cut proposed for diagnostic imaging services. The 32 Senators signing the letter stated their unanimous concern that these funding cuts could force freestanding and community-based cancer centers to shut down, thereby limiting access to care for seniors - particularly in rural areas.

25 Sep 2009

Dems court Snowe for key 60th vote

Democrats are courting Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Me., the Republican most likely to provide the key 60th vote that Democrats need to pass a health care overhaul package without the use of budget reconciliation.

25 Sep 2009

Enacting the health care reform will lead to higher health care costs

A vast majority of employers anticipate that, if enacted, health care reform will lead to higher health care costs and weaken their role in providing coverage to workers, according to a new poll by Watson Wyatt, a leading global consulting firm.

25 Sep 2009

Also in global health news: Urban malnutrition in CAR; U.S. HIV travel ban; East Africa hunger

"The global financial crisis has led to an alarming rate of urban malnutrition in the south of the Central African Republic, where diamond mines have closed as demand for the gems falls, the medical relief group Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) says," Reuters AlertNet reports (Fominyen, 9/24). In a related blog post, Reuters AlertNet writes that aid agencies are warning that without additional support from donors, the Central African Republic could "start sliding backwards after three years of progress at a time when humanitarian assistance was raised" (Fominyen [2], 9/24).

25 Sep 2009

Seasonal and H1N1 flu vaccines from Priority Health

Priority Health has announced its coverage of both the seasonal flu and H1N1 flu vaccines. “Preventing the flu through immunization is the best way to keep yourself and your family healthy,” said John Fox, M.D., associate vice president of Medical Affairs at Priority Health. “We encourage our members to receive both vaccines to protect themselves against the two viruses.”

25 Sep 2009