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Aetna renews contract with WellStar Health System for three years

Aetna (NYSE: AET) and WellStar Health System in Marietta, Ga., announced today they have reached an agreement on a three-year contract renewal.

25 Aug 2009

USDA donates funds for teaching food safety awareness to AIDS patients

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health have received a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to educate AIDS patients on food safety.

25 Aug 2009

National dialysis treatment program under fire; criticized as too costly, risky

Kidney dialysis treatment in the U.S. is costly and has high death rates, but it doesn't have to be that way, USA Today reports: "The vast majority of the more than 350,000 Americans on dialysis are treated in centers, where three treatments a week, three or four hours each, is the norm — not because it's optimal but because that's the way it has been done for nearly four decades.

25 Aug 2009

Health reform fact checks fall short on dispelling angry myths

A fact check of a dozen often-repeated claims by politicos and interest groups finds that the truth appears "to be taking a vacation," CQ Politics reports. Of the 12 claims, CQ concludes that only one is true, six are misleading and five are downright false.

24 Aug 2009

Health care profiles: Kennedy, Daschle and Kratovil

News reports this weekend explored some prominent personalities in health reform, as well as a new one. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., continues to battle brain cancer at home, but his illness has taken on symbolic proportions in the debate.

24 Aug 2009

Activists, consumers and labor groups oppose Whole Foods Chief Executive Officer's efforts to undermine health care reforms

In response to a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed by Whole Foods’ Chief Executive Officer John Mackey, activists, consumers and labor groups around the country have been organizing in opposition to his efforts to undermine meaningful health care reform.

24 Aug 2009

WHO appeals for donated, low-cost H1N1 vaccines

The WHO's flu chief Keiji Fukuda on Saturday called upon wealthy nations and vaccine manufacturers to donate H1N1 (swine) flu vaccines to developing countries, the Associated Press reports.

24 Aug 2009

VeriMed Health Link re-launched by VeriChip Corporation

VeriChip Corporation("VeriChip" or the "Company"), a provider of radio frequency identification (RFID) systems for healthcare and patient-related needs, announced today that it is re-launching its VeriMed Health Link electronic health records system.

24 Aug 2009

Washington post examines spread of drug-resistant TB in Russia

The Washington Post examines the spread of drug-resistant tuberculosis in Russia where "[p]reliminary surveys have recorded an uptick in infections," which could be the "start of a surge fueled by declining living standards and deteriorating medical care resulting from the country's worst economic slowdown in a decade," experts say.

24 Aug 2009

The Estate Vault to open a subsidiary in Australia for delivering portable health management solutions

The Estate Vault, Inc.,a leading provider of comprehensive electronic repository services for consolidating and protecting, medical, personal financial, and legal records, announced today that in response to the May 2009 announcement from the Australian National Health & Hospitals Reform Commission, that it will open a wholly owned subsidiary in Australia.

24 Aug 2009

Voices of Meningitis urges parents to vaccinate preteens and teens for protection against meningococcal diseases

School nurses and families affected by a potentially deadly form of meningitis today launched a national consumer education initiative, called Voices of Meningitis. The initiative strongly urges parents to vaccinate preteens and teens, who are at greater risk of getting meningococcal disease, including meningococcal meningitis -- a rare, but serious bacterial infection.

24 Aug 2009

P&G's global pharmaceuticals business sold to Warner Chilcott for $3.1 billion

The Procter & Gamble Company and Warner Chilcott plc today announced an agreement for the sale of P&G's global pharmaceuticals business to Warner Chilcott for an up-front cash payment of $3.1 billion.

24 Aug 2009

Ad Audit: Allies of Obama try to ease jitters about health care changes

Kaiser Health News reports on a new ad by a coalition that includes "the drug industry, physicians' lobby and some backers of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul argue that the changes Congress is considering will make the health care system more stable and affordable." The analysis finds that "the ad promises more certainty about the future than Congress is likely to be able to ensure" (Rau, 8/24).

24 Aug 2009

$10 billion provision may aid retired autoworkers; NFIB opposes house plan

A $10 billion proposal may help retired autoworkers, steelworkers and schoolteachers afford coverage. Meanwhile, the largest small business association has turned against health reform plans.

24 Aug 2009

After vacation, Obama could shift health reform tactics

News organizations are analyzing the health reform challenges ahead for the President.

24 Aug 2009

The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame scholarship award announced for 2009

Four 18-year olds with stellar high school careers are heading off to university with some extra change in their pockets. The students have been named the 2009 recipients of The Canadian Medical Hall of Fame / Great-West Life, London Life and Canada Life Scholarship Award.

24 Aug 2009

Medical students experience life inside nursing home

A novel program in New York gives medical students the chance to experience life as nursing home patients and learn about geriatrics, a field in desperate need of more professionals.

24 Aug 2009

Claims Auditor Solution from Compliance 360 provides total control of medical claims audits and appeals

Compliance 360, a leading provider of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions for enterprise governance, risk management and compliance (eGRC) announced today that the Compliance 360 Claims Auditor has been licensed for use in over 200 hospitals since it was launched just 8 months ago.

24 Aug 2009

Economic professors at Baylor suggest that insurance reform must expand coverage to the uninsured 37 million Americans

Two professors at Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business lay out a universal health care plan in their new book Health Care for Us All: Getting More for Our Investment, published by Cambridge University Press, that does not create a government entitlement program or threaten in any way the insurance coverage or health care of Americans who currently have coverage.

24 Aug 2009

Staywell Custom Communications partners with Self Care Decisions to provide online applications for health care providers

Custom health communications company StayWell Custom Communications (SCC), a division of MediMedia USA, has announced an exclusive strategic alliance with Self Care Decisions, LLC, the leading provider of decision-support care guides for consumers via the Internet and mobile applications.

24 Aug 2009