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State officials worry that doctors may not accept upcoming wave of new Medicaid patients

More than 7 million people are expected to gain insurance through Medicaid under the federal health law next year. In other news about implementation of the health overhaul, the trade group representing Catholic hospitals reserves judgment for now on latest administration policy on requiring contraception coverage.

15 Feb 2013

Mallinckrodt, Actavis enter settlement agreement to resolve Exalgo patent litigation

Actavis, Inc. today announced that it has reached a settlement with Mallinckrodt Inc. on outstanding patent litigation related to Actavis' generic version of the 32 mg dosage strength of Mallinckrodt's Exalgo (Hydromorphone Hydrochloride Extended-Release) tablets.

15 Feb 2013

FDA approves Teva’s generic Adderall XR ANDA for treatment of ADHD

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for the generic version of Shire's Adderall XR Capsules, 5mg, 10mg, 15mg, 20mg, 25mg and 30 mg capsules for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

14 Feb 2013

Hospital mortality performance not boosted by readmission failure

Researchers say they have found no evidence of a link between hospital performance as measured by 30-day mortality rates and that by 30-day readmission rates in US hospitals.

14 Feb 2013

Endovascular stroke therapy disappoints in head-to-head studies

Three randomized trials published in The New England Journal of Medicine have failed to prove that endovascular therapy results in better clinical outcomes than standard medical therapy in patients with acute ischemic stroke.

14 Feb 2013

Out-of-hospital death does not equal less aggressive care

Rates of intensive care unit use in the last month of life among patients aged 65 years and older increased between 2000 and 2009 in the USA, despite a reduction in rates of in-hospital death, conflating the notion that there is a trend toward less aggressive care, say researchers.

14 Feb 2013

Regeneron fourth quarter total revenues increase to $415 million

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced financial and operating results for the fourth quarter and full year 2012 and provided an update on development programs.

14 Feb 2013

Implementation issues trigger action, analysis

News outlets examine health law issues ranging from how states are planning to market the health plans that will become available this fall to whether accountable care organizations will help control health care costs.

14 Feb 2013

FDA grants IDE approval to STS and ACC to study alternative access approaches for TAVR

The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC) have received a unique investigational device exemption (IDE) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to study "alternative access" approaches for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) using the STS/ACC TVT Registry.

14 Feb 2013

State roundup: Ore. considers rural doc loan repayment

Oregon would restore $4 million in the next biennium to fund a loan repayment program that assists primary health care providers willing to work in rural areas, under a bill being pushed by Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, D-Beaverton. The program ran for nearly two decades before it was cut in 2009 in the depths of the recession.

14 Feb 2013

Study: No link between hospital readmissions and saving patient lives

A Journal of the American Medical Association study released Tuesday has found that higher hospital readmissions don't lead to fewer patient deaths.

14 Feb 2013

Will more availability of some Medicare therapies spark a budget crisis?

Politico looks at how making some therapies more widely available to Medicare recipients -- as one lawsuit is asking for -- could strain the program's budget. In addition, The Associated Press examines Medicare records to find that monitoring some kidney cancer patients instead of operating could improve their chances to live.

14 Feb 2013

Rubio' repeats GOP calls for overhauling Medicare, other entitlement programs

During his televised speech responding to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., also criticized the health law.

14 Feb 2013

As part of 'expansive' agenda, Obama offers support for 'modest' Medicare reforms

In last night's State of the Union address, President Barack Obama offered his take on how the U.S. budget could achieve "fiscal stability" through a mix of Medicare cuts and tax increases; however, he provided few details of what changes to Medicare he found acceptable.

14 Feb 2013

Viewpoints: Obama prescription for Medicare is 'modest;' GOP doubts entitlement plan is serious

Somewhat more substantively, he called for a larger deficit-reduction deal built around loophole-closing tax reform and what he called "modest" reforms to Medicare and entitlements. In an apparent effort to rally Democrats to this cause, he called on "those of us who care deeply about programs like Medicare" to "embrace" reform.

14 Feb 2013

Government recovers billions in health fraud crackdown

The Obama administration announced Monday that it recovered a record $4.2 billion last year from medical providers who cheated Medicare and other government health programs.

13 Feb 2013

Obama opposes raising Medicare's eligibility age to reduce spending

According to White House spokesman Jay Carney, the president does not believe this is the right policy to take, although he is open to discussing other entitlement program changes.

13 Feb 2013

Setting the scene: Economy, sequestration at heart of Obama's address

His State Of The Union comments will likely highlight the different partisan views on how these automatic spending cuts, set to kick in March 1, could be minimized. Republicans continue to press for changes in entitlement programs, such as Medicare.

13 Feb 2013

White House details impact of March 1 sequester on health programs

As these scheduled budget cuts get closer, a poll by the Pew Research Center concluded that young voters are supportive of Medicare and Social Security and hope to see these programs overhauled so they live on into the future.

12 Feb 2013

Roadblocks continue despite efforts to address causes of hospital readmissions

Hospital readmissions are miserable for patients, and a huge cost -- more than $17 billion a year in avoidable Medicare bills alone -- for a nation struggling with the price of health care. Now, with Medicare fining facilities that don't reduce readmissions enough, the nation is at a crossroads as hospitals begin to take action.

12 Feb 2013