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Patient preference to participate in decision making is linked with higher hospitalization costs

A survey of almost 22,000 admitted patients at the University of Chicago Medical Center found patient preference to participate in decision making concerning their care was associated with a longer length of stay and higher total hospitalization costs, according to a report published online by JAMA Internal Medicine.

28 May 2013

AARP Illinois highlights report on uninsured Illinois veterans this Memorial Day

This Memorial Day, AARP Illinois is highlighting a recent report by the Urban Institute and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation which shows that nearly 17,600 of the 42,000 currently uninsured Illinois veterans would receive health coverage if Medicaid is expanded under the Affordable Care Act.

28 May 2013

Preventive dental visits for kids linked to more expensive restorative procedures

It may seem logical that taking children to the dentist for regular preventive check-ups will lead to fewer pricy restorative procedures like filling a cavity. But new findings from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) published online in Pediatrics show the opposite.

28 May 2013

Obamacare partisan fights affecting public opinion, Capitol Hill, health coverage for poor

News outlets report that as the health law comes closer to full implementation in 2014, the political parties are far apart and likely to stay there, which could affect who gets coverage and how.

28 May 2013

Tensions, threats emerge in Ariz. Medicaid expansion debate

In addition, the legislative debate continues in Texas while in Florida there's speculation about what's to become of the state's uninsured population now that the legislature didn't take action.

27 May 2013

Viewpoints: We need more 'socialism'; The IRS's 'unwelcome role'; 'Fog of Obamacare'

So this is what socialism looks like: Private companies competing for people's business in an open marketplace. Californians got their first glimpse Thursday of what insurers plan to charge for coverage to be offered next year to about 5 million state residents who don't receive health insurance from employers (David Lazarus, 5/23).

27 May 2013

State highlights: La. grand jury to examine $200M Medicaid contract

More than half of the states that applied to participate in a controversial CMS pilot for dual-eligible beneficiaries have either dropped out or delayed implementation of their programs, according to health policy experts. Among the 26 states that applied to participate in the CMS Financial Alignment Initiative, which stems from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, six have dropped out or opted for different "customized" plans and nine have delayed their start dates (Daly, 5/23).

27 May 2013

Calif. unveils tentative price tags for health plans on the exchange

The monthly cost for policies sold on the state-run exchange came in lower than the 30 percent rate increases some had anticipated, though some consumers will still experience sharply higher premiums. Blue Shield of California estimated that current customers would see rate increases of about 13 percent.

27 May 2013

Health care issues become hurdle for immigration reform measure

The key question that seems to have stalled progress for House lawmakers is how to handle immigrants who do not have health insurance.

26 May 2013

First Edition: May 24, 2013

Today's headlines include details on California's new health insurance exchange rates, whether consumers will experience "rate shock" and what these numbers say about the health law's implementation.

24 May 2013

Weekend reading: Mental illness stigma, health insurance mazes and female libido

Linneah sat at a desk at the Center for Sexual Medicine at Sheppard Pratt in the suburbs of Baltimore and filled out a questionnaire. She read briskly, making swift checks beside her selected answers, and when she was finished, she handed the pages across the desk to Martina Miller, who gave her a round of pills.

24 May 2013

States embroiled in Medicaid expansion battles are running out of time

Politico reports that this health law implementation issue remains an open question for about a dozen states. Some are on the brink of giving up for the first year but looking ahead to the next set of state legislature sessions. Meanwhile, news outlets report on related developments in Michigan, Texas, Ohio, California and Iowa.

24 May 2013

The Hill: Insurers feel pressure to support Enroll America

The Hill reports that unnamed insurance industry sources say they feel that Enroll America, the non-profit group raising funds to support outreach to the uninsured, is "just an arm of the administration." In a separate story, The Hill notes new research concluding the trend toward part-time work and reduced health benefits began before the overhaul.

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 campaign aims to increase awareness of HIPAA rights, benefits among HIV-positive Black MSM

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights is proud to launch the Information Is Powerful Medicine campaign.

24 May 2013

Idaho, New Mexico ask feds to run health exchanges

In addition, media outlets report that the nation's largest for-profit insurers will not participate in California's online marketplace. Eleven insurers have applied to operate plans in Colorado.

24 May 2013

Market pressures may keep premiums low as health law kicks in

USA Today reports this optimisitic view is offered by some industry analysts and health insurance officials. Meanwhile, Politico does a status check on the legal challenges to the health law's birth control mandate. News reports also track the latest regarding the Internal Revenue Service controversy and the overhaul.

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

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

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 Insurance News and Research

Patient preference to participate in decision making is linked with higher hospitalization costs

AARP Illinois highlights report on uninsured Illinois veterans this Memorial Day

Preventive dental visits for kids linked to more expensive restorative procedures

Obamacare partisan fights affecting public opinion, Capitol Hill, health coverage for poor

Tensions, threats emerge in Ariz. Medicaid expansion debate

Viewpoints: We need more 'socialism'; The IRS's 'unwelcome role'; 'Fog of Obamacare'

State highlights: La. grand jury to examine $200M Medicaid contract

Calif. unveils tentative price tags for health plans on the exchange

Health care issues become hurdle for immigration reform measure

First Edition: May 24, 2013

Weekend reading: Mental illness stigma, health insurance mazes and female libido

States embroiled in Medicaid expansion battles are running out of time

The Hill: Insurers feel pressure to support Enroll America

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

New campaign aims to increase awareness of HIPAA rights, benefits among HIV-positive Black MSM

Idaho, New Mexico ask feds to run health exchanges

Market pressures may keep premiums low as health law kicks in

First Edition: May 23, 2013

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

Medicaid expansion popular in Southern states, despite govs' opposition

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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