Medicare News and Research

RSS

Boehner, Obama move to direct talks on budget

As the negotiations shift to the president and House speaker, some Republicans appear to be encouraging their colleagues to abandon staunch opposition to any tax rate hike, The Washington Post reports. But several outlets note that little movement is apparent from either side.

7 Dec 2012

Bill would give FDA clearer authority over drug compounders

The bill, introduced in Congress, would also direct the Food and Drug Administration to train state regulators -- whose oversights may have contributed to the meningitis outbreak that sickened more than 500 and killed at least 36.

7 Dec 2012

First Edition: December 7, 2012

Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations includes articles on the talks between President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner on the "fiscal cliff."

7 Dec 2012

Medicare changes central as 'fiscal cliff' countdown continues

The Washington Post reports that some Republicans are urging House leaders to back higher tax rates for the wealthy in exchange for a deal to rein in spending on safety-net programs. Other news outlets report that AARP and other groups are warning lawmakers about the hazards of cutting benefits as part of a deficit reduction package.

7 Dec 2012

Polls show public reluctance for trimming Medicare to curb the deficit

A new AP-GfK poll found most American favor letting tax cuts expire for top wage earners and a Quinnipiac poll found that voters oppose cutting Medicaid spending and increasing the Medicare eligibility age.

7 Dec 2012

States trying managed care for 'dual eligibles' - Medicare/Medicaid recipients

People who qualify for Medicare and Medicaid - many of whom are elderly and in nursing homes - need lots of often-expensive care.

7 Dec 2012

Viewpoints: Lame duck Congress shouldn't take on entitlement changes; New legal challenge to health law; 'Irrational vote' on disability pact

What we need in order to address this fiscal abyss is a Grand Bargain that addresses the two main drivers of our structural deficits: unsustainable social insurance programs, especially health care programs, and a complex, unfair, uncompetitive and inadequate tax system. But a lame duck Congress cannot and should not tackle comprehensive tax and social insurance reforms.

6 Dec 2012

IASIS Healthcare fourth quarter net revenue decreases 2.2% to $633.0 million

IASIS Healthcare LLC, today announced financial and operating results for the fiscal fourth quarter and year ended September 30, 2012.

6 Dec 2012

Political cartoon: '3-2-1 Liftoff?'

Kaiser Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with '3-2-1 Liftoff?' By Lisa Benson.

6 Dec 2012

First Edition: December 6, 2012

Today's headlines include a report that some in the GOP are urging lawmakers to support the idea of trading tax breaks for changes in safety-net programs.

6 Dec 2012

Health stocks embraced amid market uncertainty

The Wall Street Journal reports that following President Barack Obama's re-election, health stocks are viewed as a port in the storm. Other news outlets explore how the markets have remained stable during the 'fiscal cliff' negotiations as investors count on an eleventh-hour deal.

6 Dec 2012

Overlap in competing budget proposals points way to deal

The Associated Press reports the White House and House Republicans have identified areas of significant overlap that could form the basis for an agreement after posturing gives way to actual bargaining.

6 Dec 2012

Government announces fraud collections hit record $5 billion

The Justice Department's civil division recovered a record $5 billion in the past fiscal year from companies that defrauded taxpayers, with much of the abuse occurring in the health care and mortgage industries.

6 Dec 2012

Health care programs a clear target in deficit reduction efforts

As negotiators debate proposals to trim entitlement programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, stakeholders ranging from public hospitals to physician groups lobby to protect their interests.

6 Dec 2012

Supreme Court hears arguments in hospitals' Medicare claims lawsuit

A majority of Supreme Court justices on Tuesday sounded skeptical of a suit brought by hospitals to reopen Medicare claims as much as 25 years old because of calculations that were found to have underpaid them.

6 Dec 2012

African American women less likely to receive axillary SLN biopsy for breast cancer

African American women with early stage, invasive breast cancer were 12 percent less likely than Caucasian women with the same diagnosis to receive a minimally invasive technique, axillary sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy, years after the procedure had become the standard of surgical practice, according to research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

6 Dec 2012

Two simple cost-effective methods can reduce expensive postoperative complications

As the nation grapples with surging health care costs, researchers at the University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, and Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center, Hartford, have confirmed two simple cost-effective methods to reduce expensive postoperative complications-communications team training and a surgical checklist.

6 Dec 2012

Viewpoints: Sen. Whitehouse argues deficit fix shouldn't be about Medicare; Is a plunge over the cliff so bad?

As President Barack Obama and congressional leaders continue discussions to avert the so-called fiscal cliff - the mix of tax increases and spending cuts set to take effect automatically in January - we hear a troubling but familiar refrain in Washington: To fix our deficit, we must cut Medicare benefits.

6 Dec 2012

University of Kentucky creates new working model for EHR reporting of cancer cases

The University of Kentucky has created the nation's first working model for electronic health record (EHR) reporting of cancer cases to the state's cancer registry.

5 Dec 2012

Software to curb hospital readmissions?

Stung by a multimillion-dollar penalty for failing to meet new patient readmissions standards set by Medicare, UMass Memorial Health Care is using transaction analytics software to reduce frequent and costly readmissions for patients with heart attacks, heart failure and pneumonia.

5 Dec 2012