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ACE program can help hospitals lower health care costs

Creating specialized hospital units for elderly people with acute medical illness could reduce national health care costs by as much $6 billion a year, according to a new study by UCSF researchers.

11 Jun 2012

States hold off on insurance exchanges; Medicare ACOs confront challenges

Marilyn Tavenner, the acting administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, said Thursday that about 30 states will not move forward with state-based exchanges until after the Supreme Court rules and the November elections are finished. She also said her agency is working to streamline the process for early participants in Medicare ACOs.

8 Jun 2012

Viewpoints: Bipartisanship on medical device tax; 'Overreach' in contraception fight

Bipartisanship arrived in Washington on Thursday, not that many in the media will hail it. That's because the sweet harmony involved a 270-146 House vote to repeal ObamaCare's 2.3% excise tax on medical devices.

8 Jun 2012

Premier healthcare alliance awards new agrements for spinal implants

The Premier healthcare alliance today announced new agreements for spinal implants and related products

8 Jun 2012

Internists press lawmakers for Medicare formula fix

Several hundred internists and medical students were on Capitol Hill Thursday, meeting with their members of Congress to advocate for issues facing internal medicine.

8 Jun 2012

NCPA takes proactive steps against medication non-adherence

Under the leadership of its national trade association, community pharmacists are stepping up to the plate to take on the issue of medication non-adherence, a health care crisis currently adding to the nation's fiscal woes at a cost of nearly $300 billion each year.

8 Jun 2012

Bachmann calls for federal audit of Minnesota Medicaid program

Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., is asking for a federal audit of her state's Medicaid program after a congressional probe found a year's worth of alleged overpayments. In other news, insurers Molina and Centene have won back Medicaid contracts in Ohio after initially being rejected.

8 Jun 2012

VisionCare expands CentraSight telescope implant provider teams

VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies, Inc., developer of the first FDA-approved ophthalmic telescope implant indicated to improve vision in patients with end-stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD), announced today the expansion of its CentraSight™ provider teams nationwide.

8 Jun 2012

Research roundup: Savings from electronic health records?

Does Health Information Exchange Reduce Unnecessary Neuroimaging and Improve Quality of Headache Care in the Emergency Department?

8 Jun 2012

Atrium Medical wins Premier's Performance Award

Atrium Medical Corporation, a business unit of MAQUET Cardiovascular, today announced that it is a winner of Premier's Performance Award, presented by the Premier healthcare alliance at their seventh annual awards ceremony.

8 Jun 2012

Group rates more than 2,600 hospitals with single letter grade

News outlets report on how their local hospitals were graded by a nonprofit organization that culled patient safety ratings from a variety of sources and assigned a single letter grade to more than 2,600 hospitals in the United States.

8 Jun 2012

More federal scrutiny for Minn. Medicaid program; Colo. Medicaid reforms signed into law

Minnesota's Medicaid program faces more federal scrutiny on its rates. In the meantime, new Medicaid payment reforms are signed into law in Colorado.

8 Jun 2012

Hospitals get graded for patient safety

Hospital executives are about to find out if they make the grade under a new rating system developed by the Leapfrog Group that debuts online Wednesday - and some are not happy about it. Under Leapfrog's Hospital Safety Score initiative, hospitals are given a letter grade - A, B, C, D or F - on how safely they treat patients. The grade reflects patient injuries, infection rates and the frequency of medical and medication errors.

7 Jun 2012

CBO: Ballooning health care costs will continue as a key driver in nation's debt

A new Congressional Budget Office report offers a bleak view of the future if current tax and spending policies are not adjusted.

7 Jun 2012

New data supports clinical role of Cambridge Heart’s MTWA test in managing patients at risk of SCA

Cambridge Heart, Inc., a developer of non-invasive diagnostic tests for cardiac disease, today announced that results of a prospective, 155-patient trial reinforce the value of the Microvolt T-Wave Alternans (MTWA) test as a predictor of life-threatening heart rhythms and Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD).

7 Jun 2012

Hand-wringing continues regarding the Supreme Court's much-awaited health law decision

Elected officials, policy-makers and advocates discuss the possible twists and turns that could result from a high court ruling. News outlets also report on how the decision could impact a variety of health programs, including Medicare, Medicaid and disease prevention efforts.

7 Jun 2012

Roundup: Calif. cigarette tax hike too close to call; Mass. insurance mandate not as contentious; Sept. 11 health fund cancer coverage ruling delayed

Tobacco companies poured nearly $47 million into defeating Proposition 29, a $1-a-pack tax hike on cigarettes, but the measure was narrowly leading in early returns Tuesday despite the hard-fought campaign. The tax increase would raise $810 million a year for cancer research and smoking cessation programs, and it would give California -- which currently has a lower tobacco tax than 32 other states -- the 16th-highest cigarette tax in the nation. … The vote would be a huge win for the public health groups that sponsored the measure, including the American Cancer Society.

6 Jun 2012

Medicare News and Research

ACE program can help hospitals lower health care costs

States hold off on insurance exchanges; Medicare ACOs confront challenges

Viewpoints: Bipartisanship on medical device tax; 'Overreach' in contraception fight

Premier healthcare alliance awards new agrements for spinal implants

Internists press lawmakers for Medicare formula fix

NCPA takes proactive steps against medication non-adherence

Bachmann calls for federal audit of Minnesota Medicaid program

VisionCare expands CentraSight telescope implant provider teams

Research roundup: Savings from electronic health records?

Atrium Medical wins Premier's Performance Award

Group rates more than 2,600 hospitals with single letter grade

More federal scrutiny for Minn. Medicaid program; Colo. Medicaid reforms signed into law

Hospitals get graded for patient safety

CBO: Ballooning health care costs will continue as a key driver in nation's debt

New data supports clinical role of Cambridge Heart’s MTWA test in managing patients at risk of SCA

Hand-wringing continues regarding the Supreme Court's much-awaited health law decision

Roundup: Calif. cigarette tax hike too close to call; Mass. insurance mandate not as contentious; Sept. 11 health fund cancer coverage ruling delayed

CMS raises questions about N.H. Medicaid reimbursement rates

Study finds dramatic increase in hospital 'observation care' for Medicare patients

Hospital at home program provides good outcomes and patient satisfaction, study finds

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