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Longer looks: Romney's evolution on abortion; The birth of the HIV epidemic

GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney began his political career as a pro-choicer. In the story he tells, he had an epiphany, a flash of insight, and committed himself thereafter to protecting life. But that isn't what happened. The real story of Romney's conversion - a series of tentative, equivocal, and confused shifts, accompanied by a constant rewriting of his past - paints a more accurate picture of who he is.

2 Mar 2012

Berg Diagnostics achieves CLIA certificate of accreditation

Berg Diagnostics, a Boston-based molecular diagnostics company has received Massachusetts Clinical Laboratory Licensure and Certificate of Registration from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment (CLIA).

2 Mar 2012

Ten physicians indicted in alleged $250 million fraud scheme

As has been the trend in some recent health care fraud cases, the physicians were not the ringmasters. Instead, the indictments allege that they were fronts for others - primarily immigrants from the former Soviet Union.

2 Mar 2012

Unpaid caregivers provided an estimated $202 billion in dementia care in 2010

NPR reports unpaid caregiver costs for those with dementia was an estimated $202 billion in 2010 alone. In other news, the income of Massachusetts' elderly covers only 60 percent of living expenses, and at the Mayo Clinic, researchers are trying to learn more about the effects of old age.

2 Mar 2012

House Subcommittee OKs IPAB repeal

The House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee voted 17 to 5 to do away with a Medicare cost-cutting panel derided by Republicans as a "rationing board."

2 Mar 2012

Vein illumination improves patient preference and satisfaction with hospitals

AccuVein Inc., the global leader in vein illumination and the creator of the AV300, the world's only hand-held, non-contact vein illumination device, today reported the findings of its study on the impact that vein illumination has on patient preference and overall satisfaction.

2 Mar 2012

Viewpoints: Ryan and Medicare; Va. ultrasound bill 'overreaches'?; NEJM on patient-centered care

Over the past year, an entitlement revolution has taken place on Capitol Hill. ... The revolution involves Medicare, the health-care program for the elderly and the single biggest cause of America's looming debt crisis. Reform of Medicare would be achieved by a policy known as "premium support." It would bring consumer choice and spending restraint to the beleaguered program.

1 Mar 2012

Medicare actuary issues cautions about current efforts to 'cure' spiralling costs

Medicare's actuary warned Tuesday that controlling cost growth is the primary challenge to the entitlement program's financial stability, but that neither the premium support system sought by Republicans nor cost-cutting measures pushed by the administration provide all the answers.

1 Mar 2012

First Edition: March 1, 2012

Today's headlines set the stage for the Senate's scheduled vote on a measure sponsored by Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., that would allow employers and insurers to opt out of provisions in Obama's health care law to which they object on religious or moral grounds.

1 Mar 2012

Kodak seeks to end health coverage for Medicare-eligible retirees

Eastman Kodak Co., looking to whittle expenses as it reorganizes under bankruptcy protection, wants to end health care benefits for about 16,000 retirees who are over age 65 and thus eligible for Medicare.

1 Mar 2012

Romney wins Michigan, Arizona; Rivals press health policy barbs

In exit polls, some GOP voters said they were concerned about Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney's health care policies. Rivals Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich offered parallels between the federal health law and the measure Romney signed while governor of Massachusetts.

1 Mar 2012

States should consider highest-cost patients when developing essential benefits package

That recommendation comes from a report issued Tuesday by the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics, which concluded that those under age 65 have very different health spending habits than Medicare beneficiaries. Meanwhile, experts offer advice to states regarding development of essential benefits packages.

1 Mar 2012

UnitedHealth acquisitions draw scrutiny, Maine's high court sides with regulators on insurance rate hikes

UnitedHealth Group's acquisition of a Calif. physician group and two Florida health plans are making news, and Maine's top court sides with regulators' authority to reject one Anthem's rate increases there.

1 Mar 2012

Viewpoints: 'Romney's rebound,' Va. lawmakers' ultrasound vote, Kennedy's not sole interpreters of Senator's legacy

But Mr. Romney also improved his case for his own candidacy, stressing a reform agenda as much as his business biography. In the final days in particular, he pressed his new plan for a 20 percent across-the-board income tax cut, as well as Medicare reform. He stressed his ability to revive the economy, which remains the dominant issue even among conservatives, despite the prominence of social issues in the last week.

29 Feb 2012

Texas doctor caught in a $375 million fraud

A Texas doctor has been accused of running a massive health fraud care scheme with thousands of fraudulent patients and intermediaries allegedly offering cash, food stamps or free groceries, to cheat the Medicare and Medicaid of nearly $375 million.

29 Feb 2012

Positive reaction from hospitals, consumer groups on 'stage 2' health IT rules

Both hospital and consumer groups are reacting positively to new federal rules meant to improve the effective use of the technology, and new electronic health records certification rules are released.

29 Feb 2012

First Edition: February 29, 2012

Today's headlines include reports on yesterday's GOP presidential primary elections and how health policy played a role in some of the rhetoric.

29 Feb 2012

Financial crime convictions - including health care fraud - reap billions in restitution payments

The FBI said Monday that its probes of financial crime last year led to more than 3,000 convictions and over $12 billion in court-ordered restitution as agents attacked insider trading, Ponzi schemes and Medicare fraud in high-dollar scams that victimized thousands of investors and the government.

29 Feb 2012

Senate Republican reintroduces measure to repeal health law's Independent Payment Advisory Board

Meanwhile, on the House side, a top Democrat has said he will support efforts to undo the panel created to curb Medicare spending growth. The American Medical Association also reiterated its support for repeal.

29 Feb 2012

Telephone-based counseling program does not improve osteoporosis medication adherence

Telephone motivational counseling sessions did not result in a statistically significant improvement in adherence to an osteoporosis medication regimen, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

28 Feb 2012

Medicare News and Research

Longer looks: Romney's evolution on abortion; The birth of the HIV epidemic

Berg Diagnostics achieves CLIA certificate of accreditation

Ten physicians indicted in alleged $250 million fraud scheme

Unpaid caregivers provided an estimated $202 billion in dementia care in 2010

House Subcommittee OKs IPAB repeal

Vein illumination improves patient preference and satisfaction with hospitals

Viewpoints: Ryan and Medicare; Va. ultrasound bill 'overreaches'?; NEJM on patient-centered care

Medicare actuary issues cautions about current efforts to 'cure' spiralling costs

First Edition: March 1, 2012

Kodak seeks to end health coverage for Medicare-eligible retirees

Romney wins Michigan, Arizona; Rivals press health policy barbs

States should consider highest-cost patients when developing essential benefits package

UnitedHealth acquisitions draw scrutiny, Maine's high court sides with regulators on insurance rate hikes

Viewpoints: 'Romney's rebound,' Va. lawmakers' ultrasound vote, Kennedy's not sole interpreters of Senator's legacy

Texas doctor caught in a $375 million fraud

Positive reaction from hospitals, consumer groups on 'stage 2' health IT rules

First Edition: February 29, 2012

Financial crime convictions - including health care fraud - reap billions in restitution payments

Senate Republican reintroduces measure to repeal health law's Independent Payment Advisory Board

Telephone-based counseling program does not improve osteoporosis medication adherence

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

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