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Viewpoints: Surgery surprise: Out-of-network doctors' bills; consequences of making Medicaid enrollees pay premiums

The New York Times' Elisabeth Rosenthal offered an important lesson in healthcare economics over the weekend that's a must-read for anyone about to undergo a major medical procedure.

24 Sep 2014

Hospitals seek to control costs by setting standards for care

One group in Delaware looked at high spending on cardiac monitoring for patients who really didn't need it and encouraged doctors to instead use guidelines from the American Heart Association. Costs fell by 70 percent for the monitoring, a study finds.

24 Sep 2014

New study reveals differences in payment and income between physicians

A surprising new study pulls back the curtain on one of the most contentious issues in health care: differences in payment and income between physicians who perform operations, procedures or tests, and those who don’t.

23 Sep 2014

Caltech researcher explores link between variable heart rate, health and fitness

Although the heart beats out a very familiar "lub-dub" pattern that speeds up or slows down as our activity increases or decreases, the pattern itself isn't as regular as you might think. In fact, the amount of time between heartbeats can vary even at a "constant" heart rate-and that variability, doctors have found, is a good thing.

23 Sep 2014

Viewpoints: CHIP funding needed; GOP's flawed plan to make 'the pill' OTC; millennials' health issues

Federal financing for a beneficial health insurance program for low-income children, known as the Children's Health Insurance Program or CHIP, will run out next year unless Congress agrees to extend it. Bills are pending in both the House and the Senate to extend financing for four years, to 2019. Congress should approve the extension in the lame-duck session after the midterm elections so that families and state officials will know what the future holds. The program needs to be maintained amid uncertainty as to whether other good coverage will be available for these children (9/21).

23 Sep 2014

Study examines relationship between maternal iron intake and offspring autism risk

Mothers of children with autism are significantly less likely to report taking iron supplements before and during their pregnancies than the mothers of children who are developing normally, a study by researchers with the UC Davis MIND Institute has found.

23 Sep 2014

Highlights: Hawaii public hospital cuts; La. struggles with state worker health program costs; aging in Ky.

Public hospitals across Hawaii are finding ways to reduce staff and cut services because they don't have enough money to make ends meet. Executives from the Hawaii Health Systems Corp. told lawmakers Friday that even after layoffs they are facing a $30 million deficit in 2015. One hospital on Maui chose to close its adolescent psychology unit because it couldn't sustain the appropriate staffing levels to provide the services. It's also considering cuts to oncology and dialysis services if the situation doesn't improve (9/20).

23 Sep 2014

'Drive-by doctoring' during surgery can add a surprise to the bill

The New York Times examines the growing -- and lucrative -- practice among doctors to call in colleagues to consult during a surgery or afterward. The need is sometimes questionable, and patients often don't even know the second doctor was involved until the bill arrives.

23 Sep 2014

GOP candidates explore middle move ahead of election

Democrats, in the meantime, try a new tactic -- talking up their commitment to Social Security and Medicare. Elsewhere, Sens. Kay Hagan and Mark Warner face campaign fights centering largely on the health law.

22 Sep 2014

Viewpoints: Ezekiel Emanuel's choice of an age to die; new enrollment numbers still confusing

Seventy-five. That's how long I want to live: 75 years. This preference drives my daughters crazy. It drives my brothers crazy. My loving friends think I am crazy. They think that I can't mean what I say; that I haven't thought clearly about this, because there is so much in the world to see and do. To convince me of my errors, they enumerate the myriad people I know who are over 75 and doing quite well. They are certain that as I get closer to 75, I will push the desired age back to 80, then 85, maybe even 90. I am sure of my position.

22 Sep 2014

Dartmouth researchers build smartphone app that reveals mental health of students

Dartmouth researchers and their colleagues have built the first smartphone app that automatically reveals students' mental health, academic performance and behavioral trends. In other words, your smartphone knows your state of mind -- even if you don't -- and how that affects you.

22 Sep 2014

State highlights: Report: Hospitals ill-prepared for Sandy; Iowa Supreme Court lets teleabortion go on while it decides

When Superstorm Sandy slammed into the Northeast nearly two years ago, hospitals found themselves dealing with surges in patients, lost power supplies and employees who couldn't get to work -- problems that a new federal report finds they were not prepared to handle (Mulvihill, 9/17).

18 Sep 2014

UCLA Health System promotes virtual doctor visits

The health system will allow patients to see doctors using their cell phones, computers or tablets. Meanwhile, the American Medical Association calls for boosting the quality of electronic health records and asks the Obama administration to abandon its "all or nothing approach" to the shift to digital records.

18 Sep 2014

Doctors from UCLA Health System now available on LiveHealth Online

Doctors from UCLA Health System will be available on your smartphone, tablet or laptop beginning this week through LiveHealth Online, a telehealth solution for business travelers, busy parents, students away at college or anybody else who needs non-emergency medical attention when their own doctors are not available.

17 Sep 2014

ADA Maryland Chapter, WellDoc collaborate to empower patients with type 2 diabetes

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) Maryland Chapter and WellDoc®, a health care behavioral science and technology company, have announced the launch of a collaboration to empower people in Maryland with type 2 diabetes to take control of their diabetes by improving their day-to-day self-management.

16 Sep 2014

Viewpoints: Crediting the health law for modest premium increases; Hollywood misses the mark on sick teens

The rate of growth on premiums for employer-based health coverage in the first five months of this year was one of the lowest in 16 years. Despite longstanding concerns that employer-sponsored coverage might become too costly to sustain, that market seems to have stabilized for now .... Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, federal tax credit subsidies - available for people earning up to 400 percent of the federal poverty level ($95,400 for a family of four) - are helping to make these policies affordable and cushioning the impact of premium increases in some cities (9/14).

16 Sep 2014

State Highlights: Calif. prop 45 ad truth check; Medi-Cal autism coverage

Proposition 45 would give California's elected insurance commissioner the authority to reject excessive health insurance rate hikes, a power the commissioner already wields for auto and homeowners insurance rates. The campaign against it -- for which the insurance industry has so far put up $37.3 million -- is now airing a 60-second radio ad narrated by a nurse named Candy Campbell.

16 Sep 2014

WellStar establishes new health park in East Cobb

WellStar East Cobb Health Park opened its doors September 15, serving as a comprehensive, one-stop shop for outpatient medical needs.

15 Sep 2014

State highlights: States want home care worker wage changes delayed; Ga. delays nursing home rate hike

State officials that argued against providing overtime and minimum wage protections to the nation's 2 million home care workers are asking the Department of Labor to push back a Jan. 1 start date for the policy to take effect. State Medicaid officials concerned that their costs will rise are asking for a delay and tweaks to the policy, even though the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services finalized the rule a year ago.

15 Sep 2014

Getting flu shot every autumn can lead to better health

Everyone knows that the best way to avoid the flu is by getting an annual flu shot. But a trip to your physician every autumn for the vaccination can help you avoid much more than the dreaded flu bug. "At the doctor's office, the focus is on you and what is going on with your health. This is your time to talk about concerns to improve your well-being beyond the flu season," says Jorge Parada, MD, MPH, the medical director of the Infection Prevention and Control Program at Loyola University Health System.

15 Sep 2014

Doctor News and Research

Viewpoints: Surgery surprise: Out-of-network doctors' bills; consequences of making Medicaid enrollees pay premiums

Hospitals seek to control costs by setting standards for care

New study reveals differences in payment and income between physicians

Caltech researcher explores link between variable heart rate, health and fitness

Viewpoints: CHIP funding needed; GOP's flawed plan to make 'the pill' OTC; millennials' health issues

Study examines relationship between maternal iron intake and offspring autism risk

Highlights: Hawaii public hospital cuts; La. struggles with state worker health program costs; aging in Ky.

'Drive-by doctoring' during surgery can add a surprise to the bill

GOP candidates explore middle move ahead of election

Viewpoints: Ezekiel Emanuel's choice of an age to die; new enrollment numbers still confusing

Dartmouth researchers build smartphone app that reveals mental health of students

State highlights: Report: Hospitals ill-prepared for Sandy; Iowa Supreme Court lets teleabortion go on while it decides

UCLA Health System promotes virtual doctor visits

Doctors from UCLA Health System now available on LiveHealth Online

ADA Maryland Chapter, WellDoc collaborate to empower patients with type 2 diabetes

Viewpoints: Crediting the health law for modest premium increases; Hollywood misses the mark on sick teens

State Highlights: Calif. prop 45 ad truth check; Medi-Cal autism coverage

WellStar establishes new health park in East Cobb

State highlights: States want home care worker wage changes delayed; Ga. delays nursing home rate hike

Getting flu shot every autumn can lead to better health

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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