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Congress approves tax package including temporary 'doc fix'

In Friday action, the House and Senate OK'd legislation that prevented a 27.4 percent reduction in Medicare physician pay, which was scheduled to kick in on March 1.

22 Feb 2012

Essential benefits, health exchanges trigger questions, answers

Today's headlines include a range of stories about the implementation of the health law and related policy developments.

22 Feb 2012

State roundup: Calif. expands uninsured access, gives adult day care reprieve

Nearly two years before the federal health reform law kicks in, 10 California counties have expanded medical coverage to more than 250,000 people who were previously uninsured, according to new state data.

22 Feb 2012

Medicaid: Bachmann calls for scrutiny of Minn. system, other state developments

Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., has called for a broader investigation of Minnesota's Medicaid system after allegations that the state inflated premiums for low-income residents. Elsewhere, Maine's Medicaid system costs more than in other states, and the Florida Hospital Association is pushing back against forced contracting with Medicaid managed care providers.

22 Feb 2012

Viewpoints: Medicare mudslinging, 'pound-foolish' doc fix and unrealistic death attitudes

For all its technological sophistication and hefty price tag, modern medicine may be doing more to complicate the end of life than to prolong or improve it. ... When families talk about letting their loved ones die "naturally," they often mean "in their sleep" - not from a treatable illness such as a stroke, cancer or an infection. ... While it's easy to empathize with these family members' wishes, what they don't appreciate is that very few elderly patients are lucky enough to die in their sleep.

22 Feb 2012

First Edition: February 21, 2012

Today's health policy headlines include reports about how the Supreme Court's consideration of the health law could prolong the fight over the sweeping measure.

21 Feb 2012

Medco fourth-quarter total net revenues increase 12.2% to record $19.0 billion

Medco Health Solutions, Inc. today reported record fourth-quarter 2011 GAAP diluted EPS of $1.08, an increase of 22.7 percent, which includes expenses associated with the pending merger with Express Scripts, Inc. of $43.6 million before provision for income taxes. When excluding these merger-related expenses, diluted EPS increased 29.5 percent over fourth-quarter 2010.

21 Feb 2012

Nation's top hospitals for emergency medical care

A report released today by HealthGrades, the leading provider of information to help consumers make an informed decision about a physician or hospital, identified the nation's top performing hospital for emergency medical care. The analysis also found large differences in the risk adjusted mortality rates for patients admitted through the Emergency Department, both by hospital and by market area.

21 Feb 2012

Temkin Group rates 13 health plans

A new research report published by Temkin Group, 2012 Temkin Experience Ratings, rates the customer experience of 206 large companies across 18 industries. This is the second year that Temkin Group has released these ratings.

20 Feb 2012

Premier healthcare alliance awards new SEEDS agreement for coffee, tea and cocoa

The Premier healthcare alliance today announced that a new SEEDS agreement for coffee, tea and cocoa has been awarded to KimBees's Inc. of Greensboro, N.C.

20 Feb 2012

Teleflex, Premier enter new agreements for ligation and stapling products, suture and trocars

Teleflex Incorporated, a leading global provider of medical devices for critical care and surgery, has announced three new group purchasing agreements with the Premier healthcare alliance.

20 Feb 2012

Apixio introduces Clinical Knowledge Exchange at HIMSS 2012 conference

Apixio, Inc., the leading provider of clinical data integration, search and analytics for healthcare organizations, is introducing this week at the HIMSS 2012 conference, a technology framework called the Clinical Knowledge Exchange.

20 Feb 2012

Medicare cuts include psychotherapy payment reduction

Medicare recipients currently receiving mental health outpatient services stand to be affected by the payroll tax legislation passed by Congress today. As a result of the new law, which President Obama is expected to sign, payment for Medicare outpatient psychotherapy services will be cut by five-percent beginning March 1.

18 Feb 2012

Health law implementation: State insurance exchange bills; HHS rules on MLR Waiver requests

States are grappling to implement aspects of the Affordable Care Act.

18 Feb 2012

AADA expresses disappointment over Medicare SGR fix

The American Academy of Dermatology Association (AADA) is severely disappointed that Congress once again allowed partisan politics to stand in the way of a full sustainable growth rate (SGR) fix.

18 Feb 2012

CVS Caremark's integrated businesses help patients achieve better health

CVS Caremark's chief health care strategy officer today outlined how the company's integrated offerings -- retail pharmacy, pharmacy benefit management (PBM) and retail clinics -- are helping patients achieve better health by working to increase medication adherence and targeting behaviors to improve treatment for chronic diseases.

18 Feb 2012

Substituting antiepileptic drugs may lead to increase in risk of epilepsy

The substitution of brand-name antiepileptic drugs with cheaper generic equivalents has been an ongoing point of contention among doctors, federal officials and people with epilepsy.

18 Feb 2012

Medicare Part D beneficiaries flock to lower cost Part D plans with competitive pharmacy networks

New 2012 Medicare Part D data released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) show the growing popularity among Medicare Part D beneficiaries in choosing plans featuring lower cost preferred pharmacy network options.

18 Feb 2012

Not-for-profit company leads push for automation of Medicaid enrollment process

Venture capitalists and Wall Street have invested millions of dollars to capitalize on the health care industry's burgeoning demand for information technology. But in New York State, the push to automate the Medicaid enrollment process is being led not by a behemoth IT corporation, but by a tiny not-for-profit: the Hudson Center for Health Equity & Quality (Hudson Center). And 2012 is shaping up to be its breakout year.

18 Feb 2012

FDA to reconsider diet drug that failed to get approval in 2010

Next week, advisers to the Food and Drug Administration will recommend whether the agency should approve the first new prescription diet pill in 13 years. The F.D.A. rejected the drug under review, Qnexa, in 2010, amid safety concerns, and the drug's manufacturer is now presenting additional data to argue its case.

18 Feb 2012