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Medicare fraud: Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center agrees to pay $2.92M for resolving allegations

Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center, a Long Island, N.Y.-based hospital, has agreed to pay $2.92 million, plus interest, to settle allegations that the hospital defrauded Medicare, the Justice Department announced today.

26 Feb 2010

BioMedix Vascular Solutions, Howard University Hospital to participate in Community Health Project and Demonstration

BioMedix Vascular Solutions, Inc. announced today that the company has partnered with Howard University Hospital, Department of Surgery to participate in a Community Health Project and Demonstration focused on diagnosing and treating the potentially life-threatening condition called Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD).

25 Feb 2010

WellPoint executive defends premium increases at congressional hearing

In a congressional hearing Wednesday, an insurance company executive justified proposed premium increases and warned "that pending legislation" could make the problem of high medical costs worse. "The executive, Angela F. Braly, president of WellPoint, made the comments in testimony prepared for a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee," The New York Times reports.

25 Feb 2010

New book details how Greenway Medical Technologies' PrimeResearch integrates with PrimeSuite

Paper Kills 2.0: How Health IT Can Help Save Your Life and Your Money, is due out today by the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Health Transformation.

25 Feb 2010

AMA awards HMS contract for third party recovery activities

HMS today announced that it had been awarded a contract by the State of Alabama Medicaid Agency (AMA) to provide various third party recovery activities, including data matches with commercial and government insurors, commercial and Medicare recoveries, real-time pharmacy cost avoidance, subrogation, and credit balance audit services. This contract is for a two-year term, with three additional one-year renewal options.

25 Feb 2010

Health insurance premium discussion: HHS Secretary invites insurance company CEOs

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today invited insurance company chief executive officers to a March 3 meeting at HHS to discuss their companies’ insurance premiums. The CEOs of UnitedHealth Group Inc., WellPoint Inc., Aetna Inc., Health Care Service Corporation and CIGNA HealthCare Inc. along with leaders from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners have been invited.

25 Feb 2010

NIH panel proposes multiple management strategies for lactose intolerant individuals

Lactose intolerance is a real and important clinical syndrome, but quantifying its public health burden is challenging. An NIH Consensus Development panel was convened this week to assess the available evidence on lactose intolerance and health across the age spectrum and across racial and ethnic groups.

25 Feb 2010

New data shows Valortim antibody enhances human T cell response to B. anthracis

PharmAthene, Inc., a biodefense company developing medical countermeasures against biological and chemical threats, announced today that new data from the Company's Valortim® anthrax anti-toxin program were presented at the 8th Annual ASM Biodefense and Emerging Diseases Research Meeting, held in Baltimore, Maryland, February 21-24, 2010.

25 Feb 2010

AAJ says healthcare reform should improve safety, not restrict rights of patients

As President Obama and Congressional leaders prepare for tomorrow's health care summit, the American Association for Justice (AAJ) is today reminding lawmakers to remember the 98,000 patients killed every year by preventable medical errors and how restricting their legal rights will not fix America's broken health care system.

25 Feb 2010

FDA, NIH initiative: From scientific breakthrough to the availability of new medical therapies for patients

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health today unveiled an initiative designed to accelerate the process from scientific breakthrough to the availability of new, innovative medical therapies for patients.

25 Feb 2010

GOP, expecting little from summit, strategizes on policy alternatives; Democrats look for spark

GOP leaders Tuesday decided not to offer a "single comprehensive proposal" at Thursday's health summit and have voiced little hope regarding the meeting's outcome, but they are still planning to attend, The New York Times reports.

25 Feb 2010

FDA may set patient safety regulations for health IT

The Huffington Post Investigative Fund: "In the past two years, the agency has received reports of six patient deaths and several dozen injuries linked to malfunctions in the systems, Jeffrey Shuren, director of the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in testimony prepared for a government hearing on Thursday. ... The FDA has been studying the issue for several years. Its latest concerns are surfacing as the government ramps up an ambitious plan to spend as much as $27 billion in stimulus money helping doctors and hospitals across the country purchase electronic medical records systems that rely on digital software rather than paper medical charts."

25 Feb 2010

Lack of knowledge and awareness impeding efforts to control HBV and HCV

A recent report by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) confirmed that 3.5 to 5.3 million people (1-2 % of the U.S. population) have chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections. Despite efforts by federal, state and local government agencies to control and prevent these diseases, they remain a serious public health concern. The major factor impeding efforts to control HBV and HCV is lack of knowledge and awareness among health care providers, social service professionals, members of the public, and policy-makers.

24 Feb 2010

PharmAthene awarded total of $78.4M in additional funding to develop SparVax vaccine

PharmAthene, Inc. a biodefense company specializing in the development and commercialization of medical countermeasures against chemical and biological threats, announced today that the Department of Health and Human Services, through the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority has modified its existing research and development contract with PharmAthene providing for up to a total of $78.4 million in additional funding, provided that certain milestones are achieved and that all contract options and extensions are exercised by the government, to support the continued advanced development of SparVax™, a second generation recombinant protective antigen (rPA) anthrax vaccine targeted for future procurement in the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile.

24 Feb 2010

ONDCP, HHS announce availability of over $1.1M for new Drug Free Communities Support programs

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is announcing the availability of more than $1.1 million for new Drug Free Communities Support Mentoring program (DFC Mentoring) grants. An estimated 15 new Mentoring grants will be awarded (up to $75,000 per grant, per year) to drug and alcohol prevention community coalitions from across the nation. The length of the project period is up to two years.

24 Feb 2010

BioMedix Vascular Solutions, Howard University Hospital partner to help uninsured PAD patients

24 Feb 2010

State Round up: Utah struggling with state online health exchange; California cracks down on discount health plans

The Salt Lake Tribune: "Utah lawmakers this year have spared no energy trumpeting their dislike for federal health reform, passing bills asserting states' right to govern themselves. But Utah's own health care fix, an online insurance market called the Utah Health Exchange, has gotten off to a wobbly start. And legislation to repair it, sponsored by Republican House Speaker Dave Clark, came under siege last week. ...The debate left some reform advocates privately wondering if the topic has become too toxic to handle" (Stewart, 2/23).

24 Feb 2010

SRI International awarded $3.8M BARDA contract to develop a radiation assessment device

SRI International, an independent nonprofit research and development institute, has received a $3.8M contract from the Department of Health and Human Services Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). SRI will research and develop a device to triage individuals who may have been exposed to ionizing radiation after a radiological or nuclear incident.

24 Feb 2010

Officials crack down on Medicare fraud in Miami and Los Angeles

When it comes to health care fraud, schemes that target Medicare are among the most common and lucrative. That's because the $400 billion federal program is a fat and easy target. The Obama administration ... has requested an increase for an effort to crack down on Medicare fraud.

24 Feb 2010

MAXIMUS receives contract to review reconsiderations of Medicare Part D program

MAXIMUS, a leading provider of government services worldwide, announced today that its Federal Services subsidiary has been awarded a one-year contract by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to continue to serve as an independent review entity for reconsiderations of beneficiary appeals for the Medicare Part D program.

24 Feb 2010

Health and Human Services News and Research

Medicare fraud: Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center agrees to pay $2.92M for resolving allegations

BioMedix Vascular Solutions, Howard University Hospital to participate in Community Health Project and Demonstration

WellPoint executive defends premium increases at congressional hearing

New book details how Greenway Medical Technologies' PrimeResearch integrates with PrimeSuite

AMA awards HMS contract for third party recovery activities

Health insurance premium discussion: HHS Secretary invites insurance company CEOs

NIH panel proposes multiple management strategies for lactose intolerant individuals

New data shows Valortim antibody enhances human T cell response to B. anthracis

AAJ says healthcare reform should improve safety, not restrict rights of patients

FDA, NIH initiative: From scientific breakthrough to the availability of new medical therapies for patients

GOP, expecting little from summit, strategizes on policy alternatives; Democrats look for spark

FDA may set patient safety regulations for health IT

Lack of knowledge and awareness impeding efforts to control HBV and HCV

PharmAthene awarded total of $78.4M in additional funding to develop SparVax vaccine

ONDCP, HHS announce availability of over $1.1M for new Drug Free Communities Support programs

BioMedix Vascular Solutions, Howard University Hospital partner to help uninsured PAD patients

State Round up: Utah struggling with state online health exchange; California cracks down on discount health plans

SRI International awarded $3.8M BARDA contract to develop a radiation assessment device

Officials crack down on Medicare fraud in Miami and Los Angeles

MAXIMUS receives contract to review reconsiderations of Medicare Part D program

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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