Health and Human Services News and Research

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Astrazeneca settles drug marketing lawsuit, plea deal rejected for possibly defective heart device maker

The New York Times: AstraZeneca has settled a case and agreed to pay $520 million after federal investigations into its marketing practices for a schizophrenia drug, Seroquel. The announcement came Tuesday from Attorney General Eric Holder. Government officials, including Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, said the company paid illegal kickbacks to doctors to promote drugs for unapproved uses by children, the elderly, veterans and prisoners, which is illegal under federal law.

29 Apr 2010

State regulators say insurance industry should easily meet medical-loss requirement

Insurers can meet the requirements in the new health overhaul law for minimum spending on patient care by deducting taxes and relabeling expenses related to improving "health care quality" as medical costs, rather than administrative ones, according to an April 24 memo from an expert at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Bloomberg BusinessWeek reports.

29 Apr 2010

Experts discuss recent advancements in personalized medicine for treating childhood disorders

Many of the world's leading experts in pediatric pharmacogenomics and personalized medicine are gathering today at a first-of-its-kind conference in Kansas City to change the way childhood diseases and illnesses are treated.

29 Apr 2010

HHS Secretary's statement on WellPoint's announcement to end practice of rescissions

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius released the following statement today on WellPoint's announcement that it intends to end the practice of rescinding patients' coverage in advance of the Affordable Care Act's requirement that insurers stop this practice starting this fall. WellPoint's announcement comes after Secretary Sebelius sent a letter on April 22 urging the company to immediately stop the practice of rescinding coverage for patients who become ill.

29 Apr 2010

ECRI Institute's recommendations for controlling CT radiation dose

The benefits of computed tomography (CT) have increased greatly over the past decade. Now twice as powerful, it offers dynamic images of anatomy, including the beating heart. Future advancements promise to deliver even more clinical benefits. However, CT has always had a downside: it can deliver high radiation doses to patients, putting them at increased risk of developing cancer.

29 Apr 2010

Investigators study Pioglitazone and Vitamin E for treatment of NASH

A daily dose of a specific form of vitamin E significantly improved the liver disease, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, according to a study funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health. Results were published April 28 online in the New England Journal of Medicine.

29 Apr 2010

Coronary artery calcium score helpful for determining intermediate risk of heart disease

Including a coronary artery calcium score in a risk assessment for future heart disease events, such as heart attacks, provides a better estimate in some populations than a standard coronary risk factors assessment, according to research supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health.

28 Apr 2010

DARA Therapeutics collaborates to advance clinical study of KRN5500 for CIPN in cancer patients

DARA BioSciences, Inc. announced today that on April 26, 2010, DARA Therapeutics, a subsidiary of DARA BioSciences, and the Division of Cancer Prevention, National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), entered into a Clinical Trials Agreement to advance the clinical study of KRN5500 for the treatment of Chemotherapy Induced Peripheral Neuropathy (CIPN) in patients with cancer. Under the terms of the collaboration, NCI will fund the studies and DARA will supply KRN5500 and placebo.

28 Apr 2010

Gangs increasingly involved in Medicare fraud

ABC News: "Gangs across the country are arming themselves with powerful weapons to bilk taxpayers out of billions of dollars through Medicare fraud. What used to be a mostly non-violent, white collar crime has turned potentially deadly, and Federal agents who once combed through paperwork are now firing rounds at the shooting range to prepare for extreme dangers.

28 Apr 2010

Ranibizumab eye injections plus laser therapy result in dramatic visual improvement

Researchers have shown that ranibizumab (Lucentis) eye injections, often in combination with laser treatment, result in better vision than laser treatment alone for diabetes-associated swelling of the retina.

28 Apr 2010

As health reform's specifics continue to emerge, so do questions and answers from stakeholders

Determining how the law will be applied will be the next big battle in health reform and lobbyists are gearing up to influence implementation. "Congress gave sweeping power to federal agencies, especially (HHS), to fill in gaps lawmakers left in the 906-page legislation — an effort that will take years. The law refers more than 1,000 times to Cabinet secretaries who will make decisions on how to carry out the law. For example, the law requires insurance companies to spend 80% of premiums on medical claims, as opposed to administrative costs, by 2011. But it directs the health department to decide whether gray-area expenses, such as health-and-wellness programs offered by insurers, count as care or overhead."

28 Apr 2010

Costs, effects on business questioned as health overhaul analysis continues

The Associated Press: The biggest unanswered question in the health overhaul debate remains what the new law will mean for ordinary Americans. "Many experts believe the law falls short on taming costs, and that will force Congress to revisit health care in a few years.

27 Apr 2010

Wellcare faces allegations about director's resignation; Wellpoint confronts reports regarding breast cancer recissions

"A prominent director at WellCare Health Plans Inc. resigned Wednesday and raised questions about accounting practices at the Medicare and Medicaid company. Regina Herzlinger, the head of the board's audit committee and a professor of business administration at Harvard Business School, said internal audits found WellCare overbilled the Illinois Medicaid program by $1 million in 2009 and potentially overcharged states for almost $500,000 worth of maternity care."

27 Apr 2010

e-MDs selected as one of two recommended EHR vendors by AEHRA

e-MDs, an industry leader in the development and implementation of electronic health record and practice management solutions, announced they have been selected as one of two recommended EHR vendors by the Alaska EHR Alliance. e-MDs was identified through The EHR Selection Project as an endorsed vendor to Alaska healthcare providers looking to incorporate an EHR in their clinical practice.

26 Apr 2010

General Dynamics Information Technology awarded task order to support HHS' CMS

General Dynamics Information Technology's VIPS business sector, a business unit of General Dynamics, has been awarded a task order to support the Department of Health and Human Services' Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

26 Apr 2010

HHS Secretary and New Orleans Mayor-elect to tour St. Thomas Community Health Center

On Monday, April 26, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and New Orleans Mayor-elect Mitch Landrieu will visit the St. Thomas Community Health Center in New Orleans, Louisiana.

26 Apr 2010

Health care law's ability to control costs will be closely watched

The Associated Press/ABC news explore the question of how of cost containment under the new health law: "What's it going to cost me? That's the single biggest unanswered question about President Barack Obama's new health care overhaul law — and its weak spot. Many experts believe the law falls short on taming costs, and that will force Congress to revisit health care in a few years. … For now, the political parties are too polarized — and lawmakers too exhausted — to contemplate health care 2.0.

26 Apr 2010

WellPoint responds to HHS letter on singling out women with breast cancer for rescission

I was disappointed to read your letter regarding the media report published in Reuters yesterday as well as your assertion that WellPoint "deliberately works to deny coverage for women diagnosed with breast cancer." Both your statement and Mr. Waas' piece are inaccurate and grossly misrepresent WellPoint's efforts to help prevent, detect, and treat the 1 in 8 of our 34 million members nationwide affected by breast cancer.

24 Apr 2010

HeartWare International presents clinical trial data of Ventricular Assist System at ISHLT annual meeting

HeartWare International, Inc., a leading innovator of less invasive, miniaturized circulatory support technologies revolutionizing the treatment of advanced heart failure, today announced that data from its international clinical trial and commercial experience of the HeartWare® Ventricular Assist System showed a survival rate of 90 percent at six months and an actuarial survival rate of 86 percent at 12 months post implant.

24 Apr 2010

Animal studies demonstrate safety profile of ACT's RPE cell therapy for SMD

Advanced Cell Technology, Inc. announced today that it has completed key animal studies in connection with its Phase I multicenter study using embryonic stem cell derived Retinal Pigment Epithelium (RPE) cells to treat patients with Stargardt's Macular Dystrophy (SMD), for which it filed an Investigational New Drug Application (IND) with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in November. The studies demonstrated an excellent safety profile with no safety signals such as tumors or ectopic tissues.

24 Apr 2010

Health and Human Services News and Research

Astrazeneca settles drug marketing lawsuit, plea deal rejected for possibly defective heart device maker

State regulators say insurance industry should easily meet medical-loss requirement

Experts discuss recent advancements in personalized medicine for treating childhood disorders

HHS Secretary's statement on WellPoint's announcement to end practice of rescissions

ECRI Institute's recommendations for controlling CT radiation dose

Investigators study Pioglitazone and Vitamin E for treatment of NASH

Coronary artery calcium score helpful for determining intermediate risk of heart disease

DARA Therapeutics collaborates to advance clinical study of KRN5500 for CIPN in cancer patients

Gangs increasingly involved in Medicare fraud

Ranibizumab eye injections plus laser therapy result in dramatic visual improvement

As health reform's specifics continue to emerge, so do questions and answers from stakeholders

Costs, effects on business questioned as health overhaul analysis continues

Wellcare faces allegations about director's resignation; Wellpoint confronts reports regarding breast cancer recissions

e-MDs selected as one of two recommended EHR vendors by AEHRA

General Dynamics Information Technology awarded task order to support HHS' CMS

HHS Secretary and New Orleans Mayor-elect to tour St. Thomas Community Health Center

Health care law's ability to control costs will be closely watched

WellPoint responds to HHS letter on singling out women with breast cancer for rescission

HeartWare International presents clinical trial data of Ventricular Assist System at ISHLT annual meeting

Animal studies demonstrate safety profile of ACT's RPE cell therapy for SMD

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