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Regardless of outcome, high court health law decision will be landmark ruling

As Barack Obama battled Hillary Rodham Clinton over health care during the Democratic presidential primaries of 2008, he was adamant about one thing: Americans, he insisted, should not be required to buy health insurance. … Now President Obama may wish he had stuck to those words. On Monday, the Supreme Court agreed to take up a constitutional challenge to his landmark health care bill, and a decision could come in the midst of Mr. Obama's 2012 re-election campaign.

17 Nov 2011

Mass. and Calif. insurers, health systems facing off

Tufts Medical Center and its doctors group say they will stop doing business with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts on Jan. 17 because the two sides can't agree on a new contract. The move could force tens of thousands of Blue Cross members to change doctors and compel employers across Massachusetts to consider switching to another insurer.

17 Nov 2011

Premiums for employer-sponsored family health insurance increase by 50% from 2003 to 2010

Premiums for employer-sponsored family health insurance increased by 50 percent from 2003 to 2010, and the annual amount that employees pay toward their insurance increased by 63 percent as businesses required employees to contribute a greater share, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report that examines state trends in health insurance costs.

17 Nov 2011

Viewpoints: The Supreme Court and the health law; Romney's plan for care for vets

The new mandate to buy health insurance has now reached the Supreme Court, which agreed on Monday to judge its constitutionality. The crux of the constitutional complaint against the mandate is that Congress's ability to regulate commerce has never been understood to give it the power to force Americans to buy insurance, or anything else. But not only is there a precedent for this, there is also clear support for it in the Constitution.

17 Nov 2011

Mycophenolate mofetil superior to azathioprine for lupus nephritis

A new large, international study finds that the immunosuppressant drug mycophenolate mofetil is superior to azathioprine, an older immunosuppressant, as a maintenance therapy for lupus nephritis.

17 Nov 2011

GOP hopefuls tied in Iowa poll

Fifty-eight percent of that poll's respondents said they would "rule out" a candidate who has favored a mandate to buy health insurance. In other news, a separate poll found 47 percent of Americans would support doing away with the health law. Meanwhile, protestors make their opinions known to Herman Cain and Mitt Romney.

17 Nov 2011

State roundup: Colorado uninsured/underinsured rate skyrockets; Georgia personhood resolution brewing

The Colorado Health Access Survey, a new report from The Colorado Trust and the Colorado Health Institute, has found that more than 1.5 million Coloradans – or nearly one in three residents – either have no health insurance or are underinsured, meaning they spend more than 10 percent of their income on out-of-pocket medical expenses. Just since the last survey two years ago, the percentage of employers offering health insurance has dropped to 57.8 percent this year from 63.7.

16 Nov 2011

Grants up to $30 million for those with innovative ideas for healthcare

The Obama administration on Monday announced a $1 billion federal fund allocation for last year's health reform law to be channeled toward innovation programs designed to boost jobs and improve patient care.

16 Nov 2011

Cholesterol drugs clash head on

Major cholesterol lowering drugs are being pitched against each other. The cheaper ones are more likely to win say experts.

16 Nov 2011

White House continues to push health care policies, sidestepping Congress

Using executive branch powers, the Obama administration has laid out new steps to cut fraud in Medicare and Medicaid, and announced that $1 billion of federal funding will go toward innovation programs designed to boost jobs and improve patient care. The president also offered comment on the super committee's progress.

16 Nov 2011

States seeking waivers, moving ahead on health reform implementation

The court could upend the national health law if the justices decide the mandate is unconstitutional. Yet, planning for full implementation of the law in Massachusetts is moving "full steam ahead," said Glen Shor, executive director of the Massachusetts Health Connector, the agency that runs the state's health insurance exchange. ... Lawmakers in Colorado, for example, created the infrastructure needed to set up the state's health insurance exchange earlier this year.

16 Nov 2011

GOP presidential candidates assail possible tax changes in deficit deal

As members of the super committee race against the clock in their quest for a plan to reduce the deficit, some of the Republicans running for president criticize efforts that would raise taxes.

16 Nov 2011

What will be at stake when the Supreme Court offers a decision?

President Barack Obama is so confident of the constitutionality of his signature Affordable Care Act - and so happy to cast Mitt Romney as his human shield against its Republican critics - that he did little to stop the Supreme Court from fast-tracking a ruling on the law now likely to come in the middle of the 2012 campaign.

16 Nov 2011

High court to hear health care challenge as presidential campaign heats up

The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a challenge to the 2010 health care overhaul law, President Obama's signature legislative achievement, setting the stage for oral arguments by March and a decision in late June as the 2012 presidential campaign enters its crucial final months.

16 Nov 2011

Viewpoints: Questions of partisanship and timing could complicate Supreme Court's decision on health law

The Supreme Court's decision to review the constitutionality of health care reform means it will be issuing a ruling in the middle of the 2012 presidential campaign. This can be a highly politicized court, and, for the public good and its own credibility, it must resist that impulse.

16 Nov 2011

Implementation news: ACO ancillary service industry booms; New poll finds spike in support for mandate

Modern Healthcare reports on the many companies that are lining up to play a role in the services, marketing and other related ventures to support accountable care organizations. Meanwhile, Politico Pro reports on a poll released Monday that shows support for the health law's individual mandate is growing.

16 Nov 2011

State roundup: Calif. high deductibles spark lawsuit; New Ark. Medicaid Chief; Adult day care resolution soon?

For the second time in eight months, California health insurer Anthem Blue Cross is being sued over allegations that it has breached contracts with individual policyholders for hiking annual insurance deductibles in the middle of the year. The latest lawsuit, filed Monday by the group Consumer Watchdog, says that California's largest for-profit health insurance company used "bait and switch" tactics to raise deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs for some customers May 1.

16 Nov 2011

Eliminating drug co-pays improves medication adherence in heart attack patients

The use of specific medications following a heart attack has been shown to reduce cardiovascular events and mortality, however; while highly effective, the rate of adherence to these medications is poor. Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) evaluated whether eliminating co-payments for these medications would increase adherence and improve outcomes in patients who have had a heart attack.

15 Nov 2011

Supreme Court could announce today its plans for the health law

After a year and a half of legal skirmishing, President Obama's embattled health care law has arrived at the Supreme Court riding a surprising winning streak and carrying a constitutional stamp of approval from prominent conservative judges. … The Supreme Court is expected to announce as soon as Monday that it will hear the Florida case, the largest and broadest challenge to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

15 Nov 2011

Survey of health opinion leaders finds 'unflagging' health overhaul support

In this survey, conducted by the Commonwealth Fund and Modern Healthcare, 89 percent of respondents supported moving forward with the measure's implementation. In related news, the National Committee for Quality Assurance plans this month to begin accrediting accountable care organizations. Meanwhile, in local coverage, North Carolina's health exchange grant remains unspent and a rural California county has its own health reform calculus.

15 Nov 2011