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HHS Secretary tours Alaska health care facilities; judge halts rollback of Ariz. same-sex benefits

Alaska has a message for HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius: Don't assume that health care delivery reform can work the same way in every state. That's the lesson Sen. Mark Begich says he tried to impart to Sebelius as he toured some of the state's health and early child care centers with her last week. Sebelius went to learn first-hand about the state's health services, the Indian Health Service, and how the health law is being implemented.

8 Sep 2011

Mass. has fewest uninsured, Texas has the most, says poll

Texas residents are the least likely to have health-insurance coverage, while those in Massachusetts are by far the best-covered, according to a Gallup poll published on Tuesday. There are few surprises in the latest Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, which finds on average 16.8 percent of U.S. adults went without any kind of health insurance in the first half of 2011, virtually the same as the year before but up from 14.8 percent in 2008.

8 Sep 2011

Back-up plans for the individual mandate?

"What happens if the health law's individual mandate - the provision that requires almost all Americans to obtain health insurance or face a penalty - is overturned by the Supreme Court?"

8 Sep 2011

Health law supporters press Obama administration

Advocates of the law seek a change to the subsidy provision and some fear that the administration is too eager to compromise with business.

8 Sep 2011

Access to health insurance top indicator for better outcomes among undocumented children

Undocumented children who have access to health insurance are healthier and more engaged in school than those without insurance, according to researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.

8 Sep 2011

Aternity FPI Platform selected for Centene's strategic end user experience management initiatives

Aternity Inc., the industry's technology leader in end user experience management solutions for Global 1000 enterprises, announced today that Centene Corporation, a Fortune 500 company and leading multi-line healthcare enterprise that provides programs and related services to the rising number of under-insured and uninsured individuals, has selected the Aternity Frontline Performance Intelligence (FPI) Platform for its strategic end user experience management initiatives.

7 Sep 2011

First Edition: September 7, 2011

"Publicly, consumer and patient advocates continue to cheer wildly for last year's health care law. Behind the scenes, however, some worry that they are losing a few key battles to the insurance and business communities.

7 Sep 2011

Business leaders concerned about economic impact of health law

To many Republicans and business leaders, there's little doubt: The health care law and sweeping new Wall Street regulation - two of President Obama's signature legislative victories - are causing uncertainty and killing jobs. Take, for example, a massive public relations campaign organized by House Republican leaders.

7 Sep 2011

Ohio man dies from tooth infection after he couldn't afford medicine

A 24-year-old Cincinnati father died from a tooth infection this week because he couldn't afford his medication, offering a sobering reminder of the importance of oral health and the number of people without access to dental or health care. According to NBC affiliate WLWT, Kyle Willis' wisdom tooth started hurting two weeks ago. When dentists told him it needed to be pulled, he decided to forgo the procedure, because he was unemployed and had no health insurance.

7 Sep 2011

DOJ investigates Miss. mental health care; N.H. pharmacists win permission to vaccinate

The Justice Department is now investigating Mississippi's mental health system, seeking to determine whether those suffering from mental illness are receiving appropriate treatment. Justice Department officials are expected to return to the Magnolia State later this month, and it's a safe bet they will make similar recommendations against Mississippi as they have against Virginia and other states, said Region 8 Executive Director Dave Van.

7 Sep 2011

Anthem proposes double-digit rate increase in Conn.; Mass. bill would cut payments to high-cost providers

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Connecticut's largest health insurer and a favorite target of advocates for more stringent regulation of rate increases, is seeking to raise premiums by 12.9 percent next year for more than 45,000 individual-market customers, including some whose plans were the subject of a controversial request that got denied last year.

7 Sep 2011

Viewpoints: Analyzing Texas' health insurance record; advice for 'super' committee; one doc's cancer experience

Targeting waste, fraud and abuse; eliminating unnecessary and duplicative spending; and ending military adventurism need not be accompanied by slashing essential services such as education and shredding our social safety nets - Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

7 Sep 2011

New head louse treatment shows promise

The common head louse has been seen to be resistant to time-tested treatments. However a new Food and Drug Administration-approved hair rinse, Natroba, could put an end to that.

6 Sep 2011

Youth immunization rates encouraging: CDC report

According to a survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) out Monday, more and more American adolescents are receiving recommended vaccines.

6 Sep 2011

For 3 key GOP candidates, health care efforts show wide spectrum

The three most prominent current or former governors running for president - Rick Perry, Mitt Romney and Jon M. Huntsman Jr. - are firmly united in their commitment to repealing President Obama's health care law. But that unanimity masks a broad divergence in their approaches to the issue while in office, spanning the spectrum of Republican positioning.

5 Sep 2011

New rules require insurers to justify rate increases over 10%

Federal rules mandate that companies explain the hikes and submit them to regulators. Also, HHS announced that association health plans must meet the same rate scrutiny as other types of insurance.

3 Sep 2011

Options for 'super committee' could include IPAB, Tricare, nothing at all

Rep. Phil Roe said Thursday that the deficit-cutting super committee should repeal one of the healthcare reform law's chief cost-control measures. Roe is a leading opponent of the Independent Payments Advisory Board (IPAB), a 15-member board with the power to cut Medicare payments almost unilaterally. .

3 Sep 2011

Businesses working hard to disgest health law changes

Health care reform has put some businesses that provide health insurance-related services into marketing and education overdrive. Health care benefits brokers, law firms and insurance carriers are among the chief entities digesting legislative rules to help employers track health insurance-related changes that impact costs.

3 Sep 2011

State roundup: Texas disability fight; rights of fetus asserted in Neb.

For Milla Powell, a 12-year-old from Austin with cerebral palsy, the little things make all the difference. Massage therapy to ease her tightened muscles. Recreational programs, in which therapists take her into the community to help her build her social skills. Music therapy to help Milla, who cannot speak, connect without words. But services like these are on the chopping block for thousands of Texans with disabilities - another casualty of the significant budget cuts that state lawmakers passed in May.

3 Sep 2011