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Budget talks continue; options to reduce entitlement program spending gain traction

A report from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission bolstered some of the options to squeeze billions in savings from Medicare — options currently under consideration in the budget negotiations being led by Vice President Joe Biden. In addition, the Wall Street Journal reports the Medicaid is facing significant cuts in the emerging budget deal.

17 Jun 2011

Lawmakers clash over franked mail that criticized House GOP plan for Medicare

Some Democratic House members who have had constituent mailings held up because of proposed GOP revisions to soften the message are accusing the Republican majority of censoring their mail. GOP leaders counter that the Dems are abusing their franked mail privileges to send out political attacks on the Ryan plan to revamp Medicare.

17 Jun 2011

AHRQ finds more rural emergency department visits among low-income adults

Low-income adults ages 18 to 64 accounted for 56 percent of the 8 million visits made to rural hospital emergency departments in 2008, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

17 Jun 2011

Viewpoints: Medicare eligibility age; Medicare 'scares'; questions about Fla. Medicaid managed care

The bottom line is that we probably need to start raising Medicare's eligibility age incrementally, given today's life-expectancy realities. But it is not going to be the silver bullet that saves Medicare.

17 Jun 2011

Roundup: Few states raise taxes to ease budgets; Ala. Gov. signs abortion law; Texas House advances bill to turn Medicaid, Medicare into block grants

As 2011 began, the budget situation in state capitals looked more dire than just about anybody could remember. ... With Medicaid, the states had their hands tied. The new federal health care law prohibits states from cutting eligibility or making it harder for people to apply for coverage. So states had to find other ways to control costs. Idaho reduced the amount paid to hospitals and doctors to treat Medicaid patients, an idea that some 30 governors proposed this year.

17 Jun 2011

Ankota introduces TherapEZ web-based, mobile tablet-based solution for home health therapy agencies

Ankota, the developer of the first Healthcare Delivery Management (HDM) solutions, introduced today its TherapEZ software as a solution for streamlining many of the operational issues faced by home health therapy agencies as they seek to provide services for patients at home and to coordinate care with home health agencies.

16 Jun 2011

First Edition: June 16, 2011

In today's headlines, reports about the prospect for Medicaid cutbacks in an emerging bipartisan budget deal, as well as how a report from a Medicare advisory panel may bolster Medicare options currently on the table.

16 Jun 2011

CBO portends 'heavy lifting' to avert Medicare doc pay reduction

The report offers cost estimates for a range of approaches that would head off a 29.4 percent reduction in Medicare physician payments scheduled to kick in Jan. 1, 2012. Meanwhile, in other news, a plan to curb the overuse of costly medical imaging demonstrates the difficulties posed by attempting even small changes in the health insurance program for seniors.

16 Jun 2011

Theorem Clinical Research receives contract to conduct Nordion's TheraSphere Phase III trials

Nordion Inc., a leading provider of products and services to the global health science market, today announced that Theorem Clinical Research, previously Omnicare Clinical Research, a full service Contract Research Organization has been awarded the contract to conduct Nordion's recently announced TheraSphere Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of primary and metastatic liver cancers - STOP-HCC and EPOCH.

16 Jun 2011

Budget woes lead GOP governors to push feds to relax Medicaid rules

President Barack Obama has the power to relax rules, which would allow cash-strapped governors more flexibility in spending Medicaid dollars, including allowing them to tighten eligibility requirements. But allowing such changes would outrage many of the president's core supporters and be at odds with the health law's goal of expanding coverage.

16 Jun 2011

Phosphate regulating hormone associated with increased risk of kidney failure and death among CKD patients

A high level of a hormone that regulates phosphate is associated with an increased risk of kidney failure and death among chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients, according to a recent study led by researchers at the University of Miami and funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Diseases and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health.

16 Jun 2011

UC Irvine researchers discover top six risk factors for weight loss surgery

University of California at Irvine (UC Irvine) researchers reviewed data from more than 100,000 bariatric surgery patients and discovered the top six risk factors that could help doctors and patients predict, evaluate, reduce or avoid in-hospital mortality after weight loss surgery.

16 Jun 2011

Senate Dems signal hard line on Medicare in budget talks

Although Vice President Joe Biden offered an optimistic assessment of progress in the budget talks that he has been leading, Senate Democratic leadership reiterated yesterday that Medicare cuts should not be on the table during these negotiations.

16 Jun 2011

State roundup: Mass. health spending's rise; huge Ky. hospital merger

A new report from the state Division of Health Care Finance and Policy shows that: ... "Spending per member on privately insured people grew 6 percent from 2007 to 2008 and another 10 percent from 2008 to 2009. This rate of growth was substantially higher than the increase in national personal health care expenditures per capita of 4.6 percent from 2008 to 2009. Spending by private payers also grew faster than spending by public payers".

16 Jun 2011

Viewpoints: Hiaasen on 'insane' insurance; residential facilities' budget nightmares; safety at VA hospitals

If Obama's healthcare plan is struck down in court, lots of politicians will celebrate it as a victory over big government. The dubious reward for taxpayers will be to continue footing the medical bills for 50 million uninsured Americans, and watching the dangerous deficit swell.

16 Jun 2011

First Edition: June 15, 2011

Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including a report that GOP governors are pushing back against federal Medicaid rules.

15 Jun 2011

Studies examine surgery survival odds, hospital readmission risks

News outlets report on a pair of studies related to Medicare populations. The first concludes that the odds for a Medicare patient surviving a complex surgery are improving. Meanwhile, a second study found that better informed patients have lower costs, do better managing their medications and can slow the rate of readmissions.

15 Jun 2011

Rotech commences $283.5 million registered exchange offer

Rotech Healthcare Inc., one of the largest providers of home medical equipment and related products and services, announced today that it has commenced a registered exchange offer to exchange up to $283.5 million aggregate principal amount of its Senior Second Lien Notes due 2018 which have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended for an equal principal amount of its outstanding Senior Second Lien Notes due 2018, which were issued in a private placement.

15 Jun 2011

Regulators remove restrictions on Aetna's Medicare sales

The sanctions had blocked Aetna Inc. from marketing Medicare plans and enrolling new beneficiaries. Now that they have been lifted, Aetna has indicated it will again promote its Medicare Advantage offerings.

15 Jun 2011

GOP presidential candidates touch on the health overhaul, Medicare plans in first major meeting of 2012 contest

The spotlight was trained squarely on Mitt Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts, who has come under withering attack for the health care plan he signed into law that resembles the plan Mr. Obama pushed through Congress. But his rivals treaded lightly, and he relentlessly turned the conversation back to Mr. Obama, emerging unscathed from his return to the debate stage four years after losing his first bid for the party's nomination.

15 Jun 2011

Medicare News and Research

Budget talks continue; options to reduce entitlement program spending gain traction

Lawmakers clash over franked mail that criticized House GOP plan for Medicare

AHRQ finds more rural emergency department visits among low-income adults

Viewpoints: Medicare eligibility age; Medicare 'scares'; questions about Fla. Medicaid managed care

Roundup: Few states raise taxes to ease budgets; Ala. Gov. signs abortion law; Texas House advances bill to turn Medicaid, Medicare into block grants

Ankota introduces TherapEZ web-based, mobile tablet-based solution for home health therapy agencies

First Edition: June 16, 2011

CBO portends 'heavy lifting' to avert Medicare doc pay reduction

Theorem Clinical Research receives contract to conduct Nordion's TheraSphere Phase III trials

Budget woes lead GOP governors to push feds to relax Medicaid rules

Phosphate regulating hormone associated with increased risk of kidney failure and death among CKD patients

UC Irvine researchers discover top six risk factors for weight loss surgery

Senate Dems signal hard line on Medicare in budget talks

State roundup: Mass. health spending's rise; huge Ky. hospital merger

Viewpoints: Hiaasen on 'insane' insurance; residential facilities' budget nightmares; safety at VA hospitals

First Edition: June 15, 2011

Studies examine surgery survival odds, hospital readmission risks

Rotech commences $283.5 million registered exchange offer

Regulators remove restrictions on Aetna's Medicare sales

GOP presidential candidates touch on the health overhaul, Medicare plans in first major meeting of 2012 contest

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