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Now campaigning, Obama to ask voters to give health law a chance

Meanwhile, The Hill reports that health lobbying has dropped off compared to the level a year ago when Congress was in the midst of the health reform debate.

22 Apr 2011

Politics swirl around plans for Medicare's future, the deficit

At home in their districts, Republicans are taking positions — and heat — on the Ryan budget plan, which would make significant changes to the Medicare program. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama is taking his message — and his budget framework — on the road.

22 Apr 2011

Research roundup: New hips, Medicare & hospital stays; Medicaid update

JAMA: Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Medicare Patients Undergoing Total Hip Arthroplasty, 1991-2008 - "Total hip arthroplasty is a common surgical procedure but little is known about longitudinal trends," according to this study which found that "Between 1991 and 2008, the mean age for patients undergoing primary total hip arthroplasty increased from 74.1 to 75.1 years and for revision total hip arthroplasty from 75.8 to 77.3 years (P < .001)."

22 Apr 2011

First Edition: April 22, 2011

Today's headlines include a variety of reports about the political reactions to the Democratic and Republican deficit proposals as well as plans for Medicare.

22 Apr 2011

Ochsner, Take Care Health announce new relationship

Take Care Health Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Walgreens, and Ochsner Health System today announced a new relationship which will increase opportunities for clinical collaboration and improve patient access to high-quality, convenient and affordable health care options in the greater New Orleans region.

22 Apr 2011

Obama administration urges new graduates to understand their health insurance options

Administration officials sent letters to college and university presidents and student body leaders reminding them to communicate to students about how, because of changes resulting from the health overhaul, they can remain on a parent's plan until age 26. In other health reform news, President Obama says that he is flexible on health reform, and the AP reports on how the absence of one Supreme Court justice on certain legal questions has been "no big deal."

22 Apr 2011

Health Partners earns NCQA accreditation for high quality care

Health Partners announced today that it is the first health plan in the nation to receive the new, "Multicultural Health Care Distinction" from the National Committee for Quality Assurance, the nation's most trusted independent source for health care quality accreditation.

22 Apr 2011

Viewpoints: Medicare cuts & partisan politics; Colorado health exchange; NEJM on family planning

The debate over Paul Ryan's Medicare reform ideas has largely been healthy, even amid the liberal distortions. But why has there been so little scrutiny of President Obama's new Medicare proposal? Anyone worrying about more individual choice and responsibility in health care might be interested to learn that the alternative is turning every one of these decisions over to a 15-member central committee.

22 Apr 2011

Roundup: Idaho Gov.'s exchange/health law decision; Calif. exchange board meets; Iowa mental health plan

Republican Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter is no fan of the health care reform -- he was the first governor to sign legislation requiring his state to sue over President Obama's overhaul -- but said the bill state lawmakers passed in the 2011 session would have required Idaho to forego the creation of a state health insurance exchange.

22 Apr 2011

Roundup: Abortion opponents weigh strategy; Supreme Court reinstates case involving deaths at Va. hospitals

Republican legislatures across the country are passing tough new anti-abortion laws — and while abortion rights advocates believe the new laws are unconstitutional, they're not rushing to court to stop them. The reason: There's a decent chance they'd lose (Kliff, 4/20).

21 Apr 2011

Nursing home industry worried about health law mandates; Cuts to Medicare, Medicaid

During a roundtable meeting with reporters, Mark Parkinson, president of the American Health Care Association, detailed the concerns of nursing homes.

21 Apr 2011

House GOP seeks details from advocacy groups regarding health reform 'meetings and discussions'

Continuing their assault on the health care law, House Republicans Monday formally requested top advocacy groups detail their interactions with the Obama Administration during the congressional health care negotiations.

21 Apr 2011

Some states struggling with efforts to establish insurance exchanges

House Majority Leader Amy Stephens, who may hold the future of Colorado's health exchange in her hands, predicted Tuesday that Colorado lawmakers ultimately will support the online health insurance marketplace and said her coalition is not fractured.

21 Apr 2011

New poll show Americans oppose cuts to Medicare, Medicaid

Though concerns continue to mount regarding the nation's fiscal problems, a new poll finds most Americans would prefer to keep Medicare just as it is.

21 Apr 2011

NAMI joins with HealthPartners to reduce stigma of mental illnesses

NAMI Minnesota and HealthPartners are joining together in a campaign to address the stigma of mental illnesses.

21 Apr 2011

Viewpoints: Would Ryan plan save or 'assault' Medicare?; Controversial Kansas abortion law

Congressional Budget Office chief Doug Elmendorf dropped a bombshell on his Director's Blog this morning: federal spending on all health care programs will exceed $1 trillion this year. But when he turned to spelling out options for trimming that figure in the years ahead, he offered a limited and not very satisfying menu of choices, all of which involved doing less or charging people more.

21 Apr 2011

ALI-ABA's new practical book on Navigating Health Care Reform

The American Law Institute-American Bar Association (ALI-ABA), the first national provider of Continuing Legal Education (CLE) and the industry leader in professional development for over 60 years, today announced that Navigating Health Care Reform: A Practical, Affordable Guide is now available.

20 Apr 2011

Viewpoints: On debt, Medicaid, Medicare and the budget; planned parenthood; one couple's insurance rates

Sen. Marco Rubio said he wouldn't vote for an increase unless it included "a plan for fundamental tax reform, an overhaul of our regulatory structure, a cut to discretionary spending, a balanced-budget amendment, and reforms to save Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid" — everything on the conservative agenda, basically.

20 Apr 2011

First Edition: April 19, 2011

Today's headlines include a report about new guidelines that will allow an earlier definition of Alzeheimer's and associated legislation that would make key, related changes in Medicare cost codes.

19 Apr 2011

Ryan, Obama deficit plans continue to generate OpEd heat on Medicare, Medicaid provisions

Mr. Ryan called the vote "our generation's defining moment," and indeed, nothing could more clearly define the choice that will face voters next year. His bill would end the guarantee provided by Medicare and Medicaid to the elderly and the poor, which has been provided by the federal government with society's clear assent since 1965.

19 Apr 2011

Health Insurance News and Research

Now campaigning, Obama to ask voters to give health law a chance

Politics swirl around plans for Medicare's future, the deficit

Research roundup: New hips, Medicare & hospital stays; Medicaid update

First Edition: April 22, 2011

Ochsner, Take Care Health announce new relationship

Obama administration urges new graduates to understand their health insurance options

Health Partners earns NCQA accreditation for high quality care

Viewpoints: Medicare cuts & partisan politics; Colorado health exchange; NEJM on family planning

Roundup: Idaho Gov.'s exchange/health law decision; Calif. exchange board meets; Iowa mental health plan

Roundup: Abortion opponents weigh strategy; Supreme Court reinstates case involving deaths at Va. hospitals

Nursing home industry worried about health law mandates; Cuts to Medicare, Medicaid

House GOP seeks details from advocacy groups regarding health reform 'meetings and discussions'

Some states struggling with efforts to establish insurance exchanges

New poll show Americans oppose cuts to Medicare, Medicaid

NAMI joins with HealthPartners to reduce stigma of mental illnesses

Viewpoints: Would Ryan plan save or 'assault' Medicare?; Controversial Kansas abortion law

ALI-ABA's new practical book on Navigating Health Care Reform

Viewpoints: On debt, Medicaid, Medicare and the budget; planned parenthood; one couple's insurance rates

First Edition: April 19, 2011

Ryan, Obama deficit plans continue to generate OpEd heat on Medicare, Medicaid provisions

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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