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Legislation to repeal health law's 1099 reporting requirement would cut premium tax credits

The Republican majority in the House, with President Obama's support, plans to scale back health care subsidies for the uninsured in order to pay for eliminating the "burdensome" requirement that small businesses file 1099 forms with the Internal Revenue Service when contractors are paid over $600.

18 Feb 2011

Obama Administration acts on waivers, awards exchange innovation grants

The Obama administration Wednesday granted waivers to four states to allow health insurance companies located within them to continue offering less generous health benefits. Meanwhile, $241 million in grants were awarded to help states set up online shopping systems for the purchase of health insurance.

18 Feb 2011

State roundup: Gov't workers face benefit changes; worry over social service cuts

For many states, 2011 is the most trying budget year of a fiscal crisis now in its fourth year. Revenues generally remain lower than what they used to be; widespread joblessness is putting unprecedented strains on safety-net programs like Medicaid; and all this is happening as federal stimulus money runs out.

18 Feb 2011

Massachusetts Gov. to unveil plan to curb health costs via payment reforms

Gov. Deval Patrick's legislation is designed to reduce health care costs by paying doctors and hospitals in lump sums for overall patient care rather than on a procedure-by-procedure basis. In addition, bonuses would be linked to patient outcomes.

18 Feb 2011

Viewpoints: Arizona's waiver; next gen's 'different' Medicare?; individual mandate's constitutionality

There may be no federal obstacles to cutting 250,000 people out of AHCCCS, part of Gov. Jan Brewer's budget proposal. But there are compelling reasons to avoid such a drastic step if at all possible. And it's possible.

17 Feb 2011

Health law, budget plans examined, defended during Capitol Hill hearings

Across the Hill, oversight hearings were held to review specific provisions of the new health law and related waivers. In addition, administration officials took questions about some specifics within the president's budget blueprint. And the House Judiciary Committee approved a medical malpractice reform bill.

17 Feb 2011

Massachusetts receives $35.6 million HHS grant to develop online health care exchanges

The University of Massachusetts Medical School, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services and the Massachusetts Connector Authority have received a $35.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to develop an online "health care exchange," a resource through which consumers and small business owners can efficiently shop for health insurance plans.

17 Feb 2011

Spectranetics fourth quarter revenues decrease 1% to $29.3 million

Spectranetics Corporation today reported financial results for the quarter and full year ended December 31, 2010.

17 Feb 2011

CHIS releases latest data on health and well-being of state's residents

The California Health Interview Survey, the nation's largest state health survey and a primary source of information on California's diverse population, released its latest data today on more than 100 topics affecting the health and well-being of the state's residents.

17 Feb 2011

HHS to announce health exchange 'early innovator' grants to 7 states

The grants, which are to be used to set up the framework for the health law's state insurance exchanges, will reportedly go to Kansas, Maryland, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Wisconsin and a consortium led by Massachusetts.

17 Feb 2011

Viewpoints: NY Times on high-risk pools; GOP on Medicaid 'flexibility;' health workers' rights

As part of the new health care reform, the federal government and 27 state governments are establishing temporary high-risk pools to offer coverage for people with pre-existing conditions until the law takes full effect in 2014.

17 Feb 2011

Roundup: Calif. kids' care; high Mass. health workers' costs; Iowa nursing home inspectors

The push is on to enroll thousands of children who previously could not get health coverage or whose parents paid much higher premiums because of their children's pre-existing medical conditions. Under new federal rules that took effect last fall, children with chronic health conditions cannot be denied coverage.

17 Feb 2011

New research: Children of working mothers more likely to experience health problems

Children of working mothers are significantly more likely to experience health problems, including asthma and accidents, than children of mothers who don't work, according to new research from North Carolina State University.

16 Feb 2011

Two-thirds of California's 7 million uninsured will gain coverage under health reform

Up to two-thirds of California's 7 million uninsured residents will become eligible for health insurance coverage when health care reform is implemented in 2014, according to a new policy brief from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

16 Feb 2011

GOP point of interest: Selling insurance across state lines

Republicans have introduced legislation to allow consumers to buy health insurance beyond their state borders. Meanwhile, Stateline explores how the health law might impact the job security of brokers.

16 Feb 2011

Roundup: States grapple with high health costs, Medicaid squeeze

Gov. Scott Walker's budget repair bill would give his administration sweeping powers to reshape state health programs covering more than 1 million state residents. Under the bill, the administration's rewrite of the Medicaid program would be reviewed only by the Legislature's budget committee, which has a broader margin of control for majority Republican lawmakers than any other legislative committee.

16 Feb 2011

Veterans organizations urge Administration and Congress to invest $65.3B to meet veterans health-care, benefits

Four of the nation's leading veterans service organizations are urging the Administration and Congress to invest $65.3 billion to sufficiently meet veterans health-care and veterans benefits needs. For the Department of Veterans Affairs, the administration has proposed $61.9 billion in discretionary spending for fiscal year 2012. The budget proposal now goes to Congress for consideration.

15 Feb 2011

AP: Crooks find Medicare Part D an easy target

Crooks are taking advantage of lax oversight in Medicare's Part D prescription drug program to obtain highly addictive drugs including oxycodone, Ritalin, and methadone, according to results of a federal probe.

14 Feb 2011

Bohai second quarter net revenues increase 32% to $22.2 million

Bohai Pharmaceuticals Group, Inc., a China-based pharmaceutical company engaged in the production, manufacturing and distribution of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in China, today reported record financial results for its second quarter of fiscal 2011 ended December 31, 2010.

14 Feb 2011

Free, confidential home-kit testing for sexually transmitted infections effective with young people

Infectious disease experts at Johns Hopkins say new research clearly shows that screening teens and young adults for sexually transmitted infections may best be achieved by making free, confidential home-kit testing available over the Internet. From a public health standpoint, the project is a clear winner, the experts say.

14 Feb 2011

Health Insurance News and Research

Legislation to repeal health law's 1099 reporting requirement would cut premium tax credits

Obama Administration acts on waivers, awards exchange innovation grants

State roundup: Gov't workers face benefit changes; worry over social service cuts

Massachusetts Gov. to unveil plan to curb health costs via payment reforms

Viewpoints: Arizona's waiver; next gen's 'different' Medicare?; individual mandate's constitutionality

Health law, budget plans examined, defended during Capitol Hill hearings

Massachusetts receives $35.6 million HHS grant to develop online health care exchanges

Spectranetics fourth quarter revenues decrease 1% to $29.3 million

CHIS releases latest data on health and well-being of state's residents

HHS to announce health exchange 'early innovator' grants to 7 states

Viewpoints: NY Times on high-risk pools; GOP on Medicaid 'flexibility;' health workers' rights

Roundup: Calif. kids' care; high Mass. health workers' costs; Iowa nursing home inspectors

New research: Children of working mothers more likely to experience health problems

Two-thirds of California's 7 million uninsured will gain coverage under health reform

GOP point of interest: Selling insurance across state lines

Roundup: States grapple with high health costs, Medicaid squeeze

Veterans organizations urge Administration and Congress to invest $65.3B to meet veterans health-care, benefits

AP: Crooks find Medicare Part D an easy target

Bohai second quarter net revenues increase 32% to $22.2 million

Free, confidential home-kit testing for sexually transmitted infections effective with young people

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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