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Mental health, substance abuse spending grew more slowly than all other health spending: Study

Spending on psychiatric drugs grew by 5.6 percent from 2004 to 2005, down from the 27.3 percent growth from 1999 to 2000 according to a study published today in the February issue of Health Affairs.

5 Feb 2011

BCBSIL, IHA partner to reduce Illinois hospital readmissions through PREP initiative

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois and the Illinois Hospital Association are joining forces to reduce Illinois hospital readmissions through a new quality initiative—Preventing Readmissions through Effective Partnerships.

5 Feb 2011

Viewpoints: Judge Vinson's decision and Sarah Palin, Voting Rights Act; States' Medicaid 'burden;' Global fund controversy

With news coverage focused on Federal District Judge Roger Vinson's decision Monday to declare the health care reform law unconstitutional, it might be easy to miss this week's news from another federal courthouse: opponents of the Voting Rights Act have renewed their efforts to have that law declared unconstitutional, too.

5 Feb 2011

Tenet signs multi-year agreement with UnitedHealthcare

Tenet Healthcare Corporation today announced it signed a multi-year agreement with UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Pennsylvania that covers Hahnemann University Hospital and St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, PA. The agreement also covers physicians employed by subsidiaries of the two hospitals. Financial terms of the agreement were not released.

5 Feb 2011

Research roundup: Comparing profit and nonprofit hospice care; Hospital mortality and spending; High-deductible insurance plans

Association Of Hospice Agency Profit Status With Patient Diagnosis, Location of Care, and Length of Stay - "The current Medicare Hospice Benefit reimburses hospices at a fixed per diem rate that does not consider the patient's diagnosis, location of care, or hospice LOS [length-of-stay]," and as such, "profit can be maximized by caring for patients with certain diagnoses that require fewer skilled services, patients residing in nursing homes, or patients with longer hospice stays."

4 Feb 2011

Governors get advice from Obama administration on how to handle Medicaid

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius provided information Thursday to state officials explaining ways in which current law allows them to change the federal-state program — to gain savings without slashing eligibility.

4 Feb 2011

Senate rejects health law repeal but approves amendment to undo 1099 provision

Senate Democrats successfully fought back an GOP-led effort to repeal the health law. News outlets report, though, that the Senate vote could not only help influence the courts' consideration of challenges to the law, but also be a factor "on the long March" to elections in 2012. In addition, though the Senate blocked the push for a broad repeal of reform, the chamber did approve a measure to delete a reporting provision in the law that triggered significant opposition from the business community.

4 Feb 2011

Over 2 million children gain Medicaid or CHIP coverage during 2010

Two years after President Obama signed the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (CHIPRA), HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced that more than two million more children were served by Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) at some point over the past year.

4 Feb 2011

Preventive dental care could lead to lower overall dental expenses for older Americans

Older Americans could likely have lower overall dental expenses with preventive dental care and more routine dental visits, as indicated by a new study of public records of Medicare beneficiaries, says John Moeller, PhD, MA, research professor at the University of Maryland Dental School.

4 Feb 2011

Viewpoints: Dem lawmakers on fighting repeal; Debating Judge Vinson's impact; Medicaid cuts

Along with our Democratic colleagues in the Senate, we plan to review individual provisions in the law that may not work as intended. But we are not willing to allow a wholesale rollback of health care reform that could take away popular benefits from American families, jeopardize the health and well-being of millions and add more than a trillion dollars to the deficit.

4 Feb 2011

After the ruling: States grapple with implementation decisions

Experts continue to analyze the potential meanings and impacts of a federal judge's ruling earlier this week that the health law is unconstitutional and states find themselves in the hotseat as they make plans to move forward or stall their implementation progress.

4 Feb 2011

First Edition: February 3, 2011

Today's headlines detail the Senate GOP-led failed vote to repeal the health law and look to what steps will now follow.

3 Feb 2011

Senate repeals small piece of health law, but Republican attempt at overall repeal fails

Senate Republicans failed to muster enough votes to repeal the health law. But a vote to delete a small, revenue-raising provision of the sweeping law did pass, in a bipartisan vote.

3 Feb 2011

Viewpoints: N.Y. Times slams Vinson ruling as WSJ, Wash post parse it; Violence in hospitals; Bending health cost curve

A ruling by a Federal District Court judge in Florida that the entire health care reform law is unconstitutional was a breathtaking example of judicial activism and overreach. It is hard not to believe this decision was driven at least in part by ideology.

3 Feb 2011

Roundup: Fla., Texas, Minn., Ga., Conn., Mass. officials examine state health programs

Nullification - the legal theory that says a state can prevent enforcement of federal laws within its borders -- is the latest attempt to block Obama's health-care law at the state level. And brings with it new controversies and considerable confusion. For example, supporters and opponents of nullification reference the same language in the Constitution.

3 Feb 2011

Study: Health insurers consolidate market power

Meanwhile, Aetna mailed letters Tuesday to notify customers in Colorado that it will be exiting the individual market there.

3 Feb 2011

Older people with metabolic syndrome may face high risk of developing memory loss

Older people with larger waistlines, high blood pressure and other risk factors that make up metabolic syndrome may be at a higher risk for memory loss, according to a study published in the February 2, 2011, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

3 Feb 2011

Analyzing the health law's 'prognosis'

As experts continue to parse the specifics of a federal Judge's Monday ruling striking down the health overhaul, experts speculate about what the Supreme Court could decide. Meanwhile, insurers, health industry stakeholders and even state officials mull their next steps.

2 Feb 2011

Legal decision triggers political twists

News outlets report on some of the political issues surrounding the individual mandate and Monday's legal decision striking down the health law.

2 Feb 2011

Federal judge's ruling could lead to new, patient-focused reforms to American health care system

Coalition to Protect Patients' Rights (CPPR) spokesman, Dr. Donald J. Palmisano, today said that a federal judge's ruling on the unconstitutionality of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate could lead to new, patient-focused reforms to the American health care system.

2 Feb 2011

Health Insurance News and Research

Mental health, substance abuse spending grew more slowly than all other health spending: Study

BCBSIL, IHA partner to reduce Illinois hospital readmissions through PREP initiative

Viewpoints: Judge Vinson's decision and Sarah Palin, Voting Rights Act; States' Medicaid 'burden;' Global fund controversy

Tenet signs multi-year agreement with UnitedHealthcare

Research roundup: Comparing profit and nonprofit hospice care; Hospital mortality and spending; High-deductible insurance plans

Governors get advice from Obama administration on how to handle Medicaid

Senate rejects health law repeal but approves amendment to undo 1099 provision

Over 2 million children gain Medicaid or CHIP coverage during 2010

Preventive dental care could lead to lower overall dental expenses for older Americans

Viewpoints: Dem lawmakers on fighting repeal; Debating Judge Vinson's impact; Medicaid cuts

After the ruling: States grapple with implementation decisions

First Edition: February 3, 2011

Senate repeals small piece of health law, but Republican attempt at overall repeal fails

Viewpoints: N.Y. Times slams Vinson ruling as WSJ, Wash post parse it; Violence in hospitals; Bending health cost curve

Roundup: Fla., Texas, Minn., Ga., Conn., Mass. officials examine state health programs

Study: Health insurers consolidate market power

Older people with metabolic syndrome may face high risk of developing memory loss

Analyzing the health law's 'prognosis'

Legal decision triggers political twists

Federal judge's ruling could lead to new, patient-focused reforms to American health care system

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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