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Medicaid is the United States health program for eligible individuals and families with low incomes and resources. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the states and federal government, and is managed by the states.

Viewpoints: Insurance data mining and Medicaid reform in Illinois

IMS Health Inc. operates in the shadows of the healthcare industry, gathering data that drug makers can use to sell medications more effectively. The data, however, are taken from the prescriptions that doctors write for their patients. That information is at the heart of a dispute over how far states can go to protect privacy — a dispute that has reached the Supreme Court, and one that could broaden the reach of the 1st Amendment in troubling ways (1/31).

1 Feb 2011

First Edition: January 31, 2011

KHN staff writers Marilyn Weber Serafini and Julie Appleby report: "Financially strapped governors, Congress and the Obama administration could be headed for a showdown over the Medicaid health care program that covers 48 million poor, disabled and elderly people nationwide".

31 Jan 2011

States consider cuts to Medicaid to ease tight budgets

Hamstrung by federal prohibitions against lowering Medicaid eligibility, governors from both parties are exercising their remaining options in proposing bone-deep cuts to the program during the fourth consecutive year of brutal economic conditions. ... the election of tough-minded governors, the evaporation of federal aid, the relentless growth of Medicaid rolls and the exhaustion of alternatives have made the program, which primarily covers low-income children and disabled adults, an outsize target. ... The governors are taking little joy in their proposals.

30 Jan 2011

Disabled American Veterans calls VA health care funding cut as ill-advised proposal

If Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) wanted to make a name for herself by proposing to cut funding for veterans health care and disability compensation, she has succeeded. "Such an ill-advised proposal is nothing short of heartless," according to Disabled American Veterans Washington Headquarters Executive Director David W. Gorman.

29 Jan 2011

EA receives CLIA certification for clinical laboratory testing

Expression Analysis, a leading provider of genomic services for clinical trials and research, announced today it has received CLIA certification. This milestone comes as the company enters its tenth year of providing genomic expertise; something the company refers to as "Genomic Know-How.

29 Jan 2011

Senate GOP ready to question CMS chief

The White House decision to mount a fresh effort to get Medicare's top administrator, Donald M. Berwick, confirmed will again inject the volatile issue of rationing into a health care law debate already dominated by the Republican drive for repeal.

29 Jan 2011

Disparities in limb salvage procedures may be driven by SES, access to high-volume hospitals

Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA have published a study in the February Journal of Vascular Surgery stating that disparities in limb salvage procedures may be driven by socioeconomic status and access to high-volume hospitals.

29 Jan 2011

NextCare Urgent Care to fund educational program for AHCCCS patients

In response to further state budget cuts to the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, NextCare Urgent Care, the state's largest urgent care provider, has offered to sponsor and fund an educational program for AHCCCS patients who utilize emergency rooms for minor injuries and illness or use the emergency rooms as an alternative to seeing a Primary Care Provider.

29 Jan 2011

Research roundup: Barriers to trauma care, immunizations; Small business tax credit; Medicare coverage of preventive care

Possible Geographical Barriers To Trauma Center Access For Vulnerable Patients In The United States - This study analyzes disparities in geographic access to trauma centers in 2005, drawing from data from the 2005 American Hospital Association annual survey.

29 Jan 2011

New feature: KHN's selection of thought-provoking magazine articles on health policy issues

Today, we begin this new weekly feature, which will provide a selection of thought-provoking articles from a variety of sources.

29 Jan 2011

Budget woes lead states to seek ways to ease Medicaid's requirements

While The Hill reports that CMS administrator Donald Berwick says his agency is trying to help states find solutions, National Journal notes that mounting budgetary pressure has put the program in "dire fiscal straits."

29 Jan 2011

Roundup: Florida considering major cuts to mental health programs; Texas patient groups fight back on Medicaid plans; Calif. weighs limiting Medicaid patients' trips to doctors

In the committee rooms and corridors of the state Capitol, lobbyists are looking for clues about which programs will get slashed. On Wednesday, mental-health and substance-abuse programs got more than a clue. In fact, it looked like a bulls-eye (Saunders, 1/27).

28 Jan 2011

New research shows employer-sponsored plans to decline more slowly than commonly thought

Contrary to fears that recent health care legislation will trigger a rapid decline in employer-sponsored health coverage in the U.S., management consulting firm Booz & Company today published new research that shows employer-sponsored plans will decline more slowly and less steeply than commonly thought.

28 Jan 2011

Viewpoints: Is Obama abandoning his health victory?

Did Obama say enough about health care reform last night? I suppose I'm one of the very few people who would even ask that question. Most Americans would probably think, "More health care? Lord no." And I think Obama and his speechwriters sensed as much. Although his defense of the Affordable Care Act was clear -- he's not going to sign a bill repealing the law -- it was also short. That portion of the speech was just two brief paragraphs, by my count (Jonathan Cohn, 1/26).

28 Jan 2011

White House renominates Berwick as Medicare chief

Six months after installing Dr. Don Berwick to direct the Center of Medicare & Medicaid Services with a recess appointment, the Obama administration has renominated him.

28 Jan 2011

States step up legislative, legal action against federal overhaul

State legislatures are considering bills to undermine the sweeping health overhaul. In addition, a Virginia court promises speedy action in a pending legal challenge. And, of course, the concept of "waivers" continues to draw interest.

28 Jan 2011

Roundup: Calif. wrestles with prison health costs; Texas legislator challenges GOP thinking; Mass. Gov. seeks remedy for municipal workers' health expenses

Amid California's budget crisis, the receiver put in charge of the prison health system by a federal judge has spent $82 million on blueprints for medical facilities that have been largely scrapped, more than $50,000 a month on an architectural consultant and millions hiring medical professionals — more per inmate than in many other states.

27 Jan 2011

Scrutiny about New York State's Medicaid program continues

The Wall Street Journal reports on the program's fraud unit while KHN explores the plans for New York's plans to revamp the entire program.

27 Jan 2011

Study examines primary care capacity challenges that states will face when Medicaid eligibility expands

A new article released online January 26 in the New England Journal of Medicine, authored by researchers at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services and supported by the Geiger Gibson/ RCHN Community Health Foundation Research Collaborative, examines primary care capacity challenges that states will face when Medicaid eligibility expands in 2014, under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA).

27 Jan 2011

Despite reimbursement cuts the diagnostic imaging market to grow at 5% over next five years: MRG

According to Millennium Research Group (MRG), the global authority on medical technology market intelligence, although the overall diagnostic imaging market has been limited by reimbursement cuts and poor economic conditions, the next five years will see unit growth of approximately 5%.

27 Jan 2011

Medicaid News and Research

Viewpoints: Insurance data mining and Medicaid reform in Illinois

First Edition: January 31, 2011

States consider cuts to Medicaid to ease tight budgets

Disabled American Veterans calls VA health care funding cut as ill-advised proposal

EA receives CLIA certification for clinical laboratory testing

Senate GOP ready to question CMS chief

Disparities in limb salvage procedures may be driven by SES, access to high-volume hospitals

NextCare Urgent Care to fund educational program for AHCCCS patients

Research roundup: Barriers to trauma care, immunizations; Small business tax credit; Medicare coverage of preventive care

New feature: KHN's selection of thought-provoking magazine articles on health policy issues

Budget woes lead states to seek ways to ease Medicaid's requirements

Roundup: Florida considering major cuts to mental health programs; Texas patient groups fight back on Medicaid plans; Calif. weighs limiting Medicaid patients' trips to doctors

New research shows employer-sponsored plans to decline more slowly than commonly thought

Viewpoints: Is Obama abandoning his health victory?

White House renominates Berwick as Medicare chief

States step up legislative, legal action against federal overhaul

Roundup: Calif. wrestles with prison health costs; Texas legislator challenges GOP thinking; Mass. Gov. seeks remedy for municipal workers' health expenses

Scrutiny about New York State's Medicaid program continues

Study examines primary care capacity challenges that states will face when Medicaid eligibility expands

Despite reimbursement cuts the diagnostic imaging market to grow at 5% over next five years: MRG

Industry Focus eBook - Cell & Gene Therapy (1st Edition) eBook

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

Advancing Intracellular Delivery with LumiPore®

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