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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

First Edition: February 14, 2011

Today's headlines are focused on President Obama's budget proposal and what it does and does not include.

14 Feb 2011

Study: Young survivors covered by Medicare Part D often can't afford stroke medications

Young, uninsured stroke survivors or those covered by the Medicare Part D drug benefit often can't afford medications - increasing the risk for future strokes or other cardiovascular disease-related events, according to research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2011.

14 Feb 2011

Northwest Hospital's Subacute Care Unit receives five-star U.S. News ranking

The Subacute Care Unit at Northwest Hospital in Randallstown, Maryland has received a high ranking of five stars overall in U.S. News & World Report's 2011 Best Nursing Homes.

14 Feb 2011

New Republican spending cuts include well-known health programs

House Republican leaders pushed out a new round of proposed spending cuts Friday night as they sought to meet demands by conservatives in the party to trim $100 billion from the current spending levels. Health programs were among the targets.

14 Feb 2011

Campaign to undermine e-prescribing's safety, savings benefits

Some drug manufacturers are aggressively pushing legislative proposals in states across the country that if enacted would undermine electronic prescribing's (e-prescribing) proven safety and savings benefits, the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) said today.

14 Feb 2011

Day after Berwick hearing, Mitch Daniels talks about 'limitations' on health care spending

Potential GOP presidential contender Mitch Daniels edged into the debate over rationing health care Friday, saying there will "never be enough money" for every American to have access to all modern life-saving technology.

14 Feb 2011

Opinions: U.S. foreign aid; Polio eradication

"Over the past few weeks, I've had a chance to interview some amazing people," ranging from Bill Gates to scientists and teachers, who are all concerned about impending budget cuts, the New York Times' David Brooks writes in a column. Brooks explains that the "coming budget cuts have nothing to do with merit. They have to do with the inexorable logic of mathematics."

14 Feb 2011

Proposed health reforms need to be ironed out

There are new questions over the detail of Julia Gillard's $16.4 billion health reform package. According to West Australian Premier Colin Barnett the introduction of an activity based funding system through a national pool by mid next year was achievable, but stressed it needed to be “well understood and easy to administer”.

13 Feb 2011

CMS chief testifies at Ways and Means Committee, stays cool despite grilling

The tense, heated hearing was the first opportunity for the House to question Berwick since July, when he was recess-appointed to his post as head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (Haberkorn and Coughlin, 2/10).

11 Feb 2011

Voices from the right offer views on health law repeal, political strategies

News organizations examine how recent court rulings and other matters of constitutional law are transforming the "tea party" movement into a force "attempting to shape national party." Meanwhile, strategies abound in how best to advance the repeal effort, and Mitt Romney tries to differentiate Massachusetts' health law from the federal overhaul.

11 Feb 2011

AHRQ: $25.3 billion spent for kidney disease treatment every year

Overall, an average of 3.7 million adults in the United States were treated for kidney disease each year between 2003 and 2007, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Kidney disease can lead to renal failure and may be caused by diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

11 Feb 2011

First Edition: February 11, 2011

Today's health policy headlines highlight various aspects of the policies and politics involved in the health law mix.

11 Feb 2011

Longer looks: KHN's best health policy picks from thought-provoking publications

When U.S. District Court judge Roger Vinson struck down President Obama's health care program as unconstitutional, the White House declared the decision an "outlier." It was anything but that. The ruling on January 31 was in harmony with limits the Supreme Court has imposed on the use of the Constitution's commerce clause to justify far-reaching legislation by Congress.

11 Feb 2011

GOP Reps. grill CMS Chief Berwick about health reform law, earlier remarks on British system

Republicans on the US House Committee on Ways and Means this morning pounded Donald Berwick, administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, on the effects of the new health care law on seniors, and Berwick's past statements in praise of the publicly-funded British health care system.

11 Feb 2011

Viewpoints: Sebelius on empowering states; NY Times on insurance mandate; WSJ on 'next repeal target'

As governor of Kansas, I saw up close the urgent need for health-care reform. I heard it when factory owners told me their biggest concern was not manufacturing costs but rising insurance premiums, and when families said they felt like hostages to insurance companies that could deny or cancel coverage with little accountability.

11 Feb 2011

Analyst offers prediction about Medicare advantage plans

Initial 2012 reimbursement rates for Medicare Advantage plans should be roughly flat, which tops the consensus expectation of a 2 percent drop, according to Citi analyst Carl McDonald. McDonald said Tuesday in a research note the rates will be hurt by cuts from the health care overhaul, but he also thinks they will benefit from an adjustment to prior estimates.

10 Feb 2011

NeoGenomics fourth quarter revenue increases 12% to $8.8 million

NeoGenomics, Inc., a leading provider of cancer-focused genetic testing services, today reported its results for the fourth quarter 2010 and fiscal year ended December 31, 2010.

10 Feb 2011

Edward Hospital joins Premier healthcare alliance and saves $1,053,000

Edward Hospital & Health Services has saved more than $1 million by joining the Premier healthcare alliance. The full-service, regional healthcare provider based in Naperville, Ill., is also participating in programs to provide high-quality, cost-effective care.

10 Feb 2011