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Physician-led models of care benefit patients, health system

To best meet the goals of optimized, coordinated patient care and also help curb health care costs, physicians should be the heart of accountable care organizations (ACOs), an evolving model of patient care. The American Medical Association today outlined recommendations to make this a reality in comments provided to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

2 Dec 2010

First Edition: December 2, 2010

Today's health policy headlines include news about how the debt panel's plan would boost costs for seniors on Medicare; how parts of the GOP are making clear their positions regarding health reform "repeal and replace" strategy; and how limited health plans faced critics at a Senate hearing.

2 Dec 2010

Universal Health Care's Medicare members offered Healthways SilverSneakers Fitness Program

In an effort to promote wellness and disease prevention to its older adult members, Universal Health Care will begin offering the Healthways SilverSneakers® Fitness Program on January 1, 2011, to subscribers of their Medicare Advantage Plan in 13 states (Florida, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Virginia). SilverSneakers is the nation's leading social support and exercise program designed to improve seniors' well-being and health.

2 Dec 2010

Deficit panel delays vote; Curbing Medicare spending part of proposal

Over the next ten years, 30 million more seniors will pour into Medicare, which already eats up 12 percent of the federal budget and 20 percent of all health spending, NPR reports. That has deficit hawks worried. Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a former Congressional Budget Office director, says, "If you look past the next eight to 10 years, Medicare is the deficit problem… And there's simply no way we can address our fiscal problems without coming to terms with Medicare's future."

2 Dec 2010

Medical groups weigh in on health reform, pay freeze

News outlets report on how new treatment models impact care, as well as political developments and positions among medical organizations.

2 Dec 2010

UIC receives HHS grant to expand family medicine residency program

The University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine has received a $1.92 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to expand its family medicine residency program.

2 Dec 2010

Dec. 1 news from RSNA 2010

The risk of developing radiation-induced cancer from computed tomography (CT) may be lower than previously thought, according to a Stanford University study. Using more than 10 million Medicare claims from 1998 through 2005, the researchers analyzed the distribution of CT scans, determined the ionizing radiation exposure associated with the exams and estimated the associated cancer risk in a population of older adults.

1 Dec 2010

Key factors in evaluating Medicare Part D plans

More than 1,100 Medicare prescription drug (Part D) plans are available for 2011. Most consumers have about 33 plans to choose from in their area during annual enrollment, which is Nov. 15 to Dec. 31. However, Part D plans with the lowest premiums may not be the best match for Medicare beneficiaries' individualized needs, according to Allsup, a nationwide provider of Social Security disability representation and Medicare plan selection services.

1 Dec 2010

Older adults with diabetes have reduced life expectancy

Despite medical advances enabling those with diabetes to live longer today than in the past, a 50-year-old with the disease still can expect to live 8.5 years fewer years, on average, than a 50-year-old without the disease.

1 Dec 2010

Loyola's mortality rate from heart-bypass surgery 74% lower than at peer hospitals

Loyola University Hospital's mortality rate from heart-bypass surgery is 74 percent lower than the mortality rate at peer hospitals, according to Thomson Reuters Cardiovascular Benchmarks Report.

1 Dec 2010

Alliance of Specialty Medicine calls for permanent fix to Medicare SGR formula

In response to Congress acting to postpone unprecedented reimbursement cuts to doctors who treat Medicare patients, The Alliance of Specialty Medicine (Alliance) today called on lawmakers to work towards a permanent solution to fix to the program's Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula so temporary fixes would no longer be necessary.

1 Dec 2010

Teva board authorizes $1 billion share repurchase program

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. announced today that its Board of Directors has authorized the Company to repurchase (including through one or more subsidiaries) up to an aggregate of $1 billion of its ordinary shares/ADRs over the next 12 months.

1 Dec 2010

Study indicates risk of developing radiation-induced cancer from CT may be lower than previously thought

The risk of developing radiation-induced cancer from computed tomography (CT) may be lower than previously thought, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

1 Dec 2010

Medicare often overpays for wheelchairs, durable medical equipment

(Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) Sun-Sentinel: Medicare continues to pay high prices - often three times the cost on the private market - for power wheelchairs and other high-cost equipment. "As for the prices, the government is well aware that Medicare often pays too much. The Medicare reimbursement rate for wheelchairs ranges from $490 to $1,750 for the 13-month rental period, depending on the type of chair.

1 Dec 2010

Health law causing ripples in Congress, insurance industry, among doctors

The Washington Post: "One of the most significant savings envisioned in the new health- care law - limiting payments to the private health plans that cover 11 million older Americans under Medicare - is, so far, bringing little of the turbulence that the insurance industry and many Republicans predicted. ... Early clues to the actual effects have now materialized, as elderly Americans may sign up for a health plan for 2011 during an enrollment period through the end of the year, and the warnings of swift, serious damage to the program are not borne out.

1 Dec 2010

The complexity involved in efforts to dismantle the health law

The last time lawmakers repealed a major piece of health care legislation was more than 20 years ago, when vehement opposition to a 1988 measure providing new Medicare prescription drug coverage in exchange for higher income taxes led to repeal 16 months later, CQ HealthBeat reports. Polls are more evenly divided on the newest health care overhaul, and due to the law's unprecedented complexity, "efforts to unwind the measure are as fragmented as the health care system itself."

1 Dec 2010

Quality issues persist at hospitals, plastic surgery centers; use of CT scans in ER increases

Despite intensive efforts to improve patient safety, a six-year study at 10 North Carolina hospitals showed no decline in so-called patient harms, which included medical errors and unavoidable mistakes.

1 Dec 2010

Deficit plans target politically-protected Medicare program

The politically-sacrosanct Medicare program is in the crosshairs of proposals to cut the deficit, prompting possible battles between seniors' advocates and debt-conscious lawmakers, Kaiser Health News reports.

30 Nov 2010

Lame duck update: Congress delays Medicare payment cuts, fails to roll back health law's 1099 provision

Congress on Monday agreed to delay for one month a cut in Medicare reimbursement rates for doctors, giving a short-term reprieve to a looming crisis over treatment of the nation's elderly.

30 Nov 2010

Health care models: Accountable Care Organizations, medical homes

Kansas Health Institute News Service examines accountable care organizations (ACOs): "In an effort to combat the lack of coordination that is widely recognized as a major shortcoming of the current health system, the new federal health reform law includes provisions intended to encourage wider use of Accountable Care Organizations or ACOs."

30 Nov 2010