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HHS launching health website for consumers next week

Kaiser Health News staff writer Phil Galewitz, working in collaboration with USA Today, writes about the soon-to-be launched federal health care site.

24 Jun 2010

Obama to insurers: Health reform no excuse for big rate hikes

President Barack Obama warned a dozen large insurers not to use the new health law as an excuse for boosting premium rates at a White House meeting Tuesday, The Washington Post reports. After acknowledging that insurers weren't solely responsible for rising medical costs, the president said, "we've got to make sure this new law is not being used as an excuse to simply drive up costs.

24 Jun 2010

Today's OpEds: Extending jobless benefits; Medicare payment cuts; NY Times on premium increases

With critics still scare-mongering about the supposed cost of reform, insurers in several states have been seeking double-digit premium increases that look hard to justify as necessary to keep up with medical inflation.

24 Jun 2010

Americans spend more on health and get poorer care: Report

According to a Commonwealth Fund report released this Wednesday, Americans spend nearly twice as much as people from other developed countries on healthcare but get lower quality of care, less efficiency and have the least equitable health care system. The comparison was drawn with six other countries, Britain, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand, and the United States ranked last. The report collected data from nationally representative patient and physician surveys in these seven countries in 2007, 2008, and 2009.

23 Jun 2010

How new health insurance regulations could affect some premiums, coverage

Kaiser Health News staff writer Phil Galewitz reports: "As he trumpeted what he called a new 'Patient's Bill of Rights' Tuesday, President Barack Obama tried to calm fears that the new health law would increase insurance costs.

23 Jun 2010

First Edition: June 23, 2010

Today's health policy headlines focus on President Obama's Tuesday meeting with health insurance executives and the administration's new version of the "Patient's Bill of Rights."

23 Jun 2010

Healthcare policies need to adequately address dental health of entire families

Dr. Steven Adair, Chief Dental Officer for FORBA, one of the nation's largest dental practice management firms focused on high-quality dental care for underserved communities, today raised concerns that a new government report on a lack of dental coverage for adults may also underscore ongoing oral health challenges for children from low-income families.

23 Jun 2010

US lags in health system performance

Despite having the most expensive health care system, the United States ranks last overall compared to six other industrialized countries-Australia, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom-on measures of health system performance in five areas: quality, efficiency, access to care, equity and the ability to lead long, healthy, productive lives, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report.

23 Jun 2010

Pelosi issues statement on implementation of key patient protection provisions in health insurance reform

With today's announcement of guidelines for the new Patient's Bill of Rights, the Democratic-led Congress and the Obama Administration are upholding our pledge of greater access, affordability, and reliability in Americans' insurance coverage. And we are fulfilling the core promises of health reform: to protect patients, strengthen our middle class and small businesses, and put Americans and their doctor – not insurance company bureaucrats — in charge of medical care.

23 Jun 2010

Insurers will receive Presidential warning while administration to release regulations to protect consumers

President Obama will warn health insurance executives at a White House meeting Tuesday against trying to increase premium rates before the new law takes effect, The New York Times reports. "The White House is concerned that health insurers will blame the new law for increases in premiums that are intended to maximize profits rather than covering claims."

23 Jun 2010

Mass. weighs overhaul's effects; Conn. first state to add adults to Medicaid under new health law

"In most states, the passage of the sprawling federal health care overhaul legislation means the poorest will have a better shot at affording health insurance. But in Massachusetts, the law might have the opposite effect. Senator John. F. Kerry, state leaders, and health care advocates met yesterday to discuss a new report that highlights the major differences between the federal and state health care models. The focus of the event quickly turned to the hurdles of implementation and the need to protect the gains Massachusetts has made since 2006. ... The report reveals that ... some Massachusetts residents might end up facing higher premiums" (Lee, 6/22).

23 Jun 2010

Obama warns health insurers against using reform to boost premium rates, unveils new patient bill of rights

Today, during an address in the East Room of the White House following a meeting with executives of leading health insurance companies and state insurance commissioners, "President Barack Obama warned insurance firms … not to use his healthcare overhaul as an opportunity to enact big rate increases and said the federal government would work with states to monitor them."

23 Jun 2010

Budget chief Orszag reportedly set to resign

Peter Orszag, director of the Office of Management and Budget, will step down from his post in July, "according to two knowledgeable administration officials," The Wall Street Journal reports.

23 Jun 2010

New survey: Consumers who buy their own health insurance report big rate increase requests

"Wellpoint - a big health insurer sharply criticized by the Obama Administration for seeking to raise rates up to 39 percent for some California policyholders earlier this year - was not unusual in seeking double-digit increases, a new survey finds" (Appleby and Schiff, 6/21).

23 Jun 2010

HHS, insurers, health systems preparing for health law's impact

Politico reports on the Department of Health and Human Services' HealthCare.gov, "the new Web portal that goes live July 1 and is designed to give consumers a place to research and compare health insurance plans. Since it will be the most tangible link to the health reform law for many Americans, health policy experts and administration officials say it's crucial that the site is well-designed, easy to navigate and free of the jargon that makes the field of health insurance so unintelligible to the public. ... When HealthCare.gov launches next Thursday, it will have information about insurance plans that users can sort based on their own situation and their eligibility for public insurance programs, like Medicare, the Children's Health Insurance Program and the new high-risk pools for individuals with pre-existing conditions" (Kliff, 6/22).

23 Jun 2010

Pro-Pharmaceuticals receives first purchase order for DAVANAT from PROCAPS

Pro-Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the leading developer of therapeutics that target Galectin receptors to treat cancer and fibrosis, today announced it has received its first purchase order for DAVANAT from PROCAPS S.A., a large, international pharmaceutical company based in Barranquilla, Colombia. Pro-Pharmaceuticals has received a purchase order for $200,000 which will be the upfront payment for this first shipment of DAVANAT.

22 Jun 2010

First Edition: June 22, 2010

In this Kaiser Health News consumer column, Michelle Andrews writes: "High-deductible health plans and the health savings accounts (HSAs) that link to them are becoming a familiar fixture on the insurance landscape, even though they get mixed reviews from many consumers and health-policy experts" (Kaiser Health News).

22 Jun 2010

CHOICE Administrators, E-chx announce exclusive payroll product for health insurance market

CHOICE Administrators®, Inc. and E-chx, Inc. announced today the co-branding of CHOICE Administrators Payroll Services, an exclusive payroll product for the health insurance market, powered by E-chx, one of the nation's largest independent payroll services. CHOICE Administrators Payroll Services is available to businesses nationwide and provides a hassle-free payroll solution that includes payroll processing, direct deposit, check signing/stuffing, and customizable reporting.

22 Jun 2010

Most Americans view paid sick days as basic worker right

Paid sick leave is a benefit prized by American workers but frequently missing on the job — a situation that leads to serious consequences, a new study released Monday by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago shows.

22 Jun 2010

Insurance cover in "passive war" environment saves reforestation expert

Conflicts and wars not only take their toll on human lives, but also on the local environment. Whilst much publicity is focused on International efforts to help rebuild Afghanistan's economy and social structures, less well known is the - often voluntary - work going on to rebuild the environment, part of which involves the planting of millions of trees, as a more green environment helps to improve the dusty landscape damaged by years of fighting. More greenery also means cleaner air.

22 Jun 2010