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ESMO Designated Center of Integrated Oncology and Palliative Care accreditation for 16 new centers

The European Society for Medical Oncology has awarded ESMO Designated Center of Integrated Oncology and Palliative Care accreditation to 16 new oncology centers. The centers will receive the acknowledgment at the ESMO 2012 Congress, in Vienna, Austria, 28 September - 2 October.

24 Sep 2012

Fall prediction and prevention technology: an interview with Rob Goudswaard and Heribert Baldus from Philips

Falls in the elderly are a major health problem. It is has emerged from data in the US that roughly 1 in 3 people over 65 fall at least once a year. Half of them experience the same again the next year.

18 Sep 2012

Healthcare costs could total more than household assets for elderly at end of life

For more than 25% of elderly US citizens, healthcare costs incurred during the last 5 years of life will amount to more than their total household assets, show data reported in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

17 Sep 2012

Most Californians say they couldn't pay for nursing home care

A new survey of Californians finds that most residents say they couldn't afford to pay for care in a nursing home for a family member.

15 Sep 2012

Roundup: Portland to add flouride to city water; Fla. officials probe federal report of disabled children forced to nursing homes; Regulators find Minn. hospital violated federal patient protection laws

Over jeers and cheers from the audience, commissioners on the Portland, Ore., City Council voted Wednesday to add fluoride to the city's drinking water starting in 2014. Portland is the largest American city that doesn't add fluoride to its drinking water. But some groups have raised questions about the possible risks from fluoridation and oppose its use.

14 Sep 2012

Viewpoints: Home health workers need better pay; Is there a better solution than Medicaid to cover seniors' long-term care?

[F]or the stay-at-home elderly to have so-called "independent living" they must be highly dependent on the home care aides who look after medication schedules, cook meals, assist with bathing and generally keep them happy and healthy. And yet these workers are anything but well cared for. The vast majority are dreadfully overworked and woefully underpaid. The average hourly wage of a home care worker in the United States is less than $10.

11 Sep 2012

Roundup: Judge keeps Calif. prison health care under fed control; Hospital mergers possible in Kan., Wis., Minn.

A judge has again rejected the state's request for a speedy end to federal control of prison health care. In an order issued Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderson said he would require tougher reviews than the state wanted before agreeing to dissolve the receivership that has run inmate medical care for six years.

7 Sep 2012

First Edition: September 6, 2012

Now on Kaiser Health News' blog, Ankita Rao reports: "While policymakers debate whether doctors should be paid by the number of services they provide or the outcomes of their treatment, shared decision could have an impact on the ground by reducing demand for medical procedures.

6 Sep 2012

Out-of-pocket spending on health care in old age puts significant strain on finances

The protection of the savings of the elderly-one of the primary goals of Medicare-is under threat from a combination of spiraling healthcare costs and increased longevity. As the government attempts to reduce Medicare costs, one suggestion is that the elderly could pay a larger proportion of the costs of their healthcare. But exactly how much would this be and what impact would it have on their finances?

6 Sep 2012

Affordable Care Act: an interview with Val J. Halamandaris, President of the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC)

The intent of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is to provide all Americans with medical insurance. Thirty-five million additional people will be covered, in part by government premiums and in part by making it easier for them to buy their own insurance.

17 Aug 2012

It's not just Medicare: Ryan's Medicaid proposals emerge as campaign issue

News outlets report that the changes to Medicaid proposed by likely GOP vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan would have immediate and far-reaching consequences for millions of people, including poor seniors.

16 Aug 2012

Boomers face dearth of home caregivers; Medicare expands home-care pilot project

As baby boomers age, the U.S. will face a challenge trying to fill more than 1 million new home care positions to meet their needs, The Associated Press reports. In the meantime, Medicare is adding more groups to a pilot program aimed at lowering costs for Medicare beneficiaries by providing them with home-based care.

14 Aug 2012

Highlights: New reports of problems at Parkland Hospital in Dallas; Mammogram rates did not rise under expanded Mass. coverage

Federal safety monitors produced a harsher critique of Parkland Memorial Hospital's reform efforts than recently portrayed by the hospital, finding ongoing dangers to patients from a botched surgery, medication errors and emergency care failures. Those problems, cited in a June compliance report obtained by The Dallas Morning News, were not disclosed in a Parkland summary released to The News two weeks ago.

12 Aug 2012

Medicare payments for anemia drug too high; Feds seek fix to glitch that denies some hospitalized beneficiaries coverage for follow-up nursing home care

The U.S. health-care system is vastly overspending for a single anemia drug because Medicare overestimates its use by hundreds of millions of dollars a year, according to an analysis of federal data. The overpayment to hospitals and clinics arises because Medicare reimburses them based on estimates rather than the actual use of the drug.

12 Aug 2012

First Edition: August 10, 2012

Reporting for Kaiser Health News, in collaboration with The Washington Post, Susan Jaffe writes: "Concerned that a growing number of seniors have been unexpectedly forced to pay thousands of dollars for nursing home care after a stay in a hospital, Medicare has launched a pilot project to test whether relaxing its hospital payment rules could help beneficiaries".

10 Aug 2012

An Obama administration rule modification causes angst for home health workers

An uneasy sense of deja vu is building among advocates for nearly 2 million workers who help the elderly and disabled live independently in their homes.

9 Aug 2012

Roundup: Seeking medical malpractice alternatives part of Mass. cost control law; Low-Income Health Program signs up 400k in Calif.

It may not seem like big news, but if you've followed the long-running, stubborn and mostly dug-in debate over reforming medical malpractice in the U.S., you know that when doctors and lawyers issue a joint news release, something is really going on. ... Formally, it's called "Disclosure, Apology and Offer" and it's a key provision of the new state health cost law. Massachusetts doctors and lawyers have agreed to work side by side on this less hostile (and potentially cost-saving) approach to dealing with medical errors and malpractice.

9 Aug 2012

Home health care demand increases as baby boomers age

Demand for home health care workers is soaring as baby boomers - the 78 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964 - get older and states try to save money by moving people out of more costly nursing homes.

6 Aug 2012

First Edition: August 6, 2012

Today's headlines include a progress a report about health insurance exchanges as well as news from the campaign trail.