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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.

Federal jury convicts Houston-area physician, residents over multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme

Houston-area physician Dr. Howard Grant and Houston residents Clinton Lee and Obisike Nwankwo were convicted late Wednesday by a federal jury in connection with their roles in a multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).

4 Jun 2010

State roundup: Health law could be critical for Miss.'s poor; Colorado passes end-of-life care laws, Penn. details plan for high risk pool

The health care overhaul, which "provides hundreds of billions of dollars to help states expand medical insurance for the poor," could prove critical for Mississippi, which "has the highest poverty rate in the nation and some of the sickest people, with the country's highest rate of heart disease and the second-highest rate of diabetes.

4 Jun 2010

States face budget scramble as chances for federal Medicaid assistance extension get slim

States are worrying that enhanced federal payments to help cover Medicaid expenses during the recession will soon end after the House opted not to include an extension of the funds in its recent jobs bill.

4 Jun 2010

Latest version of LOINC for electronic health information exchange to be released

As the practice, regulation and reimbursement of health care become more complicated, and as the demand for electronic medical records and health information exchange grows, a universal method of identifying test results and other clinical measurement is essential.

4 Jun 2010

Drug makers push for more time to pay half-off discount on drugs

Drug makers want 60 days instead of 15 to pay a half-off discount for branded drugs in a Medicare Part D coverage gap, Inside Health Policy reports. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services also intends to ask drug makers to pay disputed amounts ahead of a decision about whether the company must pay the discount.

4 Jun 2010

AMA launches ad campaign to push Senators on 'doc fix'

CNN Money: The American Medical Association is launching an ad campaign to push lawmakers to stop a scheduled 21 percent cut to Medicare doctors' pay. "The House voted May 28 to delay the cuts for 19 months, but the Senate did not take action before the Memorial Day recess. The AMA's TV, radio and print ads slam senators for failing to pass the 'doc fix' before taking their week-long break.

4 Jun 2010

California examines 'never events' at hospitals; La. seeks funding for primary care clinics; Texas trims children's health program

San Francisco Chronicle: "Drill bits, screws, sponges, clamps, needles, catheters, electrodes. These are some of the things accidentally left inside patients after surgery at California hospitals.

3 Jun 2010

Fraud roundup: LA hospital workers investigated; Guilty pleas in Texas and N.J. cases; Fla. candidate defends his actions

Los Angeles County officials are investigating allegations that Olive View-UCLA Medical Center staff accepted gifts from nursing home employees in exchange for placing Medi-Cal and Medicare patients at their facilities, a possible violation of the county's code of ethics, as well as state and federal anti-kickback laws.

3 Jun 2010

AMA to campaign for Medicare payment 'doc fix,' physicians increasingly frustrated

The American Medical Association is launching an ad campaign urging Congress to end a 21 percent cut to Medicare doctor reimbursement rates as physicians consider opting out the federal health care program.

2 Jun 2010

Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital performs 1000th carotid artery stent procedure

The Texas Heart Institute (THI) at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital has announced another major milestone in improved patient care, after performing its 1000th carotid artery stent procedure. Carotid artery stenting (CAS) has emerged as a less invasive treatment for stroke-causing blockages in the carotid artery, meaning patients generally have fewer risks for complications, shorter hospital stays and recovery times and less expense.

2 Jun 2010

State roundup: Ohio and Washington prepare high risk pool plans; Calif. lawmakers consider 20 bills; Virginia wrestles with Medicaid issues

A popular piece of the health-care overhaul bans insurance companies from denying individual coverage or charging high premiums to people with pre-existing medical conditions. But for adults younger than age 65, that provision doesn't kick in until 2014. In the meantime, the federal government wants states to create temporary high-risk pools through which people with cancer, multiple sclerosis and diabetes who have been uninsured for at least six months can buy affordable coverage.

2 Jun 2010

With Congress on recess, health reform politics emerge on homefront

While Americans remain divided over the new health reform law, "they aren't clamoring for its repeal. … Instead, the public seems willing to listen to candidates who would give the overhaul a chance and fix or improve it as needed. That's the signal from some surveys and a congressional race in a bellwether Pennsylvania district."

2 Jun 2010

Medicare patients may face accessibility crisis to medical care

According to an article in the June issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (JBJS), Medicare patients - many who suffer from disabling arthritis of the hip and knee, among other age-related ailments - may end up facing an accessibility crisis to medical care.

2 Jun 2010

Infighting threatens COBRA subsidy extension, longer Medicare doc pay 'fix'

Roll Call reports that infighting over some unemployment benefits and a scheduled "fix" of Medicare physician payments has left Democratic congressional leaders at a "dramatic low" in their relationship. "And while publicly, House and Senate leaders refused to assign blame, the behind-the-scenes story was far different. The deadline for the benefits package had been looming for weeks.

2 Jun 2010

Teva Pharmaceutical launches Gianvi Tablets

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. announced today that it has commercially launched Gianvi (Drospirenone and Ethinyl Estradiol) Tablets, the Company's generic version of Bayer's Yaz® Tablets.

2 Jun 2010

First Edition: June 1, 2010

A number of today's headlines focus on the continuing role of health reform in national political calculations and strategies.

1 Jun 2010

Race matching among donors and recipients has no effect on survival rates: Study

Transplant surgeons at Johns Hopkins who have reviewed the medical records of more than 20,000 heart transplant patients say that it is not simply racial differences, but rather flaws in the health care system, along with type of insurance and education levels, in addition to biological factors, that are likely the causes of disproportionately worse outcomes after heart transplantation in African Americans.

1 Jun 2010

Health law mandates higher Medicare payment for osteoporosis tests

The Boston Globe: "A $3 million campaign by doctors, scanner operators, manufacturers, and groups devoted to women's health helped persuade lawmakers to overrule Medicare administrators this year and restore much of the reimbursement for osteoporosis tests. In a little-noticed provision buried deep in the sweeping new health care bill, Congress decreed that Medicare shall pay $97 for each test, instead of $50.

1 Jun 2010

Jobs bill: Dems keep 'doc fix' but jettison COBRA benefits, extra state Medicaid funding

House Democrats, under pressure from fiscal conservatives to cut spending, have dropped from a jobs bill both a COBRA subsidy extension to help newly laid-off pay for health coverage as well as more federal aid to boost state Medicaid budgets, The Associated Press reports. Although several programs covered by the bill will expire during the congressional recess that begins this weekend, final action isn't expected because even if House members reach agreement on the measure, it must still go to the Senate, which has not scheduled any votes today.

29 May 2010

MU awarded $6.8M to help patients benefit from use of health information technology

Considered one the great advances of modern medicine, electronic health records can provide a patient's entire medical history and a wealth of other information at the click of a button. They also have the potential to save countless lives and billions of dollars. Now, the University of Missouri has a two-year, $6.8 million cooperative agreement to help patients throughout the state benefit from increased use of this health information technology.

29 May 2010

Medicaid News and Research

Federal jury convicts Houston-area physician, residents over multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme

State roundup: Health law could be critical for Miss.'s poor; Colorado passes end-of-life care laws, Penn. details plan for high risk pool

States face budget scramble as chances for federal Medicaid assistance extension get slim

Latest version of LOINC for electronic health information exchange to be released

Drug makers push for more time to pay half-off discount on drugs

AMA launches ad campaign to push Senators on 'doc fix'

California examines 'never events' at hospitals; La. seeks funding for primary care clinics; Texas trims children's health program

Fraud roundup: LA hospital workers investigated; Guilty pleas in Texas and N.J. cases; Fla. candidate defends his actions

AMA to campaign for Medicare payment 'doc fix,' physicians increasingly frustrated

Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital performs 1000th carotid artery stent procedure

State roundup: Ohio and Washington prepare high risk pool plans; Calif. lawmakers consider 20 bills; Virginia wrestles with Medicaid issues

With Congress on recess, health reform politics emerge on homefront

Medicare patients may face accessibility crisis to medical care

Infighting threatens COBRA subsidy extension, longer Medicare doc pay 'fix'

Teva Pharmaceutical launches Gianvi Tablets

First Edition: June 1, 2010

Race matching among donors and recipients has no effect on survival rates: Study

Health law mandates higher Medicare payment for osteoporosis tests

Jobs bill: Dems keep 'doc fix' but jettison COBRA benefits, extra state Medicaid funding

MU awarded $6.8M to help patients benefit from use of health information technology

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