Medicaid News and Research

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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.

First Edition: May 24, 2010

Irene Wielawski writes for Kaiser Health News that electronic medical records may be as important as stethoscopes. "Dr. David Blumenthal was not happy to find a new computer installed on his desk when he showed up for work one morning eight years ago at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. He knew the hospital had been hard at work on developing an electronic medical record system, but Blumenthal wasn't keen on changing practices that had served him and his patients just fine over the years.

24 May 2010

Research roundup: Lessons from Medicare Part D; Evaluating medical homes; Insuring young adults

Lessons Learned: Who Didn't Enroll In Medicare Drug Coverage In 2006, And Why? - With data from the 2005 and 2006 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey, this study examines enrollment of those who were previously without either public or private sources of prescription drug coverage. The authors report "63 percent of all eligible seniors and 69 percent of low-income beneficiaries were enrolled in Part D in 2006.

24 May 2010

Baucus: No guarantee of Berwick confirmation hearing by July 4

Sen. Max Baucus, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee "said Thursday he hopes to have a confirmation hearing on the nomination of Donald Berwick to become administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services before the Fourth of July recess.

24 May 2010

Medicaid news: Early expansion unlikely in Ohio, Florida disputes managed care

"A tight state budget will make an expansion of health care coverage for the poor and disabled unlikely in Ohio this year, an option given to states under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, the state's Medicaid chief said Thursday. ... it's unclear how many will use Medicaid to fill coverage gaps before 2014, when most of the health care provisions take effect. So far, only Connecticut and the District of Columbia submitted such proposals to the federal government."

21 May 2010

Overall proportion of hospital patients died after heart attack fell by 37%: AHRQ

The overall proportion of hospital patients who died in the hospital after a heart attack fell by 37 percent between 2000 and 2007, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The rate fell from from 106 per 1,000 patients to 67 per 1,000 patients during the period

21 May 2010

Democrats push three-year Medicare 'doc fix' as part of larger tax bill

A proposal to stop planned payment cuts to Medicare doctors for three years is in a bill extending tax cuts and lengthening unemployment benefits.

21 May 2010

Eli Lilly to honor individuals with Welcome Back Award for improving lives of others

Despite years of debilitating depression, multiple psychiatric hospitalizations and episodes of homelessness, Joseph Rogers refused to let mental illness and an unlucky adolescence blot out his potential imprint on the world. Despite once being branded unemployable, Joseph relishes his role as advocate, embracing the challenges of being a change agent in mental health legislation, and pioneering the peer-run services movement.

21 May 2010

First Edition: May 21, 2010

In today's headlines, legislation containing a Medicare pay 'fix' and an extension of the COBRA subsidy is moving toward House consideration.

21 May 2010

Aetna Foundation grants $331,133 for "Advancing Value-Based Purchasing in the U.S. Health System" project

As a nation we spend nearly $7,300 per person on health care each year - but are we getting the best possible value for our dollars? Exploring promising innovative approaches to getting high quality from health care purchases while ensuring that our annual $2.3 trillion in public and private health care spending is going as far as it should - in terms of top quality care, improved health outcomes and minimal waste - will be part of new work undertaken by the Engelberg Center for Health Care Reform at Brookings and supported by the Aetna Foundation.

21 May 2010

Lawmakers agree to extend COBRA benefits, delay Medicare cuts and give states more money for Medicaid

Democratic committee leaders unveiled a tax extensions package today that would continue to allow laid-off employees "to get subsidies to buy health insurance through the COBRA program" and would also "spare doctors from a scheduled 21 percent cut in Medicare payments," The Associated Press reports. It would also give states money to cover Medicaid costs (Ohlemacher, 5/20).

21 May 2010

Ariz. tax hike only a band-aid, and other state tales of budget woes

The Wall Street Journal: States are being squeezed by "shrinking state budgets and rising health-care costs" and often vulnerable residents are paying the price. Barbara Hickey, 67 of Florence, S.C., is one of them. She is confined to a motorized wheelchair, lives alone and "relies on certified nurse's assistants to get her in and out of bed, bathed, clothed and fed."

21 May 2010

Most ER visitors have health insurance of some kind

A National Center for Health Statistics study has found that of the one in five Americans who visit an emergency room every year, most have health insurance.

20 May 2010

Hospital deals in New York, Michigan, Tennessee and Georgia

Lenox Hill, a "boutique hospital of choice for the rich" announced Wednesday "that after 153 years as a standalone hospital on the Upper East Side, it was entering a partnership with North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, a powerhouse of 15 hospitals and other health care centers in more humble parts of Long Island, Queens and Staten Island."

20 May 2010

Ingenix TrendView solution helps companies better understand, manage employee medical costs

Ingenix is launching Ingenix TrendView, an affordable, easy-to-use desktop solution designed to help companies better understand and manage a critical expense category - employee medical costs. Ingenix TrendView provides graphical views of consolidated employee benefits usage, enables scenario modeling, and uncovers opportunities for reducing medical costs and improving employee health.

20 May 2010

Milliman's CareWebQI interactive software tools interfaced with TriZetto's CareAdvance Enterprise 4.6 application

Healthcare payors can now use Milliman's CareWebQI® interactive software tools within The TriZetto Group's CareAdvance Enterprise® 4.6 application. A newly developed interface embeds guideline-based decision-making in the CareAdvance™ application workflow.

20 May 2010

First Edition: May 20, 2010

Today's news includes the lastest developments regarding the Medicare pay fix and continuing analysis regarding how health reform votes will play into the 2010 electoral landscape.

20 May 2010

CMS to spend $73 million over 5 years to improve public websites

Washington Business Journal: "The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has awarded Fairfax-based CGI Federal Inc. a five-year contract worth $73.2 million to continue its modernization, application management and maintenance efforts on three external websites that provide information to 44 million beneficiaries and millions more health care providers."

20 May 2010

Hospitals under pressure from flagging budgets, regulators

The Washington Post reports on one suburban Maryland health system: "A special panel in charge of finding a company to take over Prince George's County's ailing health-care system has been unable to complete a sale of the system after a two-year search ... Bidders have been interested in separate parts of the system. But the panel's mandate is to ensure the facilities are sold at the same time to prevent buyers from cherry-picking ...

20 May 2010

Mass. Senate approves health costs bill to help small biz pay health costs and other state news

The Massachusetts Senate Tuesday approved a bill that would make wealthy hospitals pay $100 million in a one-time contribution to help small businesses ease insurance premiums. "The bill would let businesses with 50 or fewer workers form cooperatives to purchase insurance at a lower cost. Another provision presses insurers to spend at least 90 percent of premium dollars on care and 10 percent or less on administrative costs.

20 May 2010

Democrats debating how to handle Medicare 'doc fix,' COBRA subsidy extension

Some Democrats are concerned that adding a Medicare physician payment "fix" to tax legislation will add to the debt and are considering dropping the provision.

20 May 2010

Medicaid News and Research

First Edition: May 24, 2010

Research roundup: Lessons from Medicare Part D; Evaluating medical homes; Insuring young adults

Baucus: No guarantee of Berwick confirmation hearing by July 4

Medicaid news: Early expansion unlikely in Ohio, Florida disputes managed care

Overall proportion of hospital patients died after heart attack fell by 37%: AHRQ

Democrats push three-year Medicare 'doc fix' as part of larger tax bill

Eli Lilly to honor individuals with Welcome Back Award for improving lives of others

First Edition: May 21, 2010

Aetna Foundation grants $331,133 for "Advancing Value-Based Purchasing in the U.S. Health System" project

Lawmakers agree to extend COBRA benefits, delay Medicare cuts and give states more money for Medicaid

Ariz. tax hike only a band-aid, and other state tales of budget woes

Most ER visitors have health insurance of some kind

Hospital deals in New York, Michigan, Tennessee and Georgia

Ingenix TrendView solution helps companies better understand, manage employee medical costs

Milliman's CareWebQI interactive software tools interfaced with TriZetto's CareAdvance Enterprise 4.6 application

First Edition: May 20, 2010

CMS to spend $73 million over 5 years to improve public websites

Hospitals under pressure from flagging budgets, regulators

Mass. Senate approves health costs bill to help small biz pay health costs and other state news

Democrats debating how to handle Medicare 'doc fix,' COBRA subsidy extension

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