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Sebelius: Plan coming to reduce minority health disparities

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Wednesday that the federal government will soon have a national plan to reduce health disparities between minorities and whites, The Associated Press reports.

16 Apr 2010

IRS official: If an individual fails to show insurance coverage, refund could be withheld

"The Internal Revenue Service won't audit you to make sure you have purchased health insurance under provisions of the new health-care law—but it may withhold your tax refund if you can't demonstrate that you are insured, an IRS official said Thursday," The Wall Street Journal reports. "There are tools we can use. We obviously will be notifying folks [for whom there is no record of health insurance] that we have these questions," Steven T. Miller, IRS deputy commissioner for services and enforcement, said.

16 Apr 2010

Mass. insurers to revise rates or face fines; In Conn., a lawmaker hopes to help with insurance denials

"State regulators [Tuesday] demanded that health insurers submit revised April 1 premium rates for tens of thousands of individuals and small businesses by 3 p.m. [Thursday] or face stiff fines," The Boston Globe reports.

16 Apr 2010

Low income and lack of health insurance result in fewer rate of colorectal cancer screening

High out-of-pocket costs, lack of health insurance and limited access to care contribute to a relatively low rate of colorectal cancer screening in the United States, according to a new systematic review by researchers at the RTI International-University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Evidence-based Practice Center.

16 Apr 2010

States continue budget struggles; Oklahoma nursing homes brace for funding cuts

Three Minnesota Democratic legislators are proposing that the state spend $1 billion from the state's special health care fund in an effort to get $1 billion in federal money. "A spokesman for Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty says the plan won't work because the special fund is already scheduled to run a deficit" (4/14).

16 Apr 2010

Poll: Opposition to health law grows

The Associated Press: "A new Associated Press-GfK poll finds Americans oppose the health care remake 50 percent to 39 percent. Before a divided Congress finally passed the bill and Obama signed it at a jubilant White House ceremony last month, public opinion was about evenly split. Another 10 percent of Americans say they are neutral."

16 Apr 2010

Lawmaker cancels hearing on big corporations' tax deductions related to health reform

House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., canceled a hearing set for next week that would have probed recent announcements by large firms that they are taking millions of dollars in health law-related write-downs, Kaiser Health News reports.

16 Apr 2010

Health reform affects high-risk patients, abortion and doctor practices

NPR: "Recent fights between anti-abortion groups could leave people with the impression that the new health overhaul law expands women's access to abortion. But abortion-rights groups vehemently disagree."

16 Apr 2010

Director of Mass. Health Connector Authority steps down

Jon Kingsdale, the executive director of the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority, the state agency that helps people in Massachusetts find health insurance, is leaving his job, Gov. Deval Patrick" announced Thursday, the Boston Herald reports.

16 Apr 2010

Vote expected today on COBRA subsidy extension

Democrats' extension of jobless benefits - including provisions to extend a subsidy to help the newly laid-off afford health insurance - passed a key procedural test yesterday. A final Senate vote on the bill could come today.

16 Apr 2010

Senate gridlock hurts seniors' health: Medicare physician payment down to the wire

“Medicare physician payment comes down to the wire today as the Senate scrambles once again to delay the 21 percent Medicare cut before physicians feel the impact in their payments this week and a Medicare meltdown begins. Congress’ failure to stave off the Medicare physician payment cut leaves physicians in limbo and puts seniors’ access to care and choice of physician in serious jeopardy. This continued uncertainty coupled with the fact that Medicare payments, even without the 21 percent cut, have not kept up with the cost of providing care to seniors demonstrates the need for a permanent solution to this annual problem.

15 Apr 2010

Pennsylvania Medical Society comments on court ruling against state

The following is a statement from James A. Goodyear, MD, president of the Pennsylvania Medical Society, regarding a Commonwealth Court 4-1 ruling indicating the state should not have diverted money from the Mcare Fund and Health Care Provider Retention Account to help with state budget problems.

15 Apr 2010

First Edition: April 15, 2010

In today's headlines: The jobless benefits package, including a COBRA subsidy extension and Medicare-doctor pay fix, advances in the Senate. In the House, a committee chairman cancels a hearing on business health care complaints.

15 Apr 2010

Ibuprofen demonstrates efficacy over acetaminophen for treatment of pain and fever

Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced results from a meta-analysis comparing the efficacy and safety of ibuprofen and acetaminophen, which was published in the March edition of the peer-reviewed journal The Annals of Pharmacotherapy. The publication notes that in a majority of evaluated studies ibuprofen demonstrated superior efficacy compared to acetaminophen for the treatment of pain and fever, and found no significant safety differences between the drugs.

15 Apr 2010

Partners HealthCare offers $40 million to control health insurance costs in Massachusetts; Neb. Gov. signs new abortion law

Partners HealthCare, whose Boston teaching hospitals have been blamed for helping to drive up medical spending, is offering $40 million toward reducing double-digit health insurance rate increases for small businesses, part of a broader package that will be unveiled today by Senate President Therese Murray.

15 Apr 2010

The nuts and bolts of reform's new policies

The New York Times: "In a new report, the Congressional Research Service says the law may have significant unintended consequences for the 'personal health insurance coverage' of senators, representatives and their staff members." Lawmakers agreed to depart from their existing health plans in order to join new health insurance exchanges, something they have made available to many of their constituents. But, while the exchanges don't start up until 2014, the law is silent on when lawmakers must ditch their current benefits.

15 Apr 2010

People with disabilities may be unable to afford Medicare Advantage plan under healthcare provisions

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 are the most powerful developments in decades affecting healthcare coverage for people with disabilities, according to Allsup, a nationwide provider of Social Security disability representation and Medicare plan selection services.

15 Apr 2010

CHPPR survey: 58% of Americans support repealing health care reform legislation

Fifty-eight percent of Americans (96 percent of Republicans, 10 percent of Democrats and 54 percent of Independents) support repealing the health care reform legislation that was signed into law by President Barack Obama in March, according to a new national survey conducted April 6 - 10 by researchers from Indiana University's Center for Health Policy and Professionalism Research.

15 Apr 2010

Senate Democrats eye COBRA subsidy extension through Memorial Day

Democrats are trying to get Republicans to extend jobless benefits -- including a program to subsidize health insurance coverage for laid-off workers -- through Memorial Day, The Associated Press reports.

15 Apr 2010

Senate clears way for COBRA vote

Laid-off workers are waiting to hear if a subsidy for health insurance will continue to be available as part of a jobless benefits package working its way through the Senate.

15 Apr 2010

Health Insurance News and Research

Sebelius: Plan coming to reduce minority health disparities

IRS official: If an individual fails to show insurance coverage, refund could be withheld

Mass. insurers to revise rates or face fines; In Conn., a lawmaker hopes to help with insurance denials

Low income and lack of health insurance result in fewer rate of colorectal cancer screening

States continue budget struggles; Oklahoma nursing homes brace for funding cuts

Poll: Opposition to health law grows

Lawmaker cancels hearing on big corporations' tax deductions related to health reform

Health reform affects high-risk patients, abortion and doctor practices

Director of Mass. Health Connector Authority steps down

Vote expected today on COBRA subsidy extension

Senate gridlock hurts seniors' health: Medicare physician payment down to the wire

Pennsylvania Medical Society comments on court ruling against state

First Edition: April 15, 2010

Ibuprofen demonstrates efficacy over acetaminophen for treatment of pain and fever

Partners HealthCare offers $40 million to control health insurance costs in Massachusetts; Neb. Gov. signs new abortion law

The nuts and bolts of reform's new policies

People with disabilities may be unable to afford Medicare Advantage plan under healthcare provisions

CHPPR survey: 58% of Americans support repealing health care reform legislation

Senate Democrats eye COBRA subsidy extension through Memorial Day

Senate clears way for COBRA vote

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