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Health law provisions kicking in; States prepare for high-risk insurance pool implementation

Three months after health reform was enacted, state leaders are beginning to make decisions about implementing the new law, Politico reports: "With the messy politics of health reform, the burden of balancing state budgets and the goal of expanding health coverage, lawmakers at the state level have had mixed reactions."

30 Jun 2010

Experts evlauate impact of Medicare Part D program on independent and chain pharmacies

The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (Medicare Part D) added prescription drug coverage to Medicare beginning in January 2006.

30 Jun 2010

Geriatric population soars while NIH devotes modest resources to aging research

With a nudge from the new health care law and pressure from Medicare, hospitals, doctors and nurses are struggling to prepare for explosive growth in the numbers of high-risk elderly patients. More than 40 percent of adult patients in acute care hospital beds are 65 or older. Seventy million Americans will have turned 65 by 2030.

30 Jun 2010

News round up: UniCare will drop health coverage for Virginians; Hawaii concerned about lack of physicians

The Washington Post: "About 3,000 Virginians who have health insurance through UniCare, a private insurer, will lose that coverage Jan. 1, a UniCare spokesman said Monday. Most live in Northern Virginia and get their coverage through the individual market, officials said.

30 Jun 2010

Consumer guides about part-time workers, Medigap coverage and navigating medical costs

News outlets offer consumer guides about health insurance.

30 Jun 2010

COBRA, jobs bill in further jeopardy after death of Sen. Byrd

Roll Call: The death of Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W. Va., has jeopardized further the passage of some bills in Congress, including a bill that would extend unemployment benefits. "Democratic leaders have been thwarted numerous times in recent weeks on jobs legislation, despite scaling down the measure dramatically after Republicans and some moderate Democrats balked at adding to the deficit.

30 Jun 2010

Clinical assessment study identifies opportunities to improve end-of-life care

Even at a hospital recognized for managing seriously ill patients, a systematic assessment of clinical measures associated with end-of-life care identified opportunities to improve treatment for those dying in the hospital, according to a report in the June 28 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

29 Jun 2010

Image-guided percutaneous biopsies on the rise

Advanced imaging technologies have helped shift biopsy techniques away from more invasive approaches toward imaging-guided percutaneous-or through the skin-techniques, according to a new study appearing online and in the September print edition of the journal Radiology.

29 Jun 2010

FDA approves Teva's generic Effexor XR antidepressant

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. announced today U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of Venlafaxine HCl ER Capsules, the Company's generic version of Wyeth's antidepressant Effexor XR®. Shipment is expected to commence on July 1, 2010, as per the terms of the 2006 agreement with Wyeth.

29 Jun 2010

Preservation of Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act signed into law

The President signed into law on Friday, June 25, 2010, The Preservation of Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act. The bill was approved by the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 417 to 1. The Senate had earlier approved the measure.

29 Jun 2010

Rosiglitazone associated with increased risk of serious cardiovascular events compared with pioglitazone

A new study published online today by JAMA shows that among patients age 65 years and older, rosiglitazone (a medication for treating Type 2 diabetes) is associated with an increased risk of stroke, heart failure, and all-cause mortality (death) when compared with pioglitazone (another medication for diabetes). The study was published online today in advance of an upcoming Food and Drug Administration meeting that will review the safety of rosiglitazone. The paper will appear in the July 28 print issue of JAMA.

29 Jun 2010

People in Medicare's two-year disability waiting period continue to wait

The Oregonian: Sue Sherman of Southwest Portland was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last year and "joined nearly 2 million disabled Americans -- at least 15,000 in Oregon -- who fall into a twilight with the first monthly Social Security disability payment, for they then must wait two years to become eligible for Medicare." Many of them exhaust their savings "on the care necessary to reach a diagnosis and now cannot get private insurance."

28 Jun 2010

Health reform law this week: Some states to miss deadline on high-risk pools, tanning tax kicks in

USA Today: "The key early program of the nation's new health law aims to provide affordable coverage to about 200,000 people with pre-existing medical conditions, such as cancer or diabetes, through federal high-risk insurance pools. The law called for the program to be in place last week, 90 days after its enactment, though the Department of Health and Human Services had said the programs would launch Thursday to coincide with the start of states' fiscal years."

28 Jun 2010

Today's OpEds: A new breed of medical education, more on the Medicare 'doc fix,' efforts to cut health care waste

Medical schools in particular may transform the way healthcare is practiced and viewed by the general community and its leaders. The medical school with this focus will not only pursue traditional missions like research and teaching students diagnostic skills but also emphasize community involvement, local medicine, social consciousness and local cultural issues (Dr. John Rock, 6/28).

28 Jun 2010

Medicare turns to more comprehensive tools to find fraud

Federal Times: The Recovery Board, which oversees the $275 billion economic stimulus package that was approved by the federal government in 2009, is using a software platform from Palantir Technologies, based in Palo Alto, Calif. "The software tool analyzes information contained on various government-maintained databases — GSA's list of suspended or debarred contractors, the Treasury Department's financial crimes network and other law enforcement records — along with open-source data such as newspaper articles, lawsuits and other public documents.

28 Jun 2010

KHN column: The Medicare 'doc fix': How to make political lemonade

In his latest Kaiser Health News column, Austin Frakt writes: "The mechanism that governs the growth rate of Medicare spending on physician services isn't working.

28 Jun 2010

First Edition: June 28, 2010

Today's health policy headlines continue to track the tax package difficulties faced by Senate Democrats in their efforts to extend the COBRA benefit subsidy and enhanced Medicaid funding for states.

28 Jun 2010

OPQC Scheduled Birth Initiative reduces unnecessary planned late pre-term, near-term deliveries in Ohio

A statewide Ohio program significantly reduced the monthly rate of inappropriately scheduled births before 39 weeks gestation, helping to avoid expensive neonatal intensive care unit admissions and decrease the risk of infant deaths, according to two studies by the Ohio Perinatal Quality Collaborative recently published in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

28 Jun 2010

Senate fails to pass 'extenders' bill, state Medicaid funding

After a bill to extend jobs and economic relief programs failed for the third time in the Senate Thursday, Majority Leader Harry Reid announced he would withdraw the bill, Politico reports. The legislation included financial relief for states, including billions to support Medicaid programs.

28 Jun 2010

Kansas doctor and wife found guilty of prescribing painkillers, causing deaths

"A federal jury Thursday found a Kansas doctor and his wife guilty of conspiring to profit from illegally prescribing painkillers to dozens of patients who later died, in a case highlighting medical treatment of chronic pain sufferers and prescription drug abuse."

28 Jun 2010

Medicare News and Research

Health law provisions kicking in; States prepare for high-risk insurance pool implementation

Experts evlauate impact of Medicare Part D program on independent and chain pharmacies

Geriatric population soars while NIH devotes modest resources to aging research

News round up: UniCare will drop health coverage for Virginians; Hawaii concerned about lack of physicians

Consumer guides about part-time workers, Medigap coverage and navigating medical costs

COBRA, jobs bill in further jeopardy after death of Sen. Byrd

Clinical assessment study identifies opportunities to improve end-of-life care

Image-guided percutaneous biopsies on the rise

FDA approves Teva's generic Effexor XR antidepressant

Preservation of Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act signed into law

Rosiglitazone associated with increased risk of serious cardiovascular events compared with pioglitazone

People in Medicare's two-year disability waiting period continue to wait

Health reform law this week: Some states to miss deadline on high-risk pools, tanning tax kicks in

Today's OpEds: A new breed of medical education, more on the Medicare 'doc fix,' efforts to cut health care waste

Medicare turns to more comprehensive tools to find fraud

KHN column: The Medicare 'doc fix': How to make political lemonade

First Edition: June 28, 2010

OPQC Scheduled Birth Initiative reduces unnecessary planned late pre-term, near-term deliveries in Ohio

Senate fails to pass 'extenders' bill, state Medicaid funding

Kansas doctor and wife found guilty of prescribing painkillers, causing deaths

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