Medicare News and Research

RSS

Officials face challenges in writing new health law regulations

Obama administration officials face a "monumental task" in writing new regulations to the health care law while keeping one eye on public perception ahead of November's midterm elections.

30 Apr 2010

Premier Purchasing Partners announces new agreements for exam gloves

Premier Purchasing Partners, LP, today announced new agreements for exam gloves have been awarded to Cardinal Health of Waukegan, Ill.; Digitcare Corporation of Los Angeles, a minority business enterprise; Innovative Healthcare Corporation of Sand Springs, Okla., a veteran business enterprise; Kimberly-Clark Corporation of Roswell, Ga.; Medgluv Inc. of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., a minority business enterprise; Medline Industries Inc. of Mundelein, Ill.; and Tronex Company of Parsippany, N.J., a minority business enterprise.

30 Apr 2010

Florida Congress members introduce bill to stiffen Medicare fraud laws

Two members of Congress from Florida, emphasizing that "criminal penalties for Medicare fraud must be updated," have introduced legislation that would "double fines, increase background checks and even study how biometric technology could help ensure the appropriate use of program services." Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., and Ron Klein, D-Fla., said the bill "will help crack down on Medicare fraud, protecting seniors and taxpayers alike.

30 Apr 2010

New health law will penalize hospitals for poor quality

The new health law puts the nation's hospitals on strict notice. Either they improve the safety and quality of care for patients or the government will hit them where it hurts the most -- their revenue.

30 Apr 2010

Boston Scientific to present multiple clinical abstracts on its endoscopy products at DDW 2010

Boston Scientific Corporation today announced that multiple clinical abstracts examining the diagnostic and therapeutic utility of its SpyGlass Direct Visualization System, Radial Jaw 4 Biopsy Forceps and WallFlex Duodenal Stent will be presented at Digestive Disease Week, May 1 – 5 in New Orleans.

30 Apr 2010

BCHC questions government's commitment to defend public health care

The BC Health Coalition is calling into question the provincial government's commitment to defend public health care in the courts in the wake of the recent appointment of Kip Woodward as chair of Vancouver Coastal Health - the province's second largest health authority.

30 Apr 2010

HMS first-quarter revenue up 30.1% to $65.0 million

HMS today announced financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2010.

30 Apr 2010

Federal, state and local governments will need to invest more than $5 billion in health IT: INPUT

The recently passed health care reform legislation will require significant investment in IT solutions and system upgrades throughout its implementation. A new report, IT Implications of Health Care Reform, released by INPUT, predicts federal, state and local governments will need to invest more than $5 billion in health IT and traditional IT solutions in order to implement requirements of the new law.

30 Apr 2010

Data mining of hospital information can help identify MDROs: Asolva

Infection control within hospitals is a huge and growing problem. A recent study in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that conditions caused by healthcare associated infections killed 48,000 people and increased healthcare costs by $8.1 billion in 2006 alone.

30 Apr 2010

LifePoint Hospitals' first-quarter 2010 revenues up 6.9%

LifePoint Hospitals, Inc. today announced results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010.

30 Apr 2010

Coventry Health Care reports net earnings of $97.3 million for first-quarter 2010

Coventry Health Care, Inc. today reported consolidated operating results for the quarter ended March 31, 2010. Operating revenues totaled $2.9 billion for the quarter with net earnings of $97.3 million, or $0.66 earnings per diluted share (EPS). Excluding the favorable impact of Medicare Advantage Private Fee-for-Service (MA-PFFS) results in the quarter, operating revenues totaled $2.9 billion for the quarter with net earnings of $71.9 million, or $0.49 EPS.

30 Apr 2010

Amerigroup reports net income of $42.2M for first-quarter 2010

Amerigroup Corporation today announced that net income for the first quarter of 2010 was $42.2 million, or $0.82 per diluted share, versus $40.2 million, or $0.79 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2009.

30 Apr 2010

Genworth Financial reports first-quarter 2010 net income of $212M against loss last year

Genworth Financial, Inc. today reported results for the first quarter of 2010. Net income, before provision for noncontrolling interests, was $212 million, or $0.43 per diluted share, compared with a net loss of $469 million, or $1.08 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2009.

30 Apr 2010

Public health officials lay out opportunities, challenges related patient care at USP 2010 Membership Meeting

Four of the nation's leading public health officials laid out opportunities and challenges in the diverse area of patient care in the 21st century at the recently concluded U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention's 2010 Membership Meeting in Washington, D.C., emphasizing the critical nature of partnerships and the evolving role of quality standards to meet modern threats.

30 Apr 2010

Health law keeps 200,000 in state insurance plans instead of new high-risk pools

USA Today: About 200,000 people already enrolled in 35 state high-risk insurance pools "will not be allowed to enroll this summer in a new lower cost federal program for people like them because they already buy pricey state-run plans." In order to be eligible, "a person can't have had health coverage for six months.

30 Apr 2010

Seniors often don't choose best quality Medicare Advantage plans, study finds

The Associated Press: "Millions of seniors signed up for popular Medicare Advantage insurance plans don't get the best quality, an independent study found. How the private plans score on a quality rating system set up by the government is about to have a direct impact on insurers' finances — not to mention seniors' benefits and premiums.

30 Apr 2010

Health insurers adopt reform changes early; WellPoint reports rising profits

Following announcements by leading health insurers that their firms would end the practice of rescission, or stripping the sick from their roles, the broader insurance industry followed suit, according to a letter from America's Health Insurance Plans to congressional Democrats, Politico reports. "The decision to end rescission … was made during a Tuesday afternoon conference call of chief executives organized by their trade group, America's Health Insurance Plans, and represents the industry's latest attempt to build political good will after the bruising health care fight."

30 Apr 2010

Clarient reports 14.8% increase in first quarter 2010 revenue

Clarient, Inc., a premier anatomic pathology and molecular testing services resource for pathologists, oncologists and the biopharmaceutical industry, today reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010.

30 Apr 2010

Republicans call for investigation of health law's costs

Politico: "House Republicans on Wednesday demanded an investigation into whether the health care overhaul plan would increase national health spending, following a recent report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that showed cost increases, at least in the first decade." The Medicare actuary's report showed a one percent increase in health spending over 10 years, which Republicans said cut against Democrats' pledge that the health overhaul would "bend the cost curve down."

30 Apr 2010

Experts see 'lump sums' in health spending's future

Los Angeles Times/Dallas Morning News: Some elite California hospitals will begin "bundling" their fees for joint replacement surgeries into a single lump sum in an attempt to rethink the current pricing system that leaves "hospitals and doctors charging separately for their services," driving "up costs while leaving no one to coordinate decisions about patient care."

30 Apr 2010