Medicare News and Research

RSS

Aetna hit with penalty, suspended from signing up new Medicare members

The Wall Street Journal: Medicare officials have suspended the Aetna insurance company from enrolling new members for "its Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription-drug plans because the insurer didn't comply with rules about changing drug-plan designs, the government said." The sanctions come after the government says the Connecticut-based insurance company did not "meet requirements to make sure seniors could continue on their medications during changes to the Aetna plans in 2009 and those offered this year."

12 Apr 2010

Americans asking: 'How will health reform help me?'

Kaiser Health News staff writer Mary Agnes Carey writes about the questions stemming from the new health reform law: "David wanted to know how the new health care overhaul law would impact retiree health care coverage.

12 Apr 2010

Eclipsys introduces Sunrise Enterprise 5.5 integrated software solutions for healthcare industry

Eclipsys Corporation, The Outcomes Company® today announced the availability of Sunrise Enterprise™ 5.5 — a rich suite of integrated software solutions that serves to differentiate Eclipsys™ and its client base within the healthcare industry.

12 Apr 2010

Study explains why Hispanics are less likely to undergo colorectal cancer screening

A new study finds that Hispanics live in areas with more limited availability of colonoscopies and sigmoidoscopies for colorectal cancer screening. Published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study indicates that differences in areas' capacity for providing these procedures may explain why Hispanics are less likely to undergo colorectal cancer screening than non-Hispanic whites.

12 Apr 2010

CCP introduces Concierge Choice Cardiology for non-invasive cardiologists

The nation's leader in hybrid concierge medicine, Concierge Choice Physicians, has introduced the first targeted and viable concierge program for non-invasive cardiologists who also provide other internal medicine services to patients. Called Concierge Choice Cardiology, the new program employs the CCP hybrid model to offset many of the economic and professional challenges that recent changes in reimbursement rates have created.

12 Apr 2010

First Edition: April 12, 2010

Among today's headlines are stories about House lawmakers facing the music back home regarding their health votes.

12 Apr 2010

DMPC to guarantee DM and wellness outcomes for elite group

Al Lewis, president of the Disease Management Purchasing Consortium, Inc., the founder and first president of the Disease Management Association of America and the person most often credited with establishing the metrics by which disease management is measured announced today that he will be personally validating and guaranteeing disease management (DM) and wellness outcomes for an elite, award-winning group of vendors, health plans, benefits consultants and employers.

12 Apr 2010

Brains on Bikes raises funds for brain cancer research and support

Anne Feeley, a 55-year-old mother and brain cancer survivor, began a 3,781-mile ride across the country today to raise money and awareness for brain cancer research and support.

12 Apr 2010

High OOP costs discouraging many cancer patients from filling prescriptions

A new study presented today at the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy's 22nd Annual Meeting finds that one in six cancer patients with high out-of-pocket (OOP) costs abandons their medication. The study by Prime Therapeutics (Prime), a thought leader in pharmacy benefit management, found patients with an OOP cost greater than $200 were at least three times more likely to not fill their prescription than those with OOP costs of $100 or less.

12 Apr 2010

Medical clinic for the sole purpose of committing Medicare fraud

Miami residents Jose and Denisse Martinez were each sentenced today to three years in prison for their role in running a Canton, Mich.,-based drug infusion clinic designed to defraud Medicare, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS). U.S. District Court Judge Victoria Roberts also ordered Jose and Denisse Martinez to pay $649,000 in restitution, jointly with co-defendants, and to each serve three years of supervised release following their prison terms.

12 Apr 2010

Patients receiving medications in 90-day supplies less likely to have adherence problems: Study

A new study presented today at the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy's 22nd Annual Meeting by Prime Therapeutics, a thought-leader in pharmacy benefit management, provides new evidence to support an easy, low-cost way to help keep patients with chronic conditions on their medications: provide them with a three-month drug supply.

12 Apr 2010

Health Alliance Medical Plans licenses Thomson Reuters Treatment Cost Calculator

Health Alliance Medical Plans, a provider-sponsored health insurer in the Midwest, has licensed Thomson Reuters Treatment Cost Calculator, an application that tells health plan members how much they will pay out-of-pocket for upcoming healthcare services.

12 Apr 2010

Three in ten women use letrozole to treat infertility: Study

About three in ten patients using letrozole (Femara), a common medication for treating breast cancer, are likely taking the medication to treat infertility, according to a new study presented today at the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy's 22nd Annual Meeting in San Diego by Prime Therapeutics, a thought leader in pharmacy benefit management.

12 Apr 2010

Medicare Supplement changes with introduction of Modernized Medicare Supplement Plans

Medicare Supplement, the insurance millions of seniors buy to help cover their out-of-pocket medical expenses, is undergoing dramatic changes with the introduction of Modernized Medicare Supplement Plans, which become effective June 1, 2010.

12 Apr 2010

Aetna faces Medicare sanctions

Health insurer Aetna announced Friday it will suspend "marketing to and enrollment of new members to its Medicare plans for the elderly because of sanctions imposed by the U.S. government," Reuters reports.

12 Apr 2010

Massachusetts Health Connector renews contract to serve Commonwealth Care members

Centene Corporation today announced that the Massachusetts Health Connector has renewed its contract with Celtic Group's subsidiary, CeltiCare Health Plan of Massachusetts, to serve Commonwealth Care members, effective July 1, 2010.

9 Apr 2010

List of MCEG's Annual Top Ten issues

Likely to be the first professional healthcare group to meet immediately after healthcare reform legislation passed, the Managed Care Executive Group held its annual forum in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida last week.

9 Apr 2010

Free Medicare education seminars for Hispanic-American seniors

This month, UnitedHealthcare will offer two free Medicare education seminars aimed at helping Hispanic-American seniors understand the basics of Medicare. Following the seminar, seniors are encouraged to take a free Zumba Gold class, a Latin-infused fitness program that blends the rhythms of merengue, salsa, cumbia, rumba, and tango.

9 Apr 2010

Research roundup: The effects of health IT, doctor-owned treatment centers, long-term care issues

Physician-Ownership Of Ambulatory Surgery Centers Linked To Higher Volume Of Surgeries - The authors analyzed data from Florida, using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's State Ambulatory Surgery Databases, revealing "a significant association between physician-ownership of surgicenters and greater use" of certain outpatient procedures.

9 Apr 2010

New CMS dashboard powered by MicroStrategy

MicroStrategy® Incorporated, a leading worldwide provider of business intelligence software, today announced that the new information dashboard recently launched by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is powered by MicroStrategy.

9 Apr 2010

Medicare News and Research

Aetna hit with penalty, suspended from signing up new Medicare members

Americans asking: 'How will health reform help me?'

Eclipsys introduces Sunrise Enterprise 5.5 integrated software solutions for healthcare industry

Study explains why Hispanics are less likely to undergo colorectal cancer screening

CCP introduces Concierge Choice Cardiology for non-invasive cardiologists

First Edition: April 12, 2010

DMPC to guarantee DM and wellness outcomes for elite group

Brains on Bikes raises funds for brain cancer research and support

High OOP costs discouraging many cancer patients from filling prescriptions

Medical clinic for the sole purpose of committing Medicare fraud

Patients receiving medications in 90-day supplies less likely to have adherence problems: Study

Health Alliance Medical Plans licenses Thomson Reuters Treatment Cost Calculator

Three in ten women use letrozole to treat infertility: Study

Medicare Supplement changes with introduction of Modernized Medicare Supplement Plans

Aetna faces Medicare sanctions

Massachusetts Health Connector renews contract to serve Commonwealth Care members

List of MCEG's Annual Top Ten issues

Free Medicare education seminars for Hispanic-American seniors

Research roundup: The effects of health IT, doctor-owned treatment centers, long-term care issues

New CMS dashboard powered by MicroStrategy

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

Latest News