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Kansas lawmakers debate legality of health insurance mandate amendment

Kansas Health Institute: "Republicans and Democrats were sharply divided Tuesday over a proposed constitutional amendment that sponsors said would let federal officials know Kansans don't want to be told by the government that they must buy health insurance. On a 12-9, party-line vote, the House Health and Human Services Committee voted to recommend House Concurrent Resolution 5032 favorable for passage.

4 Mar 2010

Senate gridlock ends, COBRA and Medicare fees extended

Los Angeles Times: "Senate leaders Tuesday night resolved an impasse over emergency aid to the jobless that had driven a wedge into Republican ranks and given Democrats a political weapon. The deal overcame the continued objections of a single senator, Republican Jim Bunning of Kentucky, who for days had held up short-term extensions of unemployment and COBRA benefits over concerns that the bill would increase the federal deficit." The measure passed with a 78-19 vote (Oliphant, 3/2).

4 Mar 2010

Wasteful medical spending clogs health care industry

CNN: "Consider this: For every dollar the nation spends on health care, 50 cents is wasted. According to a 2008 report by Pricewaterhouse Cooper's Health Research Institute, wasteful spending accounts for $1.2 trillion of the $2.2 trillion spent on health care in the United States." CNN says the waste includes "costs associated with inefficient insurance claims processing, defensive medicine, preventable hospital readmissions, medical errors, and unnecessary emergency room visits."

4 Mar 2010

Obama to include GOP ideas in health proposal today

With President Barack Obama's release today of his latest health reform plan, he hopes to propel the dialogue forward as he also signals willingness to incorporate GOP ideas into his proposal.

4 Mar 2010

Negative results from latrepirdine Phase III clinical trial: Alzheimer's Association disappointed

"The Alzheimer's Association is disappointed to learn of the negative results from the Phase III clinical trial of latrepirdine (Dimebon)," said William Thies, Ph.D., Alzheimer's Association Chief Medical and Scientific Officer. "People with Alzheimer's, their families and caregivers desperately need more and better treatment options for this devastating, fatal brain disease."

4 Mar 2010

PCMA releases statement on GAO report that examines specialty-tier prescription drugs in Medicare Part D

“Meaningful biogenerics legislation should be the first stop for policymakers tasked with financing health reform. PCMA and a broad coalition of consumers, employers, labor unions, and others support bipartisan legislation that would create a regulatory pathway for the Food and Drug Administration to approve generic versions of biologic products.”

3 Mar 2010

South Carolina kidney patients to meet lawmakers and urge passage of S. 1128 legislation

On Wednesday, March 3, kidney patients from across South Carolina will join the National Kidney Foundation Serving the Carolinas, South Carolina Region and Dialysis Patient Citizens in holding a briefing at the State Capitol Rotunda, followed by a series of meetings with lawmakers and staff, urging the passage of key legislation this year that would help approximately 500 South Carolina kidney failure patients and thousands of disabled South Carolinians who are struggling to access health insurance for the life-saving medical care they need.

3 Mar 2010

First Edition: March 3, 2010

This morning's news is all about President Obama's outreach yesterday to the GOP and his speech today detailing new elements of his health reform plan. Will this step resuscitate the Dem's overhaul efforts?

3 Mar 2010

Greater use of ESAs and iron at lower hematocrit levels decrease risk of death for hemodialysis patients

Greater use of erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) and more frequent use of iron at lower hematocrit levels (the proportion of the blood that consists of red blood cells) was associated with a decreased risk of death for hemodialysis patients, according to a study in the March 3 issue of JAMA.

3 Mar 2010

Aggressive treatment of anemia with ESAs may lower risk of death for dialysis patients: Study

Aggressive treatment of anemia with intravenous iron and drugs known as erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) may lower the risk of death for dialysis patients with severe anemia - but also may increase the risk of death among patients with milder anemia, a new study led by a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill epidemiologist suggests.

3 Mar 2010

Warren Buffet supports Senate bill, Franken and Ryan pushing their health reform ideas

CNBC interviewed billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who "called the nation's health care spending 'untenable,' comparing 'out of control' costs to a 'tapeworm eating at our economic body.' While he would support the current Senate health care reform bill if pressed, Buffett says he would prefer a 'Plan C' that would control costs by changing the financial incentives of the system" (Crippen, 3/1).

3 Mar 2010

Medicare coverage of CTC for seniors needed

President Obama, in his first routine physical exam as commander in chief, received a CT colonography (CTC), commonly known as a virtual colonoscopy, to screen him for colorectal cancer. However, Obama Administration officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) previously denied coverage of the same exam for seniors enrolled in Medicare, cutting off access for many to an exam proven to increase compliance with nationally accepted colon cancer screening guidelines.

3 Mar 2010

MRG: Preliminary results from CREST will increase growth in carotid stenting procedures

According to Millennium Research Group (MRG), the global authority on medical technology market intelligence, recent preliminary results from the CREST (Carotid Revascularization Endarterectomy versus Stenting Trial) will support growth in carotid stenting procedures of more than 10% over the next five years. The results were announced last week at the American Stroke Association International Stroke Conference 2010.

3 Mar 2010

IntelliDose introduces new, integrated clinical software for medical oncology practices

IntelliDose®, a leading clinical software to manage medical oncology practices, today introduces IntelliScribe™ – a new, fully integrated module in the IntelliDose workflow – to electronically generate prescriptions at any point in the chemotherapy order writing process.

3 Mar 2010

Obama says he's willing to explore ideas raised by GOP during health summit

ABC News Political Punch: In a letter to Congressional leaders President Obama signaled Tuesday afternoon he is "open to several provisions raised by GOP lawmakers during last week's bipartisan health care reform summit, including medical malpractice reform, combating fraud," and the removal of a provisions that would have allowed the federal government to pay for Nebraska's Medicaid expansion and another that would have protected Florida seniors from cuts to the Medicare Advantage program (3/2).

3 Mar 2010

ICU survivors face high risk of death in following years, says study

An analysis of Medicare data indicates that elderly patients who are hospitalized in an intensive care unit (ICU) and survive to be discharged from the hospital have a high rate of death in the following three years, and that, in particular, patients who receive mechanical ventilation have a substantially increased rate of death compared with both hospital and general population controls in the first several months after hospital discharge, according to a study in the March 3 issue of JAMA.

3 Mar 2010

State roundup: Mass. hospital controversy, Iowa and Utah consider coverage expansions

The state appealed to the federal government yesterday to help Massachusetts hospitals that care for disproportionately high numbers of lower-income patients who receive state-sponsored health insurance. Governor Deval Patrick is asking the Obama administration for $216 million for Cambridge Health Alliance, the state's only public acute-care hospital, and another $115 million for six private hospitals with high Medicaid patient populations

3 Mar 2010

Health care costs for retiring Americans average $260,000 and can exceed $500,000

Health care costs for retiring Americans, including nursing home care, average $260,000 and can exceed $500,000, according to new research conducted by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College and underwritten by Prudential Financial.

3 Mar 2010

GOP Senators worry about backlash from COBRA extension filibuster

Los Angeles Times' D.C. Now: "Sen. Jim Bunning, the Republican from Kentucky whom Democrats love to blame for preventing passage of an extension of unemployment benefits, again blocked the Senate from taking up the measure on Tuesday." He says he supports the legislation's goals but will oppose it "until it is fully funded without increasing the federal deficit. In a one-person filibuster [that started last Thursday], Bunning has blocked the bill that, in addition to extending benefits, would also ... prevent a big cut in Medicare payments to doctors" (Muskal, 3/2).

3 Mar 2010

Bunning continues block of COBRA subsidy extension, Medicare 'doc fix'

Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., is blocking a bill that would temporarily extend unemployment benefits and federal subsidies for some health insurance benefits.

2 Mar 2010

Medicare News and Research

Kansas lawmakers debate legality of health insurance mandate amendment

Senate gridlock ends, COBRA and Medicare fees extended

Wasteful medical spending clogs health care industry

Obama to include GOP ideas in health proposal today

Negative results from latrepirdine Phase III clinical trial: Alzheimer's Association disappointed

PCMA releases statement on GAO report that examines specialty-tier prescription drugs in Medicare Part D

South Carolina kidney patients to meet lawmakers and urge passage of S. 1128 legislation

First Edition: March 3, 2010

Greater use of ESAs and iron at lower hematocrit levels decrease risk of death for hemodialysis patients

Aggressive treatment of anemia with ESAs may lower risk of death for dialysis patients: Study

Warren Buffet supports Senate bill, Franken and Ryan pushing their health reform ideas

Medicare coverage of CTC for seniors needed

MRG: Preliminary results from CREST will increase growth in carotid stenting procedures

IntelliDose introduces new, integrated clinical software for medical oncology practices

Obama says he's willing to explore ideas raised by GOP during health summit

ICU survivors face high risk of death in following years, says study

State roundup: Mass. hospital controversy, Iowa and Utah consider coverage expansions

Health care costs for retiring Americans average $260,000 and can exceed $500,000

GOP Senators worry about backlash from COBRA extension filibuster

Bunning continues block of COBRA subsidy extension, Medicare 'doc fix'

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