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Committee calls for strategies to curb hypertension

Public health officials and health care providers need to step up their efforts to reduce Americans' increasing rates of high blood pressure and better treat those with the condition, which triggers more than one-third of heart attacks and almost half of heart failures in the United States each year, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine.

23 Feb 2010

Health Net and Stanford University team up to provide healthcare benefits for students

Health Net of California, Inc. announced today a partnership with Stanford University to provide health benefits to the university’s undergraduate and graduate students, effective September 1, 2010.

23 Feb 2010

Omega Healthcare Investors declares net income of $16.2M for fourth-quarter 2009

Omega Healthcare Investors, Inc. today announced its results of operations for the quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2009. The Company also reported Funds From Operations available to common stockholders for the three months ended December 31, 2009 of $24.9 million or $0.29 per common share.

23 Feb 2010

Nursing workforce issues: An expanded role for nurse practitioners, Calif. doctors sue for supervision of nurse anesthetists

News outlets report on nursing workforce issues, including a push for an expanded role for nurse practitioners, supervision of nurse anesthetists and a trend toward delayed retirement.

23 Feb 2010

Medicaid cuts hurt Calif. dental coverage, drive away doctors in Okla; Public hospitals in NYC fear possible reductions

NPR: "In California, it's been seven months since some 3 million poor and disabled adults lost their dental coverage to budget cuts. ... While the recession may be easing, California and other states across the country continue to face eye-popping budget deficits. As a result, states are cutting deep into public health programs, and dental benefits for Medicaid recipients top the list. ... Before the state budget cuts, Medicaid patients here could get annual exams, cleanings and, if needed, root canals to save their teeth.

23 Feb 2010

Study shows hospitals costs vary widely and are not associated with quality of care

The costs that hospitals incur in treating patients vary widely and do not appear to be strongly associated either with the quality of care patients receive or their risk of dying within 30 days, according to a report in the February 22 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

23 Feb 2010

GOP plans to attend health summit as Obama calls for compromise

President Barack Obama warned during the weekend that both Republicans and Democrats should be careful not to turn this week's health care summit into "political theater" but to work to find "common ground" on the issues, The Washington Post reports. "The Thursday event, scheduled to be televised live on C-SPAN, could prove a pivotal moment in the year-long effort to overhaul the health-care system.

22 Feb 2010

Shire reports total revenues of $3,008 million for 2009

Shire plc the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, announces results for the year to December 31, 2009.

22 Feb 2010

During open enrollment Medicare recipients may make changes to their Medicare Advantage coverage

Medicare recipients may still make changes to their Medicare Advantage coverage during open enrollment period, which runs Jan. 1 to March 31.

22 Feb 2010

Pelosi releases statement on HHS Secretary's decision to increase aid to states for Medicare Part D payment

I applaud the Administration's decision, which will mean much-needed relief to states facing severe budget constraints in light of the tough economic climate. The California Congressional delegation's diligence in raising this issue with HHS has paid dividends for California, which will be rewarded with an additional $680 million, all due to the FMAP increase included in the Recovery Act that we passed a year ago.

20 Feb 2010

Research Roundup: Financing boomers' care; California's budget cuts; Racial disparities in surgical outcomes

Health Affairs: Chronic Conditions Account For Rise In Medicare Spending From 1987 To 2006 - "Medicare beneficiaries' medical needs, and where beneficiaries undergo treatment, have changed dramatically over the past two decades." For example, the authors write, "heart disease ranked first among the top-ten conditions in terms of attributable share of growth from 1987 to 1997, accounting for nearly 14 percent of the increase in Medicare spending."

20 Feb 2010

Georgia State Senate praised for passing legislation to help kidney failure patients have access to health insurance

Georgia’s kidney care community today praised the Georgia State Senate for unanimously passing important legislation (S.B. 316) to secure access to needed health insurance for approximately 2,000 Georgians suffering from kidney failure. The bill, which was originally introduced by Senators Don Thomas (R-Dalton) and Ed Harbison (D-Columbus), has received support from across the patient advocacy community and legislators alike.

20 Feb 2010

Health care fraud: Massachusetts hospital to pay $2.79M for settling False Claims Act allegations

Mercy Hospital Inc. (d/b/a Mercy Medical Center) of Springfield, Mass., has agreed to pay the United States $2,799,462 to settle claims that it violated the False Claims Act between 2005 and 2006 by failing to provide, or failing to document that it provided, the minimum number of hours of rehabilitation therapy required under Medicare guidelines, the Justice Department announced today.

20 Feb 2010

Obama plans to offer own health bill before summit as parties stake claims

President Obama will offer "comprehensive" health reform legislation in advance of next week's planned summit with Republicans, The New York Times reports. "Democratic officials said the president's proposal was being written so that it could be attached to a budget bill as a way of averting a Republican filibuster in the Senate. The procedure, known as budget reconciliation, would let Democrats advance the bill with a simple majority rather than a 60-vote supermajority."

20 Feb 2010

Stalled health bills could lead to increase in hospital mergers

Some analysts expect an increase in hospital mergers if health care overhaul remains stalled and the head of the Cleveland Clinic discusses why he thinks an overhaul won't lower health costs.

20 Feb 2010

A selection of today's opinions and editorials

All of us who have been at this task before understand three important realities: One, no president who has launched such an effort unsuccessfully has ever been able to relaunch; two, the Senate legislation, at least, has been the product of much bipartisan effort over the last several years, even though no Republican senators voted for it, and three, the status quo costs and quality of this country's health care system are totally unacceptable -- to the health care industry and to those who depend on it (Dave Durenberger, 2/18).

19 Feb 2010

Loxogon's new healthcare software application integrates multiple hospital information systems in real-time

Loxogon, Inc. today announced the release of a new healthcare software application specializing in operational intelligence solutions.

19 Feb 2010

Medicare Advantage premiums jump 14 percent

The Associated Press: "Millions of seniors who signed up for popular private health plans through Medicare are facing sharp premium increases this year — another sign that spiraling costs are a problem even for those with solid insurance. A study to be released Friday ... found that premiums for Medicare Advantage plans offering medical and prescription drug coverage jumped 14.2 percent on average in 2010, after an increase of only 5.2 percent the previous year. Some 8.5 million elderly and disabled Americans are in the plans, which provide more comprehensive coverage than traditional Medicare."

19 Feb 2010

HMS reports financial results for fourth-quarter and full-year ended December 31, 2009

HMS today announced financial results for its fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2009.

19 Feb 2010

LifePoint Hospitals reports fourth-quarter and full-year 2009 financial results

LifePoint Hospitals, Inc. today announced results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009.

19 Feb 2010

Medicare News and Research

Committee calls for strategies to curb hypertension

Health Net and Stanford University team up to provide healthcare benefits for students

Omega Healthcare Investors declares net income of $16.2M for fourth-quarter 2009

Nursing workforce issues: An expanded role for nurse practitioners, Calif. doctors sue for supervision of nurse anesthetists

Medicaid cuts hurt Calif. dental coverage, drive away doctors in Okla; Public hospitals in NYC fear possible reductions

Study shows hospitals costs vary widely and are not associated with quality of care

GOP plans to attend health summit as Obama calls for compromise

Shire reports total revenues of $3,008 million for 2009

During open enrollment Medicare recipients may make changes to their Medicare Advantage coverage

Pelosi releases statement on HHS Secretary's decision to increase aid to states for Medicare Part D payment

Research Roundup: Financing boomers' care; California's budget cuts; Racial disparities in surgical outcomes

Georgia State Senate praised for passing legislation to help kidney failure patients have access to health insurance

Health care fraud: Massachusetts hospital to pay $2.79M for settling False Claims Act allegations

Obama plans to offer own health bill before summit as parties stake claims

Stalled health bills could lead to increase in hospital mergers

A selection of today's opinions and editorials

Loxogon's new healthcare software application integrates multiple hospital information systems in real-time

Medicare Advantage premiums jump 14 percent

HMS reports financial results for fourth-quarter and full-year ended December 31, 2009

LifePoint Hospitals reports fourth-quarter and full-year 2009 financial results

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