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Bristol-Myers Squibb reports 11% increase in first-quarter 2010 revenue

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company today reported strong sales and earnings growth for the first quarter of 2010.

30 Apr 2010

Celgene's first-quarter non-GAAP total revenue up 31% to $789 million

Celgene Corporation announced non-GAAP net income of $294.6 million, or non-GAAP diluted earnings per share of $0.63 for the quarter ended March 31, 2010. Non-GAAP net income for the first quarter of 2009 was $205.1 million or non-GAAP diluted earnings per share of $0.44. Based on U.S. GAAP, Celgene reported net income of $234.4 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.50 for the quarter ended March 31, 2010. GAAP net income for the first quarter of 2009 was $162.9 million, or diluted earnings per share of $0.35.

29 Apr 2010

Mass. legislation to push poor seniors into managed care plans stirs concerns

Legislation that could push more than 100,000 low-income senior citizens in Massachusetts into managed care health plans spurred intense lobbying yesterday, as consumer advocates argued the measure would strip patients of their freedom to stay in traditional Medicare, while proponents said it could save the state significant money.

29 Apr 2010

Kinetic Concepts' first-quarter 2010 total revenues increase 3% to $485.8M

Kinetic Concepts, Inc. today reported first quarter 2010 total revenue of $485.8 million, an increase of 3% from the first quarter of 2009. Foreign currency exchange movements favorably impacted total revenue for the first quarter of 2010 by 2% compared to the corresponding period of the prior year.

27 Apr 2010

Centene's first-quarter Premium and Service Revenues up 12.5% to $1.022 billion

Centene Corporation today announced its financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2010. The results of operations for our New Jersey health plan, University Health Plans, are classified as discontinued operations. The discussions below, with the exception of cash flow information, are in the context of continuing operations and all financial ratios exclude premium taxes.

27 Apr 2010

Advair to remain favored fixed-dose LABA/ICS combination therapy through 2013 for asthma and COPD

Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that, despite increased competition from several emerging agents, GlaxoSmithKline's Advair will remain surveyed pulmonologists' and primary care physicians' (PCPs) favored fixed-dose long-acting beta2 agonist (LABA)/inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) combination inhaler through 2013 for the treatment of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

27 Apr 2010

Aetna Better Health, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia reach agreement for Medicaid program

Aetna Better Health in Pennsylvania and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia announced today that they have reached agreement on a new contract that adds the hospital to the Medicaid provider's network in Pennsylvania. The new contract is effective immediately.

27 Apr 2010

States struggle to balance budgets with Medicaid changes

Health News Florida: A provision in Florida's state budget bill that would have reformed the state's Medicaid system has been officially dropped by state legislators. "The House proposed a sweeping plan that gradually would have led to almost all Medicaid recipients enrolling in managed-care plans, while the Senate proposed a smaller expansion of a pilot managed-care program.

27 Apr 2010

Court upholds Maine's ruling to cut insurance premium hikes; Florida voters to decide whether to amend constitution to fight federal mandate

The Wall Street Journal: "A state court upheld a Maine official's decision to deny a profit margin for a WellPoint Inc. unit in a health-insurance rate request—a ruling that may resonate in other states where regulators are battling premium hikes. Thomas E. Humphrey, chief justice of the Maine superior court, wrote that the approved 2009 rate for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield's individual health-insurance product line met the state's legal standard and wasn't 'inadequate'" (Matthews, 4/23).

24 Apr 2010

Colorado Governor moves forward with implementing reforms; Nevada community health centers feel financial pinch

In Colorado, "Gov. Bill Ritter signed four bills he promised will rein in skyrocketing health care costs on Tuesday and appointed a director who will oversee 10 state agencies to implement the Obama administration's new health care plan.

22 Apr 2010

MedAssets, Cullman Regional Medical Center announce transformational revenue cycle agreement

MedAssets, Inc. today announced that it entered into a transformational revenue cycle agreement with Cullman Regional Medical Center, based in Cullman, Ala. to improve the provider's business office operations.

22 Apr 2010

As more reform specifics emerge, so do questions, answers and impacts

As details of health reform policies shake out, questions, answers and consequences are emerging.

22 Apr 2010

Florida House approves expanding Medicaid managed care; Kansas weighs proposal to raise nursing home fees

Calling the current system 'broken' and warning of long-term financial problems, the state House today approved a proposal that would gradually shift almost all Medicaid recipients into managed-care plans. The votes on two bills set the stage for the House and Senate to try to reach agreement on a Medicaid overhaul before the annual legislative session ends April 30.

21 Apr 2010

National health care reform package promises to reduce number of uninsured Americans

The national health care reform package signed by President Obama recently promises to significantly reduce the number of uninsured Americans. According to the Congressional Budget Office, 31 million Americans who are currently uninsured will gain health care coverage under the federal legislation.

20 Apr 2010

State Roundup: Calif. hospitals billing questioned; N.Y. hospitals among the weakest financially in the nation

The Sacramento Bee: An analysis of financial data from 300 California hospitals "shows they collected $25 billion from insurance companies between September 2008 and October 2009 - an increase of more than a third since 2005. Hospitals are charging insurance companies, and by extension their customers, billions of dollars for expenses not directly related to care.

20 Apr 2010

Generex Biotechnology announces plan to obtain cost reimbursement coverage for Generex Oal-lyn

Generex Biotechnology Corporation, the leader in drug delivery for metabolic diseases through the inner lining of the mouth, today announced that it has established an action plan for obtaining cost reimbursement coverage for Generex Oal-lyn™, including the development of an insurance product that covers the costs of Generex Oral-lyn™ and any additional and/or comparable diabetes products.

19 Apr 2010

Healthyroads announces new partnership status with NAQC

Healthyroads, the wellness subsidiary of American Specialty Health Incorporated, announced its new partnership status with the North American Quitline Consortium and its approval to serve as an authorized quitline vendor in the state of Michigan.

19 Apr 2010

State round-up: Penn. Medicare advantage; N.J. cuts immigrant care; Hospitals face hardships

Independence Blue Cross has lost 30 percent of its Medicare managed-care members in the region this year in the wake of federal government rate cuts as its major competitors saw enrollment gains. The cuts came after the Philadelphia insurer eliminated some product offerings for senior adults and raised rates for others.

17 Apr 2010

Private insurers seek to help states manage Medicaid expansion

The Wall Street Journal reports on plans by the health insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc. to issue a report Thursday on managed care strategies that "it says will help cash-strapped states solve budget problems and doctor shortages that hobble the government health-care programs for the poor."

16 Apr 2010

First Edition: April 15, 2010

In today's headlines: The jobless benefits package, including a COBRA subsidy extension and Medicare-doctor pay fix, advances in the Senate. In the House, a committee chairman cancels a hearing on business health care complaints.

15 Apr 2010

Managed Care News and Research

Bristol-Myers Squibb reports 11% increase in first-quarter 2010 revenue

Celgene's first-quarter non-GAAP total revenue up 31% to $789 million

Mass. legislation to push poor seniors into managed care plans stirs concerns

Kinetic Concepts' first-quarter 2010 total revenues increase 3% to $485.8M

Centene's first-quarter Premium and Service Revenues up 12.5% to $1.022 billion

Advair to remain favored fixed-dose LABA/ICS combination therapy through 2013 for asthma and COPD

Aetna Better Health, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia reach agreement for Medicaid program

States struggle to balance budgets with Medicaid changes

Court upholds Maine's ruling to cut insurance premium hikes; Florida voters to decide whether to amend constitution to fight federal mandate

Colorado Governor moves forward with implementing reforms; Nevada community health centers feel financial pinch

MedAssets, Cullman Regional Medical Center announce transformational revenue cycle agreement

As more reform specifics emerge, so do questions, answers and impacts

Florida House approves expanding Medicaid managed care; Kansas weighs proposal to raise nursing home fees

National health care reform package promises to reduce number of uninsured Americans

State Roundup: Calif. hospitals billing questioned; N.Y. hospitals among the weakest financially in the nation

Generex Biotechnology announces plan to obtain cost reimbursement coverage for Generex Oal-lyn

Healthyroads announces new partnership status with NAQC

State round-up: Penn. Medicare advantage; N.J. cuts immigrant care; Hospitals face hardships

Private insurers seek to help states manage Medicaid expansion

First Edition: April 15, 2010

Revolutionizing Life Science: An Interview with SCIEX on ASMS, the SCIEX 7500+ System, and AI-Driven Quantitation

From Discovery Biology to ELRIG Chair

Breathing New Life into Diagnostics: Plasmion's SICRIT Technology

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