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Research roundup: Unraveling why elderly men are tested for prostate cancer; Difficulty paying medical bills

Medical Center Characteristics Associated With PSA Screenings In Elderly Veterans With Limited Life Expectancy -- Medical guidelines recommend against prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screenings for prostate cancer in men with limited life expectancy, but studies have shown that many elderly men still get the test.

23 Dec 2011

Health care issues leaving mark on presidential race

President Obama is busy touting his health law, while Mitt Romney argues that an individual mandate in Massachusetts is a "conservative" idea. In the meantime, the Associated Press examines Newt Gingrich's past support of the Children's Health Insurance Program.

23 Dec 2011

Federal officials extend Medicaid waiver for Mass.

The federal government on Tuesday extended a Medicaid waiver in Massachusetts, which was first implemented as part of then-Gov. Mitt Romney's healthcare overhaul. The waiver will now run through 2014. It is focused primarily on efforts to improve the cost and quality of the Medicaid program and better coordinate care. The waiver provides incentives for hospitals to improve their efforts to integrate their services.

22 Dec 2011

Research roundup: Insurance coverage in the Great Recession; PCIP vs. CHIP

The researchers how physicians examined claims of lower back back pain and note that part of the "rising economic cost of this epidemic is the burgeoning use of indiscriminate imaging," specifically MRIs. Researchers divided patients into two groups and "the treating physician in group 1 patients was blinded to the MRI results, while the physician for group 2 patients decided on treatment after reviewing the MRI findings."

17 Dec 2011

Children of childhood cancer survivors do not have increased risk for birth defects

A large, retrospective study of the children of childhood cancer survivors who were treated with radiation therapy and/or some forms of chemotherapy found that the offspring do not have an increased risk for birth defects compared to children of cancer survivors who did not receive such treatments.

14 Dec 2011

Many parents do not think their teens are at risk for noise-induced hearing loss

National data demonstrate that 1 in 6 U.S. adolescents has high-frequency hearing loss. A new report from the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health shows that many parents don't think their teens are at risk.

13 Dec 2011

Magellan launches Community Impact Report

Magellan Health Services released today its Community Impact Report, detailing the company's efforts to leverage its specialty health expertise in support of local communities and organizations across the country.

12 Dec 2011

Children in Yemen at increased risk as rebel group restricts aid access

IRIN examines how a ban on aid by an armed rebel group in northern Yemen is putting children's health at risk, writing, "Thousands of people under 'siege' by armed rebels in northern Yemen lack food and health care, which has already resulted in deaths and risks killing many more, local leaders and aid workers say."

9 Dec 2011

Many Americans lost health insurance coverage during 2007-09 recession

An estimated 9.3 million American adults lost health insurance coverage as a result of increased unemployment during the recession of 2007-09, according to a newly published study by researchers at Cornell, Indiana and Carnegie Mellon universities.

9 Dec 2011

Medicaid news: Ariz. appeals court upholds cuts; federal spending increases

In the Arizona decision, a three-judge panel allows an enrollment freeze to continue. Meanwhile, a new analysis finds federal spending on Medicaid nationwide increased 344 percent between 1990 and 2007.

8 Dec 2011

Roundup: Ariz. examines complaints of prisoners' medical health care; Calif. settles suit on kids' mental health services

To stave off a lawsuit, Arizona's Department of Corrections has agreed to investigate scores of complaints by inmates that they are routinely denied medical care for weeks or months even for severe, life-threatening conditions. Inmates who have lost sight, had body parts amputated or been severely disfigured, among other gruesome examples, say proper medical care could have prevented needless suffering.

6 Dec 2011

New HRSA report: 14 to 19% of U.S. children have special health care need

In the first national report that compares the health and well-being of children with special health care needs to those children without, findings revealed that 14 to 19 percent of children in the United States have a special health care need, representing more than one in five households with children.

5 Dec 2011

Reporters examine health care stances of Gingrich, Romney, Bachmann, Santorum

If Republicans are flocking to Newt Gingrich to get away from Mitt Romney's health care problems, they could end up with a nominee with … awfully similar health care problems. Or maybe worse: While Romney signed a state mandate into law, Gingrich once went a step further and advocated a federal one.

1 Dec 2011

Fewer uninsured kids even as adult numbers rise

A new study by Georgetown University credits the health law as having a 'key role' in the increase in children's health insurance coverage.

1 Dec 2011

Car seats sufficiently accommodate broad spectrum of children's body sizes

Researchers at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's Center for Injury Research and Prevention studied nearly 1,000 1- to 8-year-old children involved in crashes and found no evidence of increased injury risk for children across a broad weight range. All of the children included in the study were properly restrained in the correct child safety seat or booster seat for their height and weight.

30 Nov 2011

WHO director-general Chan nominated for second term

The WHO "said on Monday it has received just one application for the U.N. health agency's top post," which was submitted by China and nominated Margaret Chan, the current WHO director-general and former Hong Kong health chief, Agence France-Presse reports.

23 Nov 2011

U-M ranks sixth among all medical schools in NIH funding

Research at the University of Michigan Medical School brought hundreds of millions of dollars into the state of Michigan in the last year - and could have a total economic impact of nearly $1.2 billion, new data show.

22 Nov 2011

Sedentary behaviour may have different consequences for young people's health

Physical activity will definitely lower children's chances of developing cardiovascular disease down the road, but physical inactivity will not necessarily increase it. Findings from a recent Queen's University study shows different kinds of sedentary behaviour may have different consequences for young people's health.

17 Nov 2011

Grants up to $30 million for those with innovative ideas for healthcare

The Obama administration on Monday announced a $1 billion federal fund allocation for last year's health reform law to be channeled toward innovation programs designed to boost jobs and improve patient care.

16 Nov 2011

White House continues to push health care policies, sidestepping Congress

Using executive branch powers, the Obama administration has laid out new steps to cut fraud in Medicare and Medicaid, and announced that $1 billion of federal funding will go toward innovation programs designed to boost jobs and improve patient care. The president also offered comment on the super committee's progress.

16 Nov 2011