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D.C., Minnesota march forward with online insurance marketplace

With less than three months until its go-live date, District officials say the city's health insurance exchange is already functioning as planned by one important measure: prices. City insurance regulators announced Friday that they have finishing granting approval to the plans set to be offered on the exchange, known as D.C. Health Link, starting Oct. 1. Four insurers are offering 301 different plans, and three of the four lowered their prices from their initial proposals after learning what their competitors were planning to charge (DeBonis, 7/19).

23 Jul 2013

Incentives for Ontario surgeons drive greater use of laparoscopic colon cancer surgery

Financial incentives for Ontario surgeons are likely a key factor driving greater use of laparoscopic colon cancer surgery, says a study led by a McMaster University surgeon.

23 Jul 2013

GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences launches new office to improve medical care

The GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences is pleased to announce the establishment of the Office of Clinical Practice Innovation. The new office will serve as the organizational home for developing and evaluating clinical interventions to improve medical care.

23 Jul 2013

Understanding cancer at source could improve disease prevention

A new disease is affecting developing countries, deadlier than malaria, AIDS and tuberculosis combined. With changes in lifestyles, cancer is spreading in southern countries.

23 Jul 2013

Capsules: Humana fills blank spots in Mississippi Obamacare map

Now on Kaiser Health News' blog, Jay Hancock reports: "Filling a potential coverage void, Humana Inc. said Friday it will sell health insurance in 36 Mississippi counties that might have otherwise been left out of a marketplace for subsidized policies sold under the Affordable Care Act" (Hancock, 7/19).

23 Jul 2013

Potential breakthrough to help prevent diabetes

The resistance to insulin seen in type 2 diabetics is caused partly by the lack of a protein that has not previously been associated with diabetes. This breakthrough could potentially help to prevent diabetes.

23 Jul 2013

Research findings on brain development may shed light on neurological disorders

Dennis O'Leary of the Salk Institute was the first scientist to show that the basic functional architecture of the cortex, the largest part of the human brain, was genetically determined during development.

23 Jul 2013

Investigating one of the 'fundamental flaws' in the pricing of health care

The Washington Post investigates how the use of data plays into what some view as a distortion in physician pay.

23 Jul 2013

Study helps explain why some people contract bacterial super-infections

A recent study published in the July issue of the Journal of Immunology helps explain why some humans contract bacterial super-infections like pneumonia with influenza. The research was led by Le Bonheur Pediatrician-in-Chief Jon McCullers, MD - an infectious disease specialist who is also chair of the Department of Pediatrics for the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and adjunct faculty at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

23 Jul 2013

New life for 'Death Panel' bill, but same fights loom

One lawmaker has reintroduced his bill that would pay Medicare doctors for having "end-of-life" conversations with patients -- an idea that has bitterly divided Congress in the past. In the meantime, another lawmaker wants to change -- and simplify -- Medicare's reimbursement coding system.

23 Jul 2013

Study documents reversal of established medical practices in last decade

While there is an expectation that newer medical practices improve the standard of care, the history of medicine reveals many instances in which this has not been the case. Reversal of established medical practice occurs when new studies contradict current practice. Reporters may remember hormone replacement therapy as an example of medical reversal. A new analysis published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings documents 146 contemporary medical practices that have subsequently been reversed.

23 Jul 2013

Researchers develop microbial washing technique to decontaminate fetal tissues

The use of central nervous system fetal tissues derived from routine elective abortions to provide stem cells for transplantation procedures aimed at restoring damage done by neurodegenerative diseases is an established therapy.

23 Jul 2013

IT issues pose challenges for health law

News outlets also report on how other changes are affecting small business owners, hospitals and students.

23 Jul 2013

Health care professionals face workplace risks, on-the-job injuries

Healthcare workers -- particularly nurses, nurses' aides, orderlies, and attendants -- suffer more musculoskeletal injuries than those working in any other field, a Public Citizen report found. Those injuries cost the U.S. about $7 billion each year, according to the Public Citizen report, which was written by Keith Wrightson and Taylor Lincoln, both of the organization's Congress Watch division. The increased number of on-the-job injuries may be the result of comparatively sparse rates of safety inspections at healthcare facilities, according to 2010 data from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Petrochko, 7/19).

23 Jul 2013

Melatonin pre-treatment greatly increases cell survival, say researchers

When melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland, was used as a pre-treatment for mesenchymal stem cells prior to their transplantation into the brains of laboratory animals to repair damage from stroke, researchers in China found that the stem cells survived longer after transplantation. Previous studies had shown that 80 percent of transplanted MSCs died within 72 hours of transplantation.

23 Jul 2013

Study shows integrative approach reduces pain severity, improves mood and quality of life

An integrative approach to treating chronic pain significantly reduces pain severity while improving mood and quality of life, according to a new study from the Bravewell Practice-Based Research Network (BraveNet) published last month in BioMed Central Complementary and Alternative Medicine journal.

23 Jul 2013

Researchers suggest new key to switch off signaling pathways that lead to hypertension

A team of University of California, San Diego researchers has designed new compounds that mimic those naturally used by the body to regulate blood pressure. The most promising of them may literally be the key to controlling hypertension, switching off the signaling pathways that lead to the deadly condition.

23 Jul 2013

Findings show oxytocin strengthens bad memories and increases fear, anxiety

It turns out the love hormone oxytocin is two-faced. Oxytocin has long been known as the warm, fuzzy hormone that promotes feelings of love, social bonding and well-being. It's even being tested as an anti-anxiety drug. But new Northwestern Medicine- research shows oxytocin also can cause emotional pain, an entirely new, darker identity for the hormone.

23 Jul 2013

Anthem Blue Cross won't join California's small business exchange

The move by California's largest insurer for small businesses raised concerns about the state's ability to offer competitive rates. Meanwhile, Humana will step in to fill a potential insurance void in Mississippi, offering coverage in 36 counties where no other plans had been slated to be sold.

23 Jul 2013

Animal model of human norovirus lays groundwork for developing antiviral drug treatment

An animal model of the human norovirus created at the University of Michigan Health System lays the groundwork for understanding the biology of the pesky virus and developing antiviral drug treatment.

23 Jul 2013