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HHS identifies overpayments to Medicare advantage plans but doesn't recover funds

Medicare auditors found the government overpaid the plans hundreds of millions of dollars but in 2013 opted to scrap such reviews, the Center for Public Integrity writes. Meanwhile, Modern Healthcare looks at Medicare's difficult job in dealing with safety failures.

9 Jun 2014

NCOA brings innovative online support program to help people manage type 2 diabetes

Under a unique collaboration, the National Council on Aging with support from the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation and WellPoint are—for the first time—bringing a proven and affordable face-to-face and online support program to help people manage their Type 2 diabetes.

6 Jun 2014

CBO to stop scoring some parts of the health law

The congressional budget analysts announce that they will continue to track the financial impact of the marketplaces and the Medicaid expansion program, but not some of the other smaller changes made under the law. Meanwhile, a new strategy for employers who provide health care is coming under scrutiny.

5 Jun 2014

Congress supports full Medicare coverage of lung cancer screening for seniors

A large number of United States Senators and Representatives are taking the lead to support full Medicare coverage of low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening for seniors at high risk for lung cancer.

5 Jun 2014

N.C. cuts could mean 15,000 lose Medicaid coverage

Advocates railed against the $60 million shortfall -- created after federal regulators rejected a plan to tax Medicaid managed care providers -- and urged lawmakers to reject a budget that includes the cuts.

5 Jun 2014

Medicare data highlight variations in hospital charges, increased costs for common ailments

The data, released Monday by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, include 2012 prices for the most common inpatient stays at 3,376 hospitals.

4 Jun 2014

$Vitamin D with calcium can protect against risk of common bone fractures for seniors$

Vitamin D with calcium can protect against risk of common bone fractures for seniors

For seniors over the age of 65, taking a daily supplement of vitamin D with calcium—but not vitamin D alone—can offer some protection against the risk of common bone fractures, according to an updated review from The Cochrane Library.

4 Jun 2014

First Edition: June 3, 2014

Today's headlines include coverage of Medicare data released Monday indicating that 2012 charges for some common inpatient hospital procedures dramatically increased over the previous year.

From Medtronic 3 Jun 2014

State highlights: NYC plan for treating mentally ill; Kan. town gets abortion services again; Iowa medical marijuana

Mayor Bill de Blasio has asked several of his commissioners and aides to provide him with a plan by September to reduce the rate of incarceration among New Yorkers with mental illness. The effort, which City Hall will announce on Monday, is the administration's first major criminal justice initiative. Named the Task Force on Behavioral Health and the Criminal Justice System, it will include recommendations from the police and correction commissioners, the Manhattan district attorney, hospital administrators and judges (Goldstein, 6/1).

3 Jun 2014

Medicare to cover sex-change surgery

The ruling, handed down Friday by a Department of Health and Human Services appeals board, reverses a Medicare policy in place since 1981. It covers surgery, but not other treatments like hormones.

3 Jun 2014

Regular exercise in old age helps reduce symptoms of physical decline, find researchers

The majority of adults aged 65 and older remains inactive and fails to meet recommended physical activity guidelines, previous research has shown.

3 Jun 2014

First Edition: June 2, 2014

Today's headlines include reports about state health law implementation activities as well as the next steps regarding the difficulties at the VA health system.

2 Jun 2014

Ventas to deliver presentation at NAREIT REITWeek 2014 Conference, New York

Ventas, Inc. ("Ventas" or the "Company") announced today that management will make a presentation regarding the Company at the NAREIT REITWeek 2014 Conference in New York, New York on Wednesday, June 4, 2014, at 3:45 p.m. Eastern Time.

31 May 2014

Medicare intends to penalize hospitals for giving followup care to seniors

Medicare has announced plans to penalize 2,633 hospitals for giving followup care to seniors, even if the care was appropriate.

30 May 2014

Innovative device has potential to reduce hemorrhage, save lives

Removing a malignant tumor from the head of the pancreas is a risky and demanding operation. The surgeon must carefully navigate around the stomach, the gallbladder, the bile duct, lymph nodes, and several high-pressure blood vessels.

29 May 2014

Viewpoints: Political stand-off on insurance industry safeguards; VA's problems may lie in how government works

The Obama administration calls it an adjustment, Republicans call it a bailout and insurance companies call it the one thing that might keep them from raising rates and angering policyholders.

28 May 2014

Capsules: Single-Payer advocates hit capitol with new sense of reality; Minnesota, Not Florida, not Hawaii, is healthiest state for seniors

Now on Kaiser Health News' blog, Julie Rovner reports on the single-payer message on Capitol Hill: "Advocates for a single-payer "Medicare for all" health system are fanning out across Capitol Hill this week, lobbying members of Congress.

23 May 2014

State highlights: New abortion restrictions in Louisiana; aging gracefully in the Gopher State

A bill that could result in the shuttering of up to four of Louisiana's five abortion clinics overwhelmingly received full passage from the Louisiana Legislature Wednesday (May 21), and Gov. Bobby Jindal has indicated he will sign it into law. The legislation is, in part, based on a similar measure passed in Texas last year and led to the closing of several abortion clinics in that state. In its last legislative hurdle, the House concurred an amendment on Wednesday (May 21) that was added to the bill on the Senate side (Lane, 5/22).

23 May 2014

First Edition: May 22, 2014

Today's headlines include coverage of the Senate Finance Committee vote to recommend Sylvia Mathews Burwell to head the Department of Health and Human Services.

22 May 2014

State highlights: Colo. targets non-compliant plans; San Francisco mental health program; age in place program in D.C.

A selection of health policy stories from Colorado, California, the District of Columbia and New York.

22 May 2014

Seniors News and Research

HHS identifies overpayments to Medicare advantage plans but doesn't recover funds

NCOA brings innovative online support program to help people manage type 2 diabetes

CBO to stop scoring some parts of the health law

Congress supports full Medicare coverage of lung cancer screening for seniors

N.C. cuts could mean 15,000 lose Medicaid coverage

Medicare data highlight variations in hospital charges, increased costs for common ailments

Vitamin D with calcium can protect against risk of common bone fractures for seniors

First Edition: June 3, 2014

State highlights: NYC plan for treating mentally ill; Kan. town gets abortion services again; Iowa medical marijuana

Medicare to cover sex-change surgery

Regular exercise in old age helps reduce symptoms of physical decline, find researchers

First Edition: June 2, 2014

Ventas to deliver presentation at NAREIT REITWeek 2014 Conference, New York

Medicare intends to penalize hospitals for giving followup care to seniors

Innovative device has potential to reduce hemorrhage, save lives

Viewpoints: Political stand-off on insurance industry safeguards; VA's problems may lie in how government works

Capsules: Single-Payer advocates hit capitol with new sense of reality; Minnesota, Not Florida, not Hawaii, is healthiest state for seniors

State highlights: New abortion restrictions in Louisiana; aging gracefully in the Gopher State

First Edition: May 22, 2014

State highlights: Colo. targets non-compliant plans; San Francisco mental health program; age in place program in D.C.

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