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Theft of medical information becoming more common, USA Today reports

Hospitals and other medical settings are becoming a "hunting ground for identity thieves" who "use medical information to get credit card numbers, drain bank accounts or falsely bill Medicare and other insurers," according to some experts, USA Today reports.

7 May 2008

Lawmakers, industry reps, officials discuss Medicare competitive bidding program for durable medical equipment

During a House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee hearing Tuesday, lawmakers, officials and representatives of the durable medical equipment industry discussed a Medicare competitive bidding program, including the application process and possible alternatives to the program, CQ HealthBeat reports (Carey, CQ HealthBeat, 5/6).

7 May 2008

Medical research is essential to improving the economy and bettering lives

Health care in the United States is expensive, but its funding is crucial because it also is a major contributor to the economy and can better lives, according to an essay appearing in the June 2008 issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN). Because of the cost of health care, this is not time to shrink the budget at the National Institutes of Health, which funds medical research that leads to potentially curative therapy.

7 May 2008

House hearing to address concerns over Medicare durable medical equipment competitive bidding program

The House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee on Tuesday plans to hold a hearing on a Medicare competitive bidding program for durable medical equipment, CQ HealthBeat reports (Carey, CQ HealthBeat, 5/5).

6 May 2008

Erythropoietin gene linked to severe diabetic eye, kidney diseases

Researchers at the John A. Moran Eye Center at the University of Utah and collaborative institutions have identified a gene called erythropoietin (EPO) that contributes to increased risk of severe diabetic eye and kidney diseases, called retinopathy and nephropathy.

6 May 2008

Newspapers examine issues related to health care proposals of Presidential candidates

Several newspapers recently published articles that examined the health care proposals of presidential candidates Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y), Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.).

6 May 2008

Senate action on Medicare MD Pay Bill might be delayed due to Medicaid, war funding efforts, AARP lobbyist says

Senate action on legislation to delay a 10.6% Medicare physician fee cut might take a back seat to a supplemental spending bill for the Iraq war and a measure to delay new Medicaid regulations, AARP's lead lobbyist said on Friday, CQ HealthBeat reports. Kirsten Sloan, head of AARP's health legislative team, said efforts on the other two bills might delay the Medicare package until late May or early June.

6 May 2008

CMS announces decision on Medicare coverage of artificial hearts, long-term acute care hospital reimbursements

CMS recently announced a decision on Medicare coverage of artificial hearts and a final rule on reimbursements for long-term acute care hospitals.

6 May 2008

Some states to ask Congress to regulate marketing of private Medicare plans

State officials soon will ask Congress to grant them more regulatory authority over the marketing of private Medicare drug benefit and Medicare Advantage plans to respond to continuing complaints of aggressive marketing practices, the New York Times reports. In a draft report by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, state officials propose creating a set of marketing standards for private Medicare plans that states, if they adopt them, would enforce.

6 May 2008

Kidney disease substantially worsens in a fourth of African Americans despite therapy for hypertension

The best available treatment for chronic kidney disease from high blood pressure did not keep the disease from substantially worsening in about a fourth of African-Americans studied, according to long-term results of a National Institutes of Health study published April 28, 2008, in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

5 May 2008

HHS Secretary Leavitt urges lawmakers, public to 'start now' to make changes to Medicare

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt said Tuesday that it is "simply unreasonable" to think Medicare can maintain its solvency without changes to the program and that if "we start now, the change can be made over time and with genuine fairness," CQ HealthBeat reports.

30 Apr 2008

Presumptive GOP Presidential nominee McCain provides further detail on his health care proposal

Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) on Tuesday in a speech at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute in Tampa, Fla., detailed his health care proposal and for the first time proposed a plan to help individuals who cannot obtain private health insurance because of pre-existing medical conditions, the Miami Herald reports (Dorschner, Miami Herald, 4/30).

30 Apr 2008

Costs for elder care increase for fifth consecutive year, study finds

Costs for nursing homes, assisted living facilities and some in-home care services have increased for a fifth consecutive year and might continue to increase as a result of an expected shortage of long-term health care workers, according to a study released on Tuesday by Genworth Financial, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports.

30 Apr 2008

More than half of U.S. hospitals insolvent, near insolvency, study finds

More than half of U.S. hospitals are "teetering on the brink of insolvency" or have become insolvent because they do not treat an adequate number of patients to provide sufficient revenue, according to a study recently released by Alvarez & Marsal, the Wall Street Journal reports.

30 Apr 2008

House members discuss SCHIP, Medicare, Medicaid during debate in Cincinnati

A bipartisan group of eight House members on Monday discussed several health care issues -- such as SCHIP, Medicare and Medicaid -- during a debate at Cincinnati Children's Hospital, The Hill reports.

29 Apr 2008

McCain promotes health care proposal at Miami Children's Hospital

Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) on Monday at the Miami Children's Hospital promoted his health care proposal, which he said would "put families in charge," USA Today reports (Jackson, USA Today, 4/29).

29 Apr 2008

Humana reports Q1 revenue increase driven by Medicare Advantage plan performance

Humana on Monday announced that first-quarter revenue increased by 12% to $6.96 billion from $6.20 billion in the period last year, driven by higher-than-average enrollment in the company's Medicare Advantage plans, the Wall Street Journal reports.

29 Apr 2008

Medicare costs estimated at $21.1 billion for 5 years of care for elderly cancer patients

The cost of cancer care for elderly Medicare patients varies by tumor type, stage at diagnosis, phase of care, and survival, according to a new study published online April 29 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

29 Apr 2008

Wall Street Journal examines Presidential candidate proposals to address health care costs

Presidential candidates Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.) each have announced proposals that seek to reduce health care costs, but "it is unclear how many of the candidates' ideas could actually make a dent in the rising cost of care," the Wall Street Journal reports

28 Apr 2008

HHS Secretary Leavitt says rising Medicare costs will cause generational divide

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt in an interview with the Washington Times said he is concerned that rising Medicare spending could "divide our nation along generational lines."

26 Apr 2008

Medicare News and Research

Theft of medical information becoming more common, USA Today reports

Lawmakers, industry reps, officials discuss Medicare competitive bidding program for durable medical equipment

Medical research is essential to improving the economy and bettering lives

House hearing to address concerns over Medicare durable medical equipment competitive bidding program

Erythropoietin gene linked to severe diabetic eye, kidney diseases

Newspapers examine issues related to health care proposals of Presidential candidates

Senate action on Medicare MD Pay Bill might be delayed due to Medicaid, war funding efforts, AARP lobbyist says

CMS announces decision on Medicare coverage of artificial hearts, long-term acute care hospital reimbursements

Some states to ask Congress to regulate marketing of private Medicare plans

Kidney disease substantially worsens in a fourth of African Americans despite therapy for hypertension

HHS Secretary Leavitt urges lawmakers, public to 'start now' to make changes to Medicare

Presumptive GOP Presidential nominee McCain provides further detail on his health care proposal

Costs for elder care increase for fifth consecutive year, study finds

More than half of U.S. hospitals insolvent, near insolvency, study finds

House members discuss SCHIP, Medicare, Medicaid during debate in Cincinnati

McCain promotes health care proposal at Miami Children's Hospital

Humana reports Q1 revenue increase driven by Medicare Advantage plan performance

Medicare costs estimated at $21.1 billion for 5 years of care for elderly cancer patients

Wall Street Journal examines Presidential candidate proposals to address health care costs

HHS Secretary Leavitt says rising Medicare costs will cause generational divide

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