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Bush promotes health care proposals

Initiatives that encourage U.S. residents to purchase health insurance through the private insurance market are the best way to expand coverage and reduce health care costs, President Bush said Thursday while visiting a Missouri hospital to promote the health care proposals he outlined earlier this week in his State of the Union address, the Washington Post reports

28 Jan 2007

Government has overpaid private Medicare Advantage plans by billions of dollars

Incoming House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health Chair Pete Stark (D-Calif.) on Thursday said that the federal government has overpaid private Medicare Advantage plans by billions of dollars, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

2 Dec 2006

LaVeist named inaugural William C. and Nancy F. Richardson Professor in health policy

The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has named Thomas A. LaVeist, PhD, the inaugural William C. and Nancy F. Richardson Professor in Health Policy. LaVeist, a leader in the study of minority health and the elimination of health disparities, was officially installed during a ceremony at the Bloomberg School of Public Health on November 10.

13 Nov 2006

Most working adults shopping for individual insurance turned down or found it too costly

Of working-age U.S. residents who sought individual health coverage in the last three years, 89% were rejected for medical reasons or felt that the available plans were unaffordable, according to a study released last week by the Commonwealth Fund, the Los Angeles Times reports.

18 Sep 2006

New England Journal of Medicine examines West Virginia's new Medicaid program

Two perspective pieces from the New England Journal of Medicine examine West Virginia's new Medicaid program, which will allow 160,000 Medicaid beneficiaries -- many of whom are parents of children enrolled in the program -- to sign a "personal responsibility contract."

28 Aug 2006

Generosity of health insurance plans varies widely by state

Employees in the smallest firms (1-9 workers) pay an average 18% more in health insurance premiums than those in the largest firms (1,000+ workers), when actuarial value - the percentage of total medical expenses paid by a health plan - is taken into account, a new Commonwealth Fund-supported study finds.

10 May 2006

Attention doctors: Want patients to follow your advice? Treat them with dignity

In a national survey of more than 5,000 Americans, those who said they were treated with dignity during their last medical encounter were more likely to report higher levels of satisfaction with their care, adhere to therapy and get preventive services.

1 Sep 2005

The picture looks grim for older Americans when it comes to health insurance

A new survey has found that almost 70 percent of older Americans in order to cover medical expenses in their later years, endorse the concept of individual health savings accounts.

29 Jun 2005

Leading patient safety advocates assess progress in reducing medical error five years after landmark IOM report

It has been five years since the release of the Institute of Medicine’s landmark report on medical errors, “To Err is Human.” What progress has been made to improve patient safety since the report found that nearly 100,000 deaths occur annually as a result of medical error?

18 May 2005

Survey finds four in ten seniors do not take medications as prescribed

Four in 10 seniors told researchers in a recent national survey that they haven’t taken all the drugs their doctors prescribed for them in the past year – either because the costs were too high, because they didn’t think the drugs were helping them, or because they didn’t think they needed them.

19 Apr 2005

Race appears to be a factor in how doctors communicate with their patients

Race appears to be a factor in how doctors communicate with their patients, according to a new study of primary care visits conducted by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and School of Medicine.

22 Dec 2004

NHS patients 'not fully engaged' with their own healthcare

NHS patients lag behind other western countries in actively involving patients and communities in healthcare, says an editorial in this week's BMJ.

18 Nov 2004

Health care plans not likely to curb health care costs

Consumer-directed health care (CDHC) - high-deductible plans often touted as the answer to spiraling health care costs - is not likely to curb health care costs, and could even worsen health outcomes by reducing patients' receipt of needed preventive care and care for chronic conditions, says a new report from The Commonwealth Fund.

22 Aug 2004

Despite spending more for health care, Americans do not have the best medical care in the world

Despite spending more for health care, Americans do not have the best medical care in the world, according to researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and other institutions.

6 May 2004

NYU School of Medicine and Bellevue to examine health issues in hispanic population

Renowned Latino leaders in the health and political community will gather at a free two-day conference to discuss issues affecting the community at “Latino Health: Progress through Action”.

27 Apr 2004