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New data shows Ohio children with special health care needs have inadequate insurance coverage

A third of Ohio children with special health care needs have unstable or inadequate insurance coverage despite the fact that they may qualify for government health programs, according to a new data analysis by the Child Policy Research Center at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

16 Jun 2010

Supreme Court to hear case on overcrowding and medical needs of Calif. prisoners; Ohio state employees have unusual situation covering adult children

Agreeing to hear an appeal from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, the U.S. Supreme Court said Monday it will decide whether the state can be forced to release 46,000 inmates — more than one-fourth of its prison population — to relieve overcrowding. The justices said they would hear the case in the fall and rule early next year.

16 Jun 2010

Sanofi-aventis signs definitive agreement to acquire assets of Canderm

Sanofi-aventis announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement under which an affiliate of sanofi-aventis Canada Inc. is to acquire the assets of Canderm Pharma Inc., a privately-held leading Canadian skin care company. This agreement is consistent with the sanofi-aventis Group's global strategy to expand its consumer health care growth platform and follows on the heels of the Group's acquisition of the North American CHC company Chattem Inc. in March 2010.

16 Jun 2010

Health insurance issues: State regulators wary of health law, Medicare Advantage star system

News outlets report on changes to the individual health insurance market and Medicare Advantage plans under the new health law.

16 Jun 2010

Both sides try to score political points on health law

NPR: Both Democrats and Republicans are continuing efforts to use the health reform law to their advantage as the American public sorts outs its feelings on the subject. "The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is trying to get Republicans on the record about repeal. And Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, the head of the Democrats' House campaign committee, is happy to talk about his opponents' position.

16 Jun 2010

Inability of Mass. to curb health costs could be harbinger for national efforts

Last week, Massachusetts health reform "advocates celebrated a new report showing that, despite the devastating economic slump, the vast majority of Massachusetts residents had not dropped health insurance coverage." But also in the headlines were reports that "a state official called Massachusetts's decision to reject the vast majority of insurer rate hikes a 'train wreck' that would very likely lead to the insolvency of some companies.

16 Jun 2010

UOHI tests Canada's first in-hospital program to screen and treat patients for diabetes

The University of Ottawa Heart Institute is testing Canada's first in-hospital program to screen and treat patients for diabetes, a growing epidemic in much of the Western world. The program is expected to lead to new ways to identify and cope with one of the most important risk factors for heart disease, particularly in women.

16 Jun 2010

Employer health costs slowing, but still face 9 percent increase in 2011

PriceWaterhouseCoopers is estimating that employer health costs will rise 9 percent in 2011, slightly less than they rose in 2010, Reuters reports. "The PriceWaterhouseCoopers team questioned 700 companies in 30 industries for the report. About 60 percent of Americans under the age of 65 get health insurance through an employer. Health benefits are often a major part of any employee compensation package. Most employers, 63 percent, offer a [managed-care] preferred provider organization or PPO, the survey found. And many have raised the deductible, with 43 percent having a deductible of $400 or more, compared to 25 percent in 2009."

16 Jun 2010

WellPoint to begin offering 'electronic' house calls

The Indianapolis Star: "Indianapolis-based health insurance giant WellPoint unveiled a new program to give its members access to doctors and other health-care providers via the Internet. The house call would be initiated by a patient logging in for a video chat from work to describe a sore throat, or a parent at home texting about a child with poison ivy.

16 Jun 2010

Elite medical schools rate poorly on social mission

A new study ranking the social mission of medical schools puts historically black colleges on top and some Northeast private schools at the bottom.

16 Jun 2010

UIC receives $3M grant to evaluate comprehensive process for responding to patient harm events

The University of Illinois at Chicago's Institute for Patient Safety Excellence has received a $3 million grant to evaluate its comprehensive process for responding to patient harm events at nine other Chicago area hospitals.

16 Jun 2010

AmWINS Group Benefits re-launches EGWP program to help reverse negative effects of RDS

AmWINS Group Benefits launched the nation's first Employer Group Waiver Plan in 2006, and now in the wake of health care reform is re-launching their program as a direct and immediate approach to help reverse the negative effects of the Retiree Drug Subsidy, now taxable under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

15 Jun 2010

SBE Council: New regulations may impact health coverage for small businesses

Basic common sense made clear that ObamaCare would present major cost problems and lost insurance coverage and choices for small businesses and their employees. While the President and his supporters denied or ignored these facts during the debate over health care legislation, now internal administration documents confirm reality. Up to 80% of all small businesses may be forced to switch health care plans in order to conform to government requirements.

15 Jun 2010

Diversity publication recognizes UH as a leader among health care institutions

DiversityInc, a leading publication on diversity and business, has recognized University Hospitals as a leader among health care institutions in its first ever Top Hospital Systems listing.

15 Jun 2010

First Edition: June 15, 2010

Susan Jaffe, writing for Kaiser Health News in collaboration with The Washington Post, reports: "For consumers looking for bargains on refrigerators or restaurants, ratings can be helpful. But a score card doesn't work as well for selecting a Medicare private health plan" (Kaiser Health News).

15 Jun 2010

Central Washington Hospital improves patient experience with Toshiba' Vantage Titan MR system

In today's demanding health care environment, many community hospitals require imaging equipment that provides a variety of advanced diagnostic exams with features that improve patient cooperation. To offer a variety of high-quality, comfortable MR exams to its patients, Central Washington Hospital in Wenatchee, Wash., selected Toshiba America Medical Systems' Vantage TitanTM MR system.

15 Jun 2010

ACRO unveils survey findings on decline in physician participation in clinical research

Today, the Association of Clinical Research Organizations (ACRO) unveiled findings from a groundbreaking survey exploring the decline in physician participation in clinical research across the United States and Western European markets at the 46th Drug Information Association (DIA) annual meeting. Over the past decade, the number of physicians participating in clinical research has continued to decrease in the U.S. and countries in Western Europe while participation increased at double digit rates in Asia, Latin America and Central/Eastern Europe.

15 Jun 2010

New regulation on 'grandfathered' health plans

The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury today issued a new regulation that makes good on President Obama's promise that Americans who like their health plan can keep it.

15 Jun 2010

Alliance for a Healthier Generation recognizes 179 schools for increasing healthy eating, physical activity

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, founded by the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation, today recognized 179 schools that have transformed their campuses into healthier places for students and staff. President Bill Clinton, American Heart Association Chairman Neil Meltzer, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation President and CEO Dr. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey presented awards during an event in New York City.

15 Jun 2010

AMA's National Health Insurer Report Card helps improve claims processing performance

The American Medical Association today announced that one in five medical claims are processed inaccurately by health insurers, according to the AMA's third annual check-up of the nation's commercial health insurers and the systems they use to manage and pay claims. This was the key finding of the AMA's 2010 National Health Insurer Report Card, which for the first time, benchmarked the overall claims processing accuracy of the nation's largest health insurers.

15 Jun 2010

Health Care News and Research

New data shows Ohio children with special health care needs have inadequate insurance coverage

Supreme Court to hear case on overcrowding and medical needs of Calif. prisoners; Ohio state employees have unusual situation covering adult children

Sanofi-aventis signs definitive agreement to acquire assets of Canderm

Health insurance issues: State regulators wary of health law, Medicare Advantage star system

Both sides try to score political points on health law

Inability of Mass. to curb health costs could be harbinger for national efforts

UOHI tests Canada's first in-hospital program to screen and treat patients for diabetes

Employer health costs slowing, but still face 9 percent increase in 2011

WellPoint to begin offering 'electronic' house calls

Elite medical schools rate poorly on social mission

UIC receives $3M grant to evaluate comprehensive process for responding to patient harm events

AmWINS Group Benefits re-launches EGWP program to help reverse negative effects of RDS

SBE Council: New regulations may impact health coverage for small businesses

Diversity publication recognizes UH as a leader among health care institutions

First Edition: June 15, 2010

Central Washington Hospital improves patient experience with Toshiba' Vantage Titan MR system

ACRO unveils survey findings on decline in physician participation in clinical research

New regulation on 'grandfathered' health plans

Alliance for a Healthier Generation recognizes 179 schools for increasing healthy eating, physical activity

AMA's National Health Insurer Report Card helps improve claims processing performance

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

From Puberty to Menopause: Clue’s CEO, Audrey Tsang on the Power of Femtech

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