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Sweeping and prescriptive path to green nation's operating rooms

A sweeping and prescriptive path to green the nation's operating rooms was announced today by Practice Greenhealth, the nation's leading membership and networking organization for institutions in healthcare that have made a commitment to sustainable, eco-friendly practices.

12 May 2010

Americans face new era in health insurance

With the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ("PPACA") and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, Americans face a new era in health insurance.

12 May 2010

First Edition: May 12, 2010

Today's headlines include reports about new congressional budget office projections that increase the 10-year costs of the health overhaul law.

12 May 2010

Merck hosts R&D and Business Briefing

Merck & Co., Inc. today hosted its first R&D and Business Briefing since the completion of the Merck and Schering-Plough merger. The event included a comprehensive review of the company's late-stage pipeline, as well as the company's commercial strategy and progress made in the integration of Merck's worldwide operations.

12 May 2010

New approach to harness and modulate enzyme activity

An Arizona State University graduate student, Jinglin Fu, in collaboration with Biodesign Institute researchers Neal Woodbury and Stephen Albert Johnston, has pioneered a technique that improves on scientists' ability to harness and modulate enzyme activity.

12 May 2010

Drug-releasing stents do not result in fewer deaths or subsequent heart attacks after angioplasty

Drug-releasing stents are more effective than bare metal stents at keeping a blocked artery open after angioplasty, but the difference does not result in fewer deaths or subsequent heart attacks after the procedure, according to a review of recent studies.

12 May 2010

Regenstrief Institute framework evaluates costs, effort and value of health internet

As the United States moves toward the goal of a secure nationwide health information network, a new study from the Regenstrief Institute provides a framework for evaluating the costs, effort and value of what is sometimes referred to as the health internet.

12 May 2010

Periodontal disease treatment reduces blood sugar levels in Type 2 diabetes patients

A study to be published in the latest issue of The Cochrane Library and led by researchers at the University of Edinburgh and supported by colleagues at the Peninsula Dental School, the University of Ottawa and UCL Eastman Dental Institute, suggests that the treatment of serious gum (periodontal) disease in diabetics with Type 2 diabetes may lower their blood sugar levels.

12 May 2010

Computerized bilingual decision aid can prompt Hispanic smokers to quit: Study

A computerized bilingual decision aid - placed in safety-net clinics and health fairs - can prompt Hispanic and other smokers to set a quit date and choose effective treatments.

12 May 2010

Optivia Biotechnology launches OptiDDI Suite for assessing transporter-related DDIs

Optivia Biotechnology Inc., a leading provider of in vitro transporter assay services, today announced the launch of the OptiDDITM Suite, a novel assay panel that assesses the most clinically significant transporter-related drug-drug interactions (DDIs), as identified by the International Transporter Consortium (ITC) in its report "Membrane Transporters in Drug Development" (Nature Reviews-Drug Discovery, March 2010).

12 May 2010

New computer-based tool developed to benefit cancer patients

Cancer patients and doctors are finally getting on the same page about cancer survivorship, thanks to a free new tool that can benefit anyone who has been diagnosed with cancer.

12 May 2010

Patients who participate in physical therapist-led exercise achieve higher functional mobility: Report

Patients who are critically ill and participate in mild exercise programs led by physical therapists achieve higher functional mobility and spend fewer days in intensive care units and hospitals than those who receive less exercise, according to a report published in the April issue of the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

12 May 2010

R.I. overhauls Medicaid payments for elderly, disabled; Medicaid delays reported in Kansas

Rhode Island received a waiver from the Bush administration to revamp its Medicaid program for the elderly and disabled, despite concerns from "community health activists [who] feared that it would push some of the neediest onto waiting lists or worse — throw some poor people off the Medicaid rolls altogether.

12 May 2010

Tensions escalate between Obama administration, health insurers

CQ HealthBeat: "WellPoint CEO Angela Braly is protesting comments President Obama made about how a health insurance company treated women diagnosed with breast cancer. [Her] letter marks another battle in the ongoing clash between the administration and the insurance companies — most prominently WellPoint — that hasn't lessened after enactment of the new health care law" (Norman, 5/10).

12 May 2010

NY public hospital system plans to lay off about 500 workers and other state news

The Wall Street Journal: "New York City's Health & Hospitals Corp., the nation's largest public hospital system, plans to stanch a $1.2 billion budget gap in the next year's budget by laying off about 500 workers and ending contracts with 'a significant number' of physicians, its president said.

12 May 2010

Colorectal cancer screening rates much lower among African Americans: Study

Among African Americans, colorectal cancer is the third most common cause of cancer-related death. With the proper screening, it has a 90 percent cure rate, yet screening rates are much lower among this group than other ethnic groups.

12 May 2010

DOD struggles with health care costs, VA faces challenges in providing care

Defense Secretary Robert Gate spoke about the need to control soaring defense costs, especially health care expenses, while Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki responded to several health care challenges facing veterans' health care.

12 May 2010

Transparency debate: Leftover of health overhaul

Some lawmakers, from both parties, have proposed more aggressive legislation to unveil the prices of health care services, arguing that the recently passed health overhaul doesn't go far enough on this topic, Politico reports. "Rep. Steve Kagen (D-Wis.), a physician, has introduced a bill that would require all health care providers — from hospitals to insurance companies — to disclose publicly all prices on a continual basis."

12 May 2010

Sebelius heralds early successes of health law

"In a letter to leaders of Congress, the secretary of health and human services, Kathleen Sebelius, reported on Monday that the Obama administration is moving quickly to carry out the expansive new health care law, particularly provisions that she referred to as 'early insurance market reforms,'" The New York Times reports.

12 May 2010

Parents of autistic children say health reform should help them

The Dallas Morning News: Parents and families of autistic children and adults are hoping that the federal health law will help them. "The new federal regulations will prohibit spending caps, prevent insurers from excluding pre-existing conditions and behavioral health care, and extend dependent care to age 26.

12 May 2010