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Georgia Tech Flatliners make big push into grand challenge of health IT

Key to the future efficiency of the United States' health care system is effective implementation of new technologies, such as electronic medical records, as well as dovetailing those technologies with the human care and decision-making that is so critical to good medicine.

7 May 2010

NIST, UM researchers detail operation of liposome manufacturing technique

Pop a bubble while washing the dishes and you're likely to release a few drops of water trapped when the soapy sphere formed. A few years ago, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology pioneered a method using a microscopic fluidic (microfluidic) device that exploits the same principle to create liquid-filled vesicles called liposomes from phospholipids, the fat complexes that are the building blocks for animal cell membranes

7 May 2010

Survey reveals low awareness of postherpetic neuralgia amongst Americans

The American Pain Foundation (APF) announced today at the American Pain Society (APS) Annual Meeting the results of a national survey that showed postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), also known as after-shingles pain, continues to be a condition with low awareness amongst Americans, demonstrating a need for health care provider (HCP) intervention.

7 May 2010

New documentary film reveals effective alternative therapies for health problems

Soft Touch Chiropractic and Acupuncture will be hosting the following free movie screenings at their wellness center located at 19474 Rinaldi St. Northridge, CA 91326.

7 May 2010

States continue to react to health reform's high-risk insurance pools, individual insurance requirement

"Gov. Jan. Brewer told the Obama administration that Arizona can't afford an insurance program that would extend health coverage to Arizonans unable to purchase insurance because of pre-existing medical conditions. Arizona is among 19 states that have rejected federal funds to administer a high-risk insurance pool. That means the federal government will create and run such a pool on behalf of Arizona and the other states that have declined participation" (Alltucker, 5/5).

7 May 2010

Natazia tablets receive FDA approval for prevention of pregnancy

Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Natazia (estradiol valerate and estradiol valerate/dienogest) tablets for the prevention of pregnancy.

7 May 2010

The Forum calls upon pharma suppliers, distributors, pharmacies to stop distribution of unapproved drugs

Gary Puckrein, President and CEO of the National Minority Quality Forum (The Forum), recently sent a letter to the CEOs of eight major pharmaceutical suppliers, distributors and pharmacies to educate them on the potential threats posed by unapproved drugs in the United States and to ask that they do their part to protect consumers from the harms that can be caused by these unproven products.

7 May 2010

Obama signs bill to expand health care access for veterans, provide more caregiver benefits

President Barack Obama signed a bill Wednesday that expands access to health care for veterans and provides a monthly stipend and health care for caregivers of American soldiers severely injured in Afghanistan or Iraq, The Associated Press reports. "Under the bill, caregivers of the estimated 2,000 severely wounded veterans from the recent conflicts are eligible for training, a monthly stipend and health care.

7 May 2010

Rising health costs straining public budgets in Massachusetts

The Boston Globe: The town budget in Framingham, Mass. is strained, leading to layoffs and other cuts. "Everyone here seems to agree that a major factor is the rising cost of health care insurance for employees and retirees, which has jumped by $20 million in 10 years." The town picks up 87 percent of the premiums for most public employees and retirees, as negotiated through collective bargaining.

7 May 2010

Florida health agency will use voice recognition to crack down on health fraud

The Associated Press/Miami Herald: Florida health officials announced they will "begin using voice recognition technology to verify whether patients in Miami-Dade County are actually receiving home health care services the state is being billed for."

7 May 2010

Genzyme to initiate $2 billion stock buyback

Genzyme Corp. today announced that its Board of Directors has voted to pursue several actions to increase shareholder value. The company will initiate a $2 billion stock buyback, under which $1 billion of stock will be repurchased in the near term and financed with debt. The additional $1 billion of stock will be repurchased during the next 12 months.

7 May 2010

House health panel ponders price transparency proposals

House lawmakers are considering several bills Thursday to make health care pricing more transparent, Modern Healthcare reports. The Energy and Commerce's health subcommittee "plans to take up a trio of bills aimed at increasing transparency and clarity in healthcare pricing, tackling an issue that has bedeviled the industry for decades and handcuffed efforts to turn everyday people into better purchasers of care."

7 May 2010

Pennsylvania Auditor assails use of some HIV/AIDS prevention funds

Philadelphia Inquirer: "The Pennsylvania Auditor General's Office criticized the state's oversight of HIV/AIDS prevention funding Wednesday in a report that alleges more than $700,000 in waste, abuse, and potentially fraudulent spending by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health.

7 May 2010

WHO publishes comprehensive report on H1N1

"A year after the H1N1 [swine] flu first appeared, the World Health Organization has issued perhaps the most comprehensive report on the pandemic's activity to date," HealthDay News/Bloomberg BusinessWeek reports (Gardner, 5/5).

7 May 2010

Massachusetts Attorney General pledges hearings into proposed Catholic Hospitals sale

The Associated Press/Boston Herald: Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley is pledging to hold public hearings on a proposed sale of a chain of Catholic Hospitals there to a private equity firm. "Coakley said Caritas Christi Health System today filed a formal notice of the proposed transfer of the system to Steward Health Care System LLC, an affiliate of New York-based Cerberus Capital Management."

7 May 2010

Doctors seeing patients in groups

The Denver Post: "Jeff Wilson saw a doctor recently about his high cholesterol — and five other patients with the same problem came to his appointment. It was a 'group visit,' a growing trend in health care that allows doctors to reach more patients and patients to get more face time with their physician, even if they have to share it."

7 May 2010

Teleflex Medical voluntarily recalls certain lots of AQUA+FLEX Hygroscopic Condenser Humidifier

Teleflex Medical has announced a worldwide voluntary recall initiated on March 19, 2010, affecting certain lot numbers of the Teleflex Medical AQUA+FLEX Hygroscopic Condenser Humidifier (HCH) (catalog number 1570) a passive humidifier indicated for use to effectively warm and humidify inspired gas during mechanical ventilation.

6 May 2010

Gentiva Health Services first-quarter total net revenues up 7.5% to $297.1 million

Gentiva Health Services, Inc., a leading provider of home health and hospice services, today reported first quarter 2010 results.

6 May 2010

Swedish Cancer Institute, Elekta renew partnership to continue flow of technology, services to cancer patients

Swedish Cancer Institute and Elekta launch renewed partnership agreement to continue the flow of world-class technology, services to cancer patients in the Pacific Northwest and beyond.

From Elekta 6 May 2010

Experts unveil roadmap to improve health and health delivery in the U.S.

A Commission of national health care experts convened by the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress has unveiled a roadmap and integrated approach that will put "health" back into our nation's health care system as well as address key opportunities following passage of health care reform legislation.

6 May 2010

Health Care News and Research

Georgia Tech Flatliners make big push into grand challenge of health IT

NIST, UM researchers detail operation of liposome manufacturing technique

Survey reveals low awareness of postherpetic neuralgia amongst Americans

New documentary film reveals effective alternative therapies for health problems

States continue to react to health reform's high-risk insurance pools, individual insurance requirement

Natazia tablets receive FDA approval for prevention of pregnancy

The Forum calls upon pharma suppliers, distributors, pharmacies to stop distribution of unapproved drugs

Obama signs bill to expand health care access for veterans, provide more caregiver benefits

Rising health costs straining public budgets in Massachusetts

Florida health agency will use voice recognition to crack down on health fraud

Genzyme to initiate $2 billion stock buyback

House health panel ponders price transparency proposals

Pennsylvania Auditor assails use of some HIV/AIDS prevention funds

WHO publishes comprehensive report on H1N1

Massachusetts Attorney General pledges hearings into proposed Catholic Hospitals sale

Doctors seeing patients in groups

Teleflex Medical voluntarily recalls certain lots of AQUA+FLEX Hygroscopic Condenser Humidifier

Gentiva Health Services first-quarter total net revenues up 7.5% to $297.1 million

Swedish Cancer Institute, Elekta renew partnership to continue flow of technology, services to cancer patients

Experts unveil roadmap to improve health and health delivery in the U.S.

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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

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