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Hospital quality needs significant improvement: 2009 Leapfrog Hospital Survey

According to new results from the 2009 Leapfrog Hospital Survey released today at the World Health Congress in Washington, DC, hospital quality needs significant improvement and waste remains rampant. One encouraging sign: steady improvements over time, supporting the value of hundreds of purchasers' growing efforts to use Leapfrog performance data in decision-making, contracting, pay for performance, and benefits design.

13 Apr 2010

Eliza to participate in a panel discussion at 2010 World Health Care Congress

Eliza Corporation, the leading provider of integrated healthcare communication strategies, will participate in a moderated discussion at the 2010 World Health Care Congress. The panel, entitled "Redesign for the New Consumer Customer," will explore the drivers that increase healthcare consumer satisfaction and address these consumer values to foster changes in health care design and delivery.

13 Apr 2010

Health care professionals urge Congress to support nation's chemical regulatory reform

On the eve of legislation slated to be introduced this month to reform the Toxic Substances Control Act, almost two dozen organizations representing health care professionals, along with health sector businesses sent letters to Congress urging the passage of strong reform of our nation's chemical regulatory system.

13 Apr 2010

'Mindfulness' for reducing aggressive behaviour in people with developmental disabilities

A very ancient and effective practice - mindfulness - is being given a new and surprising application. For the first time ever, mindfulness is being used to reduce the likelihood of aggressive behaviour in people with developmental disabilities as well as mental health problems.

13 Apr 2010

$15M grant to support research and development of new health care IT infrastructure

Researchers at Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School will lead the efforts of a $15 million grant recently announced from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology in the Department of Health and Human Services to support research and development of a new health care information technology infrastructure.

13 Apr 2010

GHG selects INetU as dedicated managed hosting provider for Valencia

Gorman Health Group announced today that they have chosen INetU as the dedicated managed hosting provider for their healthcare software platform, Valencia.

13 Apr 2010

Yearly flu shots recommended for adults in 50-64 age group

The proportion of Americans with diabetes ages 18 to 64 who reported getting flu shots the previous year rose from 40 percent to 50.5 percent between 2000 and 2007, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

13 Apr 2010

Transparent Health Network adds MPG to provider network

Transparent Health Network today announced the addition of Manhattan's Physician Group (MPG), the largest multi-specialty group in New York City, to its provider network. A new health care access plan that advocates for the working uninsured by negotiating dramatically reduced fees that are 35 to 60% lower than the "retail" fees typically charged to patients without insurance, Transparent Health Network is not insurance. In exchange for the reduced fees, members pay providers directly when they receive care.

13 Apr 2010

SCAN Health Plan honors Monarch HealthCare of Orange County with Wave award

Monarch HealthCare of Orange County has been named this year's recipient of SCAN Health Plan's "Wave" award, presented annually to a medical group that combines "high levels of performance or improvement in the field of geriatrics" with a "strong commitment to care for seniors and SCAN members."

13 Apr 2010

New website for PricewaterhouseCoopers' Health Industries practice

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP today launched a new website for their Health Industries practice – www.pwc.com/healthreform – which will serve as a central point of access for PricewaterhouseCoopers' latest insight and analysis on the implications of health reform for health organizations including insurers, physicians, hospitals and other providers, pharmaceutical and life sciences companies and employers.

13 Apr 2010

Implanting blue light-filtering IOLs during cataract surgery may help preserve retina health

Implanting blue light-filtering intraocular lenses during cataract surgery helps maintain visual function and may preserve the health of the retina, specifically in disease states such as age-related macular degeneration, according to a comprehensive review published in the May/June 2010 edition of Survey of Ophthalmology.

13 Apr 2010

Boston Globe examines how PEPFAR budget pressures are affecting AIDS clinics in Africa

"U.S. officials have asked some AIDS clinics overseas to stop enrolling new patients in a U.S.-sponsored program that provides lifesaving antiretroviral drugs, in a bid to stem the rising costs of one of the most ambitious US assistance programs, according to interviews with doctors and official correspondence," the Boston Globe reports.

13 Apr 2010

CSL Behring calls for grant requests through LEAD program

CSL Behring, a global leader in the plasma protein biotherapeutics industry, is calling for grant requests through its Local Empowerment for Advocacy Development program. The LEAD program awards funds to United States patient organizations that assist people with rare diseases in advocating for continued access to health care and life-saving plasma protein therapies.

13 Apr 2010

False claims to Medicare: Los Angeles DME company owner pleads guilty

The owner and operator of a Los Angeles durable medical equipment (DME) company pleaded guilty today to submitting nearly one half of a million dollars in false claims to Medicare, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services.

13 Apr 2010

New tool for retrieving accurate drug side-effect information

It's not uncommon for individuals to take as many as a dozen different prescriptions, each with its own set of possible side effects. If a patient experiences one of the potential hundreds of different adverse reactions such as nausea, headaches, insomnia or heart palpitations, how does the physician quickly and accurately determine which drug is the culprit?

13 Apr 2010

AP examines micro-insurance in Africa

The Associated Press examines the growth of micro-insurance in Africa, "a product accessible to those earning less than $2 a day, who pay tiny weekly premiums of sometimes less than a cent."

13 Apr 2010

UHC announces agreements for executive recruitment services

The University HealthSystem Consortium today announced agreements for executive recruitment services: one with Furst Group, based in Rockford, Ill., and one with Witt/Kieffer, Ford, Hadelman, Lloyd Corporation, based in Oak Brook, Ill. The agreements became effective on February 1, 2010.

13 Apr 2010

UPMC Health Plan to host training session on child health- We Can!

UPMC Health Plan will host a two-day training session designed to teach community leaders about We Can! (Ways to Enhance Children's Activity & Nutrition) April 27-28, 2010, at Marriott City Center Hotel, Uptown.

13 Apr 2010

Uninsured migraine sufferers likely to get inadequate treatment: Neurology

People with no health insurance are less likely than the privately insured to receive proper treatment for their migraines, according to a study published in the April 13, 2010, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

13 Apr 2010

Small businesses continue search for health reform information

The Bergen County (N.J.) Record/NorthJersey.com: Small businesses continue to assess the impact health reform will have on them. "While some believe the reforms will help control health costs and give assistance to small businesses that can't afford worker coverage, others are skeptical they will benefit when the plan is up and running — and some are sure it will hurt.

13 Apr 2010