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Aetna renews contract with WellStar Health System for three years

Aetna (NYSE: AET) and WellStar Health System in Marietta, Ga., announced today they have reached an agreement on a three-year contract renewal.

25 Aug 2009

Role of life sciences and health care industries in shaping national health care reforms emphasized at summit hosted by Cherokee Pharmaceuticals

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21 Aug 2009

Clinic Service Corporation becomes the exclusive medical billing services provider to Colorado West Dermatology

Clinic Service Corporation (CSC), the leader in Colorado Practice Management Solutions, announced today the firm has secured an agreement to be the exclusive provider of medical billing services to Colorado West Dermatology.

21 Aug 2009

House Democrats ask to examine health insurers' finances

House Democrats examine pay and profit for health insurers as health insurance stocks dip lower than market.

20 Aug 2009

Perot Systems to provide back-office functional support to Community Health Plan of Washington

Community Health Plan of Washington (CHP Washington) and Perot Systems Corporation (NYSE: PER) (www.perotsystems.com) today announced an agreement where Perot Systems will provide technology and business process services to improve the Seattle-based health plan's back-office functions. The scope of services to be managed by Perot Systems includes claims processing, claims adjustments, enrollment, premium billing, and configuration.

20 Aug 2009

Cutting Medicare Advantage costs may be politically difficult

The Los Angeles Times reports: "President Obama, struggling to discredit bogus charges that his healthcare overhaul would create 'death panels,' soon could face another emotionally charged obstacle -- a plan to trim the federal subsidy for a program used by nearly a quarter of Medicare beneficiaries.

19 Aug 2009

Affiliated Computer Services collaborates with clients to develop business solutions for managing downturn

As companies and government agencies navigate unprecedented economic challenges, some organizations are finding innovative ways to save money but also improve services and productivity. Affiliated Computer Services, Inc. (NYSE: ACS) is working closely with its clients to develop successful business solutions designed to help them manage the economic downturn and prepare for the eventual rebound.

19 Aug 2009

African American groups call on health insurers to dismiss restrictive practices

To protect the health of African Americans in Maryland, the Black Nurses Association of Baltimore and the Greater Baltimore Urban League have joined together to support a National Health Insurer Code of Conduct from the American Medical Association.

13 Aug 2009

Hythiam, Inc. announces Q2 financials

Hythiam, Inc. (NASDAQ:HYTM) today announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2009, which include the consolidated results from Comprehensive Care Corporation (CompCare) through January 20, 2009, the disposition date. As a result of the January 20, 2009 sale, the Company’s results treat CompCare as a Discontinued Operation.

10 Aug 2009

Electronic health records cut cardiac deaths by 73 percent

An innovative program that cut cardiac deaths by 73 percent by linking coronary artery disease patients and teams of pharmacists, nurses, primary care doctors, and cardiologists with an electronic health record also kept the patients healthy two years after they left the program by keeping them in touch with their care givers electronically, according to a randomized study by Kaiser Permanente published in The American Journal of Managed Care this month.

9 Aug 2009

Guided care reduces cost of health care for seniors with chronic conditions

The nation's sickest and most expensive patients need fewer health care resources and cost insurers less when they are closely supported by a nurse-physician primary care team that tracks their health and offers regular support, according to a study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

7 Aug 2009

In Massachusetts, a radical idea for changing how doctors are paid

Dr. Richard Lopez is chief physician at Atrius Health in Boston. He says "global payments" allow health care providers to innovate to keep patients out of the hospital. (Richard Knox/NPR)

6 Aug 2009

States confront budget pressure, anticipate reform

States are grappling with budget cuts, trying to anticipate the effects of Washington's health system overhaul and rejiggering Medicaid programs.

5 Aug 2009

High costs in McAllen prompt inquiries into physician ownership, self-referral and a major lobbying campaign

Lobbying efforts by Doctors Hospital at Renaissance, in Edinburg, Texas, have steered hundreds of thousands of dollars to key lawmakers in hopes of blocking reforms that would restrict ownership of hospitals by physicians, the Associated Press/Dallas Morning News reports in a follow up to an article in yesterday's New York Times.

31 Jul 2009

Efforts to 'fix' Medicare payments at center of reform

The Wall Street Journal reports: "A plan to end a program that would cut government payments to doctors is emerging as the flash point in the debate over whether President Barack Obama's effort to overhaul the health system would increase the federal budget deficit.

20 Jul 2009

Obama notes progress, reiterates support for public insurance plan

"President Barack Obama on Tuesday welcomed progress on health care overhaul as top Senate Democrats and the administration closed in on a deal with hospitals to help pay for the president's proposed expansion of medical coverage to the uninsured," The Associated Press reports.

7 Jul 2009

Medicare reimbursement issues enter health reform debate

New legislation introduced yesterday would attempt to shift Medicare reimbursement policy to reward patient health outcomes, rather than the volume of services provided, MinnPost, a nonprofit online news organization, reports. "We need to be sure to keep score," said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., who introduced the bill, according to MinnPost. "That means measuring outcomes and rewarding providers that deliver quality results."

13 Jun 2009

Sebelius, DeParle ready to tackle health care overhaul

The friendship between "working moms" Kathleen Sebelius and Nancy-Ann DeParle "could pay big dividends for President Obama now," USA Today reports.

2 Jun 2009

FDA antidepressant warnings led to unintended changes in depression diagnosis

Government warnings about suicidality among children taking antidepressants appear to be associated with unintended and persistent changes in the diagnosis and treatment of depression in children and adults, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

1 Jun 2009

Missouri Legislature passes bills that impose levies on health care providers to generate additional Federal Medicaid funding

Missouri lawmakers have approved two bills (HB 740 and SB 307) that extend or create health care provider taxes or certification fees as part of an effort to draw in more federal Medicaid matching dollars, the AP/Ann Arbor News reports.

14 May 2009