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Medicare faces cost tension with lawmakers, advocates

More than 130 lawmakers are urging the Obama administration to expand coverage for a lung-cancer test under Medicare that could cost the program billons, calling the screening important for vulnerable seniors. In a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the lawmakers called for a timely decision on coverage for low-dose CT scans for older patients at higher risk of developing lung cancer. ... A CMS spokesman said the agency's decision will be based on whether the test is "reasonable and necessary," without regard to its cost to Medicare (Yen, 6/17).

19 Jun 2014

Federal officials, software specialists working to simplify healthcare.gov enrollment application

Their goal is to make the process easier during the next enrollment season. Meanwhile, Enroll America held a meeting to rally its troops as the organization also looks ahead to the next sign-up period.

19 Jun 2014

Kansas Medicaid-CHIP enrollment rises despite tight eligibility standards

In Illinois, Medicaid coverage of adult dental and podiatry care is restored following a two-year cut. Unlike its neighboring states of Missouri and Nebraska, where significant decreases have been reported, Kansas has seen a significant jump in the number of people enrolled in its Medicaid-CHIP programs, even without loosening its relatively tight eligibility standards.

18 Jun 2014

Golden Door introduces new online destination of goldendoor.com.

Golden Door, the globally renowned wellness resort is pleased to introduce the new online destination of goldendoor.com.

6 Jun 2014

Medicaid rolls grow by 6 million since health law rollout

The total, which includes 1.1 million people who signed up in April alone, does not indicate how many people gained coverage through the law's expansion of Medicaid, a program pursued by 26 states. That's because individuals who were eligible for Medicaid before the law's passage, but not enrolled, also signed up.

6 Jun 2014

First Edition: June 5, 2014

Today's headlines include the latest developments regarding congressional action on the veterans' health care scandal as well as reports about the latest Medicaid enrollment figures in the context of the health law.

5 Jun 2014

States scramble to pay hefty tab for health exchange fixes

According to The Wall Street Journal, five states -- Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada and Oregon -- will look to their own funds, remaining federal grants and new federal funding requests to pay these costs.

5 Jun 2014

Study to investigate use of OCT in collaboration with Melanoma Institute of Australia

Michelson Diagnostics, the UK based medical device company focused on multi-beam Optical Coherence Tomography ('OCT') technology, has commenced a clinical study to investigate the use of OCT to diagnose basal cell carcinoma in collaboration with the Melanoma Institute of Australia using Michelson's Diagnostics VivoSight system.

19 May 2014

Docs often say colleagues prescribe unnecessary care

Elsewhere, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services sets a new date for doctors to adopt a new coding practice and Medicare may follow advice against giving smokers annual CT scans.

5 May 2014

Imaging technique may help understanding of chronic CSCR

Swept-source optical coherence tomography identifies the morphological features implicated in the underlying physiopathological mechanisms of chronic central serous chorioretinopathy, researchers report.

1 May 2014

Retinal measurements associated with Parkinson’s disease duration

The inner retinal layers in the eyes of patients with Parkinson’s disease are thinner than those of healthy people’s eyes, except for the inner nuclear layer, which is thicker, show the results of a prospective study involving the latest optical coherence tomography methods.

1 May 2014

Some Medicare beneficiaries have trouble getting extended nursing and therapy services

Under a 2012 court settlement, the Department of Health and Human Services agreed to relax rules that said seniors could get these services only if they continued to improve. But many providers are still unaware of the new regulations.

30 Apr 2014

Oregon opts for federal exchange

The board overseeing Oregon's nonfunctional health insurance exchange unanimously approved the Obama administration's plan Friday to take over the marketplace, making Oregon the first state to drop its enrollment website for healthcare.gov.

29 Apr 2014

First Edition: April 28, 2014

Today's headlines include a number of stories examining the impact of the health law in various states.

28 Apr 2014

Va. lawmakers back at work, but not dealing with Medicaid impasse

Republicans in the General Assembly are opposed to expanding the program for low-income residents, but that could threaten the passage of a state budget. Meanwhile, news outlets look at the issue in North Carolina, Missouri and Arizona.

25 Apr 2014

Detailing the winners: Which insurers scored the most health exchanges sign-ups

In California, it was Anthem Blue Cross, while Kaiser Permanente, Rocky Mountain Health Plans and the Colorado HealthOP appeared to fare well through that state's online insurance marketplace. Meanwhile, reports also track how the small business exchanges did in Rhode Island and Connecticut.

23 Apr 2014

California officials announce enrollee tally, note last-minute surge

Covered California, the state's online health insurance marketplace, signed up 200,000 people for coverage during the two-week deadline extension -- bringing the state's total to 1.4 million. The state's initial goal was about 815,900 for the six-month enrollment period that began Oct. 1, 2013.

21 Apr 2014

Sebelius resigning, OMB director Burwell tapped to head HHS

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is resigning from the Obama administration after the rocky rollout of President Barack Obama's signature health care law, a White House official said Thursday.

11 Apr 2014

Majority of Medicaid sign-ups centered in 10 states

An analysis from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services found that 80 percent of the 3 million people who enrolled in Medicaid since Oct. 1 were located in 10 states. Also in the news, specific enrollment tallies from Michigan and the latest on Virginia's legislative stalemate over the expansion.

9 Apr 2014