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Chicago hospitals see little change in ER visits; Calif. probes Anthem's provider lists

The Chicago Sun-Times examines the health law's effect on local emergency rooms, while the Los Angeles Times reports that state officials are investigating whether Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of California violated state law by posting inaccurate provider lists.

24 Jun 2014

Researchers develop self-powered artificial cardiac pacemaker

As the number of pacemakers implanted each year reaches into the millions worldwide, improving the lifespan of pacemaker batteries has been of great concern for developers and manufacturers.

23 Jun 2014

Parents opt for emergency room visits to help children attend child care

Substantial proportions of parents chose urgent care or emergency department visits when their sick children were excluded from attending child care, according to a new study by University of Michigan researchers.

23 Jun 2014

Virginia Gov. signs budget, vetos Medicaid amendment

Gov. Terry McAuliffe will try to bypass the Republican-controlled legislature to expand health coverage for hundreds of thousands of uninsured residents. Medicaid expansion developments in Wisconsin, California and Pennsylvania are also tracked.

23 Jun 2014

HHS Sec. Burwell makes management changes to Healthcare.gov

The steps are being taken in an effort to prevent a repeat of the difficulties that took place during last year's launch of the federal online insurance marketplace.

23 Jun 2014

Huntington Memorial Hospital patient implanted with tiny, leadless cardiac pacemaker

A Huntington Memorial Hospital patient has become the first patient in the San Gabriel Valley to be implanted with a tiny, leadless cardiac pacemaker. Developed for patients with bradycardia - a heart rate that is too slow - the Nanostim device is designed to be placed directly in a patient's heart without the visible lump, scar and insulated wires (called leads) required for conventional pacemakers.

23 Jun 2014

VA executives received high ratings before scandal

Data released at a congressional hearing shows that all of the 470 senior executives at the VA received annual ratings of "fully successful" over the past four years, even though the health system was having delays in processing compensation claims and veterans were having trouble getting access to care.

23 Jun 2014

States, tech companies wrestle over efforts to fix troubled state marketplace sites

States seek to recoup funds from technology companies that were involved in creating the online insurance portals that malfunctioned.

23 Jun 2014

Private insurers clamp down on drug prices

More health plans are refusing to cover certain brand-name drugs unless drugmakers offer discounts for them, reports The New York Times.

23 Jun 2014

Treatment with diabetes drug liraglutide improves cardiovascular risk factors

Treatment with the diabetes drug liraglutide, in combination with diet and exercise, led to a significant reduction in weight and improved a number of cardiovascular risk factors, including high blood pressure and high cholesterol, according to a multicenter study.

23 Jun 2014

Patient injuries mean Medicare payment penalties for some hospitals

The preliminary analysis of penalties would lower Medicare payments to these hospitals by 1 percent for a year. Elsewhere, lawmakers introduce legislation to change how hospitals that serve a large number of poor patients are affected by Medicare's penalties.

23 Jun 2014

More twists in Capitol Hill insider-trading probe

The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether nonpublic information related to a 2013 announcement by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services regarding 2014 reimbursement rates was leaked improperly.

23 Jun 2014

Polly Toynbee to lead debate on public health at Sheffield Hallam University

Renowned journalist and Guardian columnist, Polly Toynbee will lead a debate on the power of research on public health outcomes at Sheffield Hallam University on Friday.

23 Jun 2014

PSI CRO presents the changing dynamic of clinical trial feasibility at PCMG meeting

PSI CRO, a full-service contract research organization, announced today that Kasia Moscicka, Director Feasibility Research and Patient Recruitment Services, presented on the changing dynamic of clinical trial feasibility at recent PCMG meeting held in Lisbon, Portugal.

23 Jun 2014

First Edition: June 23, 2014

Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including news stories about healthcare.gov management changes.

23 Jun 2014

Cincinnati Children’s, Alexion Pharmaceuticals establish ‘Rare Disease Innovation Fund’

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center today announced the establishment of a collaboration and fund for the advancement of research in rare disease.

23 Jun 2014

Physician describes ways to combat post-cancer pain

More and more people are surviving their cancer. Unfortunately, sometimes survival can come with pain. Although many people won't feel any pain after their cancer treatment, some may have chronic, bothersome pain.

23 Jun 2014

3M and Nextgen Healthcare partner to offer web-based ICD-10 Education Program

NextGen Healthcare Information Systems, LLC., a wholly owned subsidiary of Quality Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: QSII) and a leading provider of healthcare information systems and connectivity solutions, announced today it has teamed with 3M Health Information Systems to offer 3M's robust, web-based ICD-10 Education Program industry wide.

23 Jun 2014

Experts from 96 countries gather in Chicago to attend ICE/ENDO 2014

ICE/ENDO 2014, the joint meeting of the International Society of Endocrinology and the Endocrine Society, has tallied more registrants than any other annual meeting in the Endocrine Society's nearly 100-year history.

23 Jun 2014

National, state air pollution controls decrease death rates in North Carolina

National and state air pollution controls that went into effect in the early 1990s coincide with decreasing death rates from emphysema, asthma and pneumonia among people in North Carolina, according to a study led by Duke University researchers.

23 Jun 2014