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Alkermes reports financial results for first quarter of 2014

Alkermes plc today reported financial results for the first quarter of 2014. "During the quarter, we continued to generate positive cash flow, reflecting the strength of our commercial business and enabling us to invest in our advancing late-stage pipeline and prepare for the launch of aripiprazole lauroxil," commented James Frates, Chief Financial Officer of Alkermes.

30 Apr 2014

Denmark and China announce food safety partnership

On 25 April, a new memorandum of understanding between DTU and CFSA was signed by Martin Bends-e, DTU Senior Vice President and Dean, at a ceremony in Beijing witnessed by HRH Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik of Denmark.

30 Apr 2014

First Edition: April 30, 2014

Today's headlines include a new round of articles exploring recent polls and politics related to the public's view of the health law.

30 Apr 2014

Low baseline QOL scores does not predict worse survival in patients undergoing lung cancer surgery

Quality of life (QOL) is rarely reported in surgical publications, yet it can be an important metric that can be of use to physicians and patients when making treatment decisions.

30 Apr 2014

Vertex: Conditions of PBAC recommendation may limit Australians who could benefit from KALYDECO

The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee has again recommended KALYDECO (ivacaftor) for listing on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). However, Vertex is deeply disappointed in the conditions the PBAC has attached to the recommendation. These conditions fail to reflect the substantial clinical benefits recognised by the PBAC, and would result in limiting the number of eligible Australians who would be able to receive KALYDECO.

30 Apr 2014

Highly stressed people who eat lot of high-fat are more prone to health risks

New research out of UC San Francisco is the first to demonstrate that highly stressed people who eat a lot of high-fat, high-sugar food are more prone to health risks than low-stress people who eat the same amount of unhealthy food.

30 Apr 2014

Policy to reduce bullying in schoolyard needs to span all levels of society, say researchers

Policy to reduce bullying in the schoolyard needs to span all levels of society, say researchers from the University of Warwick, who warn that socioeconomic status is not a reliable indicator of whether a child is likely to become a bully.

30 Apr 2014

Free educational event for patients with Graves' disease and thyroid eye disease

The Massachusetts Eye and Ear and the Graves' Disease & Thyroid Foundation will host a free educational event for patients living with Graves' disease and thyroid eye disease on Saturday, May 10 from 8:30 a.m. to noon at Mass. Eye and Ear's Meltzer Auditorium, 3rd floor, 243 Charles Street, Boston, Mass., 02114.

30 Apr 2014

Study finds disparities in diagnosis, treatment and outcomes of AF between black and white patients

Atrial fibrillation (AF), a condition where the heartbeat speeds up or becomes irregular, is not usually life-threatening but can lead to complications such as stroke and heart failure. Even though minorities historically have more risk factors for AF, they represent a smaller number of those diagnosed.

30 Apr 2014

Virginia Mason receives "A" for patient safety in Hospital Safety Score program

Virginia Mason is again rated as one of the safest hospitals in the U.S by The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit organization using the collective leverage of large purchasers of health care to drive improvements in safety, quality and affordability.

30 Apr 2014

New health system scorecard reveals wide health gaps among states

States made little progress in improving health care access, quality, and outcomes and lowering costs in the five years preceding implementation of the major coverage provisions of the Affordable Care Act (2007-2012), according to the Commonwealth Fund's third state health system scorecard. The majority of states declined or failed to improve on two-thirds of the 34 scorecard indicators that could be tracked over time.

30 Apr 2014

Decker Foundation gift helps Binghamton University to establish lab for improving health outcomes

A gift from the Dr. G. Clifford & Florence B. Decker Foundation will enable Binghamton University biologists and their colleagues to conduct tests and research that will improve health outcomes for patients in Southern Tier hospitals with conditions ranging from ear infections to cancer.

30 Apr 2014

New study explores methods for improving resilience of health system

According to a new study by the American Meteorological Society Policy Program, a risk management framework can improve the resilience of healthcare facilities and services to high-impact weather such as tornadoes and hurricanes. The report is based on a recent AMS Policy Program workshop, A Prescription for the 21st Century: Improving Resilience to High-Impact Weather for Healthcare Facilities and Services, held in Washington, DC in October 2013.

30 Apr 2014

Viewpoints: New poll points out inconsistencies among health law's opponents; protecting vets; Calif. restaurant nutrition info missing

The case against the Affordable Care Act rests on the premise that the free market can better provide health insurance to the nation's 54 million uninsured than a government program can. But what does it mean if many of the same people who oppose Obamacare also object to the cost of covering more people through the market? A telephone survey by Bankrate.com asked 3,496 people how they would react if a business tacked on an extra 25 cents to every bill to help cover the cost of health insurance for its employees. Among Democrats, 70 percent said they would approve.

30 Apr 2014

Post-ABC news poll: Half of Americans say health law's implementations worse than expected

Meanwhile, a Kaiser Family Foundation poll concludes that there is a disconnect between people's perception of the health law's enrollment and the actual sign up total. In addition, Fox News reports on a Bankrate survey finding people don't appear to mind paying added fees if those costs increase workers' access to health insurance.

30 Apr 2014

State highlights: Mixed reaction to new telehealth guideline; Calif. mental health grants; Conn. nurse practitioners

The Federation of State Medical Boards approved a model telehealth policy this weekend that's made some providers of these services happy and others, well, not so much, because of its emphasis on using video rather than audio technology for a first patient visit (Conn, 4/28).

30 Apr 2014

Investigators find that major lung surgery has become safer over last few decades

A major new study using data from the National Cancer Data Base details the impact of annual hospital volume on 30- and 90-day mortality rates.

30 Apr 2014

Real-time information from drug monitoring systems improves adherence to medication regimen

Most people want to take mediations as prescribed, even if they sometimes need a little help remembering. For them, an automated system that monitors drug taking and provides feedback after the fact may be more useful than one that nags people when it is time to take a pill, researchers at Carnegie Mellon University say.

30 Apr 2014

Missouri Gov. makes last-ditch Medicaid expansion effort

Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, proposed using the federal money to pay a portion of the private insurance costs for businesses with fewer than 150 employees, but the idea was quickly shot down by Republican legislators officials.

30 Apr 2014

Study finds that Medicare patients with dementia more likely to be readmitted within 30 days

A review of more than 25,000 admissions of Medicare beneficiaries to Rhode Island hospitals has found that patients with a documented diagnosis of dementia are nearly 20 percent more likely to be readmitted within 30 days than those without dementia.

30 Apr 2014

Healthcare News

Alkermes reports financial results for first quarter of 2014

Denmark and China announce food safety partnership

First Edition: April 30, 2014

Low baseline QOL scores does not predict worse survival in patients undergoing lung cancer surgery

Vertex: Conditions of PBAC recommendation may limit Australians who could benefit from KALYDECO

Highly stressed people who eat lot of high-fat are more prone to health risks

Policy to reduce bullying in schoolyard needs to span all levels of society, say researchers

Free educational event for patients with Graves' disease and thyroid eye disease

Study finds disparities in diagnosis, treatment and outcomes of AF between black and white patients

Virginia Mason receives "A" for patient safety in Hospital Safety Score program

New health system scorecard reveals wide health gaps among states

Decker Foundation gift helps Binghamton University to establish lab for improving health outcomes

New study explores methods for improving resilience of health system

Viewpoints: New poll points out inconsistencies among health law's opponents; protecting vets; Calif. restaurant nutrition info missing

Post-ABC news poll: Half of Americans say health law's implementations worse than expected

State highlights: Mixed reaction to new telehealth guideline; Calif. mental health grants; Conn. nurse practitioners

Investigators find that major lung surgery has become safer over last few decades

Real-time information from drug monitoring systems improves adherence to medication regimen

Missouri Gov. makes last-ditch Medicaid expansion effort

Study finds that Medicare patients with dementia more likely to be readmitted within 30 days

Exploring the nanoscale: How AFM is transforming cosmetic science

Innovating Texture and Culture in Plant-Based Foods

Advancing brain microphysiological systems (bMPS)

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