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State exchanges largely unaffected by delay in employer mandate

Officials in California and Minnesota say that neither the timing, nor the content of insurance coverage offered in their new online insurance marketplaces will be affected by the administration's decision to suspend enforcement of penalties on large employers until 2015.

4 Jul 2013

Employers worry they'll pay bill for those exempt from contraceptive mandate

Businesses are concerned that non-religious employers will end up covering the bill for religious groups that refuse to pay for contraception for their employees. Meanwhile, church leaders continue their push to broaden the exemption from the contraception coverage rule.

4 Jul 2013

Researchers develop program to reduce hospital readmissions by more than half

When a Medicare patient heads home from the hospital, the last thing they want is to be part of the revolving door of readmission that costs the healthcare industry and Medicare billions of dollars each year.

4 Jul 2013

Texas abortion bill sent to full chamber

A Texas House committee approved sweeping abortion legislation early Wednesday, setting up a new fight on the proposal that would, along with other restrictions, ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. The full chamber will take up the proposal early next week.

4 Jul 2013

FDA approves Orexo's Zubsolv for people suffering from opioid dependence

Orexo today announced that it has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for Zubsolv (buprenorphine/naloxone) sublingual tablet CIII.

4 Jul 2013

Employers get extra year to carry out health law coverage mandate

The Obama administration's surprise announcement will delay penalties for one year -- until after the mid-term elections -- and raises doubts about the implementation process at a crucial moment. Officials said the extension was a response to business requests for more time to navigate complex regulations.

4 Jul 2013

Royal Philips receives FDA clearance to market AlluraClarity live image guidance system in US

Royal Philips today announced that it has received 510(k) clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration to market its innovative AlluraClarity live image guidance system in the US.

From Philips Healthcare 4 Jul 2013

Neurosurgeon wins Ambassador for Epilepsy Award for improving clinical care for children with epilepsy

Dr. Gary Mathern, professor of pediatric neurosurgery and director of the UCLA Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery Program at Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA, was honored with the Ambassador for Epilepsy Award by the International Bureau for Epilepsy (IBE) and the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) at the 30th International Epilepsy Congress in Montreal on June 23.

4 Jul 2013

3-gene signature test will improve care of kidney transplant patients

A breakthrough non-invasive test can detect whether transplanted kidneys are in the process of being rejected, as well as identify patients at risk for rejection weeks to months before they show symptoms, according to a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

4 Jul 2013

Political responses swirl around administration's announcement

As GOP lawmakers and health law critics gloat, administration officials say they are listening to concerns from business and being flexible.

4 Jul 2013

Study: Happy marriages keep you in good health over years

New BYU research finds that people in happy marriages live less "in sickness" but enjoy more of life "in health." In a 20-year longitudinal study tracking health and marriage quality, BYU family life researcher Rick Miller found that as the quality of marriage holds up over the years, physical health holds up too.

4 Jul 2013

Viewpoints: Dems' abortion policies on the wrong side of public opinion; Doctors need to be more accurate in death reports

Last week saw two major developments in the legal and political battle over the Obama administration's sound decision to require most employers to provide free insurance coverage of contraceptives for women under the new health care law - one of them positive and the other a blow to the mandate and to religious liberty (7/1).

3 Jul 2013

MAXIMUS customer contact centers achieve Center of Excellence distinction

MAXIMUS, a leading provider of government services worldwide, announced today that its New York Physician Profile and New Jersey Health Care Profile operations have been recognized as "Certified Centers of Excellence" by BenchmarkPortal.

3 Jul 2013

First Edition: July 3, 2013

Today's headlines detail the Obama administration announcement that it would delay the health law rule requiring businesses provide insurance to workers.

3 Jul 2013

NHS productivity in England increases by 3.2%, new study reveals

A new study by researchers at the Centre for Health Economics, University of York, reveals the productivity of the NHS in England increased by 3.2 per cent in the first year of the Coalition administration.

3 Jul 2013

Study examines link between smoking cessation, weight gain and CHD risk in postmenopausal women

"Cigarette smoking is an important cause of cardiovascular disease, and smoking cessation reduces the risk. However, weight gain after smoking cessation may increase the risk of diabetes and weaken the benefit of quitting," write Juhua Luo, Ph.D., of the Indiana University School of Public Health, Bloomington, Ind., and colleagues.

3 Jul 2013

IG report: $543 million in Medicare overpayments remain uncollected

USA Today reports that the inspector general's report noted that one of the factors keeping the government from recouping these funds was problems with a new accounting system. Meanwhile, Modern Healthcare reports that these types of overpayments are some of the most difficult to collect.

3 Jul 2013

UnitedHealth to leave California's individual market at year's end

UnitedHealth is the second major company to announce its exit in advance of the changes that will take effect as a result of the health law. Meanwhile, Blues plans in Iowa and South Dakota announced plans to skip participation in those two states' health exchanges in 2014.

3 Jul 2013

State highlights: Dartmouth joins N.H. Medicaid managed care

New Hampshire's largest health care provider signed contracts Monday with three health care plans to join the state's managed care network for Medicaid -- a key to getting the network operating. Dartmouth-Hitchcock announced it will work with Well Sense Health Plan, Granite State Health Plan and Meridian Health Plan of New Hampshire to provide coordinated care for eligible Medicaid beneficiaries (Love, 7/1).

3 Jul 2013

Wake Forest Baptist to extend innovation in geriatrics education with new GPS program

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center will maintain its position as a leader in geriatric medicine and medical training with continued grant funding from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation.

3 Jul 2013