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Obama calls health law mandate a 'principle;' Supplement industry heavily funding Romney campaign

In an interview, the president seeks to find a way around the issue of whether the mandate is a tax or a penalty. Meanwhile, USA Today finds that individuals and companies with ties to the nutritional and dietary supplement industry have given $4.5 million to the GOP candidate.

19 Jul 2012

NCCN Guidelines for Patients: Lung Cancer Screening now available free of charge

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), with the support of the NCCN Foundation and Lung Cancer Alliance, announces the latest addition to the library of NCCN Guidelines for Patients, patient-friendly translations of the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology.

19 Jul 2012

Roundup: Ore. issues new long-term care insurance claims rules; Fla. pushing ahead with prison care privatization

The Oregon Insurance Division receives about 100 complaints about long-term-care policies each year, mostly about delays or denials. But now the state's role is increasing, thanks to a law that went into effect this month. The Oregon law requires insurers to process long-term care claims within 30 days when they're not in dispute. It also allows outside review when an insurer decides a person isn't sufficiently disabled for long-term care.

19 Jul 2012

Problems walking associated with increased risk of cognitive decline

Problems walking including slow gait and a short stride are associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline, Mayo Clinic researchers have discovered. Their findings are being presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference July 14-19 in Vancouver, British Columbia.

19 Jul 2012

Viewpoints: Texas' indifference to health needs for the poor; Sen. Grassley says IRS is too busy to deal with health law

The state with the country's worst health care record just happens to have a governor who has been the loudest voice against national efforts to improve it. A quarter of the residents of Texas, 6.3 million people, are uninsured, by far the highest percentage in the country. ... Yet Gov. Rick Perry - strangely puffed up as he was so often in his presidential bid - recently told the Obama administration that he would proudly refuse a huge infusion of Medicaid money that would significantly reduce those shameful statistics and cover 1.7 million more people.

18 Jul 2012

Six young scientists to receive 2012 Klerman and Freedman Awards

Six young scientists will be recognized with the Annual Klerman and Freedman Awards by the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation on Friday July 27, 2012 at Le Parker Meriden Hotel in New York City on Friday, July 27.

18 Jul 2012

Study identifies professional networks among physicians across geographic areas

Physicians tend to share patients with colleagues who have similar personal traits and practice styles, and there is substantial variation in physician network characteristics across geographic areas, according to a study in the July 18 issue of JAMA.

18 Jul 2012

U.S. News & World Report names U-M among 2012 America's Best Hospitals

The University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers offer the best care in Michigan and some of the nation's best care, according to a new ranking from U.S. News & World Report.

18 Jul 2012

First detailed analysis of Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster's global health effects

Radiation from Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster may eventually cause anywhere from 15 to 1,300 deaths and from 24 to 2,500 cases of cancer, mostly in Japan, Stanford researchers have calculated.

18 Jul 2012

Medicaid expansion unsettles governors' meeting

Governors express sharp disagreements about whether to expand Medicaid, as mandated by the health law. Meanwhile, a pediatric expert warns congressional staff that state efforts to roll back Medicaid eligibility could cut coverage to millions of poor children.

18 Jul 2012

Obama defends health law in Ohio town hall meeting

President Obama says he doesn't mind the "Obamacare" label and is chastising Republican Mitt Romney for not championing the Massachusetts health overhaul.

18 Jul 2012

Applying more stringent ozone standards would minimize premature mortality and morbidity

Establishing a more stringent ozone standard in the U.S. would significantly reduce ozone-related premature mortality and morbidity, according to a new study published online July 18 in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

18 Jul 2012

Taking action on London Summit on Family Planning outcomes

"In the build-up to the London Summit on Family Planning, there have been a lot of opinions expressed on blogs, in mainstream media coverage, in peer-reviewed journals, and even exchanges on the streets and at the water cooler," Gary Darmstadt, head of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Family Health Division, writes in this post in the foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog.

18 Jul 2012

New roadmap provides expert guidance on how to reduce racial and ethnic health disparities

Major disparities exist along racial and ethnic lines in the United States for various medical conditions, but guidance is scarce about how to reduce these gaps. Now, a new "roadmap" has been unveiled to give organizations expert guidance on how to improve health equity in their own patient populations.

18 Jul 2012

Health law opponents sharpen fight focus on insurance tax credit

According to news reports, critics have pinpointed this part of the health law in their effort to undo the sweeping overhaul. Meanwhile, USA Today reports that very few middle-income taxpayers will pay more as a result of the measure's taxes, fees and penalties.

18 Jul 2012

State roundup: Mass. to allow coupons for some branded drugs

Johns Hopkins Hospital lost its coveted spot as the nation's top-ranked hospital for the first time in 22 years, edged out by Boston's Massachusetts General Hospital in the latest analysis by U.S. News & World Report to be released Tuesday. Hopkins still ranked No. 2, and marketing experts said falling one spot will hurt the hospital's ego more than its reputation.

18 Jul 2012

Emerging mHealth field shows promise, faces challenges, Devex reports

In a health care exclusive feature, Devex examines the emerging field of mHealth, "the practice of using mobile devices for medicine and public health practices."

18 Jul 2012

Cigna, PAMF launch collaborative accountable care initiative

Cigna and the Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF), a not-for-profit health care organization that is a pioneer in the multispecialty group practice of medicine, have launched a collaborative accountable care initiative to expand patient access to health care, improve care coordination, and achieve the "triple aim" of improved health outcomes (quality), lower total medical costs and increased patient satisfaction.

18 Jul 2012

Drug coverage issues, dual eligibles program draw Democrats' interest

According to these stories from Politico and Politico Pro, some House Democrats are calling on the Department Of Health and Human Services to use the Medicare prescription drug program as a model for the health law's essential health benefits drug coverage requirement.

18 Jul 2012

New York Times examines global efforts to predict new disease outbreaks

The New York Times examines how "teams of veterinarians and conservation biologists are in the midst of a global effort with medical doctors and epidemiologists to understand the 'ecology of disease.'"

18 Jul 2012