Healthcare News

RSS

House appropriators ok measure that prohibits feds from enforcing individual mandate

By defunding this health law provision next year, even though it doesn't actually kick in until 2014, the measure could prevent the administration from hiring and training the necessary Internal Revenue Service personnel.

18 Jun 2011

Paternal exposure during pregnancy may affect man's ability to father a child

According to the California Teratogen Information Service (CTIS) Pregnancy Health Information Line, more studies are needed to evaluate men and the potential effect of illnesses, medications and lifestyle habits on fertility and pregnancy. For couples suffering fertility problems, the issue is linked to the potential father approximately 50 percent of the time. In close to a quarter of these cases, a specific cause is unknown.

18 Jun 2011

News highlights: Report urges smoke-free laws; N.J. state workers rally against pension and health care changes

A million people would quit smoking, nearly 400,000 teenagers would never start, and more than 700,000 lives would be saved if the 27 U.S. states that don't have good antismoking laws would adopt them, the American Cancer Society projected on Wednesday.

18 Jun 2011

Post-war trend of falling birth rates has been reversed across Europe

The post-war trend of falling birth rates has been reversed across Europe, according to a new study. However, despite an increasing emphasis on family and fertility policies in Europe, this recent development involves social, cultural and economic factors more than individual policy interventions.

18 Jun 2011

Viewpoints: 'Two great dangers' of Obamacare; Sen. Klobuchar and Rep. Paulsen on wellness; 'McKinseyGate'

Obamacare poses two great dangers to our nation: lower quality of care and runaway costs. It will stifle innovation and lead to rationing. But the overwhelming cost and the damage it will do to our nation's finances at a pivotal moment in our history deserve greater scrutiny.

18 Jun 2011

WHO special issue addresses economic burden of dengue in the Americas, Africa and Asia

The ten studies in this special issue document the substantial and growing burden of dengue in the Americas, Africa and Asia, and the burden of a chikungunya outbreak in India.

18 Jun 2011

OptumHealth names Women & Infants as Center of Excellence for Reproductive Resource Services

Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island has been named a Center of Excellence for Reproductive Resource Services by OptumHealth, an independent audit company.

18 Jun 2011

Five food security priorities for the G20

Olivier De Schutter, the U.N. special rapporteur on the right to food, outlines five priorities for G20 leaders to endorse at the upcoming summit in a Guardian "Poverty Matters Blog" post.

18 Jun 2011

Longer looks: Turning doctors' views of alternative therapies; a male birth control pill; teenagers and tanning beds

Medicine has long decried acupuncture, homeopathy, and the like as dangerous nonsense that preys on the gullible. Again and again, carefully controlled studies have shown alternative medicine to work no better than a placebo. But now many doctors admit that alternative medicine often seems to do a better job of making patients well, and at a much lower cost, than mainstream care — and they're trying to learn from it.

18 Jun 2011

Research roundup: Kids on Medicaid have trouble seeing a specialist; safety in outpatient facilities; community health center patients linking to electronic health care

In this study, researchers posing as parents sought specialty care for children in Cook County, Ill., to examine access opportunities for families on Medicaid. They found a major disparity between children with public insurance versus private insurance -- 66 percent of the callers saying the children were insured by Medicaid were denied an appointment, compared to 11 percent with a private plan.

18 Jun 2011

Nurses’ dress codes prescribed

A hospital trust has come up with warnings regarding nurses’ uniforms and advised them against wearing clothes that expose their “midriff” or “excessive cleavage”. East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust has issued a new uniform policy for all staff, with guidance on shoes, clothing, hair length and colour. They have added that any member of staff who does not adhere to the policy could be subject to disciplinary action.

17 Jun 2011

White House focuses on prevention with release of national strategy

Described as a way to improve the nation's prosperity, the Obama administration announced a sweeping plan to emphasize health promotion and disease prevention for all walks of life.

17 Jun 2011

Lawmakers draw lines, offer views on Medicare

Senate Democrats argue that the best way to find savings in Medicare is to build on the program changes that were included in the health law. Meanwhile, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., says he is open to Medicare changes that would leave the traditional program intact as an option for seniors in the future.

17 Jun 2011

Pawlenty aims verbal barb at Romney

On Thursday, GOP presidential hopeful Tim Pawlenty called rival Mitt Romney a "co-conspirator" in the federal health overhaul. He also repeated his call for repealing the measure, and maintained that, when he was governor, he handled health reform "the right way."

17 Jun 2011

UK should continue to provide aid to India, parliamentary report says

Despite enormous economic gains over the past 25 years, Britain should continue to provide aid to India until 2015 to ensure the country meets the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), according to a cross-party report published by the House of Commons international development committee on Tuesday, the Guardian reports.

17 Jun 2011

'Healthy food' discussed at Nutrevent 2011

How is "healthy food" defined ? Which food compounds are scientifically approved as health-enhancing ? What type of food information do consumers need or want ? Do "pharma" and "food" need more convergence to be innovative ? These were the most discussed topics during the 2011 edition of the "Nutrevent", an international innovation congress organized by the Eurasanté and the Nutrition, Health and Logevity Cluster in the French city of Lille.

17 Jun 2011