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Medicare spending growth slows, but 2011 a profitable year for Medicare Advantage plans

Medicare spending growth is slowing, even as enrollment rises, The Washington Post reports. Meanwhile, several large Medicare Advantage plans turned a mighty profit in 2011, despite the volatility of the larger economy.

23 Dec 2011

Viewpoints: Picking the 'right fights'; Sebelius's 'special place' in history

Republicans do need to fight for their priorities, but it helps to pick the right fights. They should return in 2012 ready to make their differences clear on taxes, health care, regulation, and how to grow an economy (12/23).

23 Dec 2011

Research roundup: Unraveling why elderly men are tested for prostate cancer; Difficulty paying medical bills

Medical Center Characteristics Associated With PSA Screenings In Elderly Veterans With Limited Life Expectancy -- Medical guidelines recommend against prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screenings for prostate cancer in men with limited life expectancy, but studies have shown that many elderly men still get the test.

23 Dec 2011

U.S. assistance helping to provide safe, clean water in Horn of Africa

"In the Horn of Africa, millions of people face each day without knowing if they will have clean water to drink or food to eat," but "American assistance to the Horn of Africa is beginning to make a difference, however, and in this series about water security in the Horn, we will showcase how water projects are helping people gain predictable access to clean water as a first step to gaining a foothold on a better life."

23 Dec 2011

IRIN analysis examines 'subtleties' of early warning messages in food security situations

In this analysis, "IRIN discussed with aid agencies and Sahel food security analysts the subtleties of getting early warning messages right in such situations."

23 Dec 2011

Texas Democrats oppose state's MLR waiver request

The state's Democratic House members urge HHS to reject the Perry administration request to give Texas insurers more time to meet medical loss ratio standards in the health law.

23 Dec 2011

Mt. Sinai financial turnaround offers lessons; Hospitals object to new rules

These are tough times to run a hospital, especially one that doubles as a major research facility. Uncertainty surrounding the future of health care regulation coupled with slashed government funding for scientific research has put top-tier institutions such as Mt. Sinai Hospital up a financial creek.

23 Dec 2011

A health insurance plan President Gingrich might support

KHN's Marilyn Werber Serafini reports on a health insurance plan Newt Gingrich might support: "The lesser known proposal would encourage people to purchase insurance by giving them tax credits or deductions.

23 Dec 2011

House GOP leaders accept short-term payroll tax cut extension

In an abrupt about-face, House Republican leaders agreed Thursday to a Senate proposal to extend the payroll tax cut and avert a scheduled payment cut to Medicare doctors for two months to allow lawmakers time to hammer out a longer-term agreement after the holidays.

23 Dec 2011

Harkin blasts South Carolina over exchange grant

The chairman of the Senate HELP Committee wants the HHS inspector general to investigate whether a $1 million federal grant was misused.

23 Dec 2011

GOP pauses 'doc fix' fight, averts 27 percent Medicare pay cut

The House GOP leadership's agreement to a Senate proposal averts a 27 percent paycut to doctors scheduled to take effect in January. The deal delays the cut until March 1, and lawmakers hope to hammer out an agreement on a longer-term fix to the payment formula before then.

23 Dec 2011

MSF publishes list of top 10 stories of 2011 about access to medicine

This Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) special report highlights the top 10 stories of 2011 regarding access to essential medicines, according to MSF.

23 Dec 2011

Republicans widen probe of AARP tax status

House Republicans sent new details to the Internal Revenue Service as part of an ongoing challenge to AARP's not-for-profit tax status, following the group's leading role in pushing for enactment of the 2010 federal healthcare overhaul.

23 Dec 2011

N.Y. Times review finds misuse of psychotropic drugs in disabled patients

Tens of thousands of powerful pills created to treat serious mental illnesses like schizophrenia are given to developmentally disabled people in the care of New York State every day.

23 Dec 2011

New working definition of recovery from mental disorders and substance use disorders

A new working definition of recovery from mental disorders and substance use disorders is being announced by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

23 Dec 2011

Center for Global Development blog responds to NPR report on health in Afghanistan

This post in the Center for Global Development's (CGD) "Global Health Policy" blog, Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and a research fellow at CGD, responds to an NPR Morning Edition report on USAID's work in Afghanistan, recapping the progress the agency has made in improving health care in the country.

23 Dec 2011

Experts' debate over how trade affects food security focusing attention on Doha talks, IRIN reports

IRIN reports how "[a]n exchange between two leading world officials on how trade affects food insecurity in countries has helped focus attention on the stalled Doha trade talks."

23 Dec 2011

Investigation finds shell companies stealing millions from Medicare

Reuters reports on rampant Medicare fraud and the development of new technologies that can be used to fight it.

23 Dec 2011

Declined consent affects organ donation rates

Research published today in the British Journal of Anaesthesia suggests that organ donation rates in the UK could be increased if the current issues affecting declined consent are improved. At present, only 30% of the UK population are registered on the NHS Organ Donor Register (ODR). From 2003 to 2005, the overall consent rate for donation after brain death (DBD) was 59%.

23 Dec 2011

Employment issues: A hot topic among health care workers

In Connecticut, the issue of unionizing home care attendants has sparked charged debate. Meanwhile in California, nurses - in the midst of contract negotiations - plan to picket at Sutter Health's Sacramento headquarters and nine of its hospitals; and, in Texas, nurses filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board regarding Cypress Fairbanks Medical Center's sick leave policy.

23 Dec 2011