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Study finds Medicare doesn't pay adequately for clot-busting stroke treatment

Treating stroke patients with clot-busting drugs costs U.S. hospitals substantially more than Medicare pays, a new study finds.

18 Jan 2012

With new poll showing low public approval, Congress returns to D.C.:'Doc fix,' tax cuts on agenda

The Associated Press reports that in order to prevent a 27 percent cut in Medicare payments to doctors, negotiators are trying to find $39 billion in cuts elsewhere in health spending. A deal could be reached faster than initially expected.

18 Jan 2012

Food insecurity forces families to 'stretch' infant formula

Despite receiving supplemental food benefits, some families cannot afford enough infant formula and resort to the dangerous practice of formula "stretching" - watering down formula - to feed their babies, according to a Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center study conducted at urban pediatric clinics.

18 Jan 2012

Afghan President Karzai urges Taliban to allow polio vaccination teams into insurgent-controlled areas

Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday "urged the Taliban to allow teams conducting a polio vaccination campaign access to areas under their control" and "said that whoever hampers the medical workers 'is the enemy of our children's future,'" the Associated Press/Washington Post reports.

18 Jan 2012

VeriTeQ acquires PositiveID's VeriChip and Health Link web-based PHR

VeriTeQ Acquisition Corporation, a marketer of implantable, radio frequency identification technologies for patient identification and sensor applications, announced today it has acquired the VeriChip implantable microchip and related technologies, and Health Link personal health record from PositiveID Corporation.

18 Jan 2012

State roundup: State lawmakers, governors planning health legislation; Some Pa. kids losing Medicaid

Iowa House and Senate Republicans could support legislation requiring lawmakers to contribute to the cost of their state-provided health-care benefits, party leaders told the Des Moines Register's editorial board this morning. The health-care packages now offered by the state - in which most employees, including legislators, are not required to make contributions from their salaries - are "out of touch" with the plans available to average Iowans, ... House Speaker Kraig Paulsen, R-Hiawatha, said.

18 Jan 2012

Wis. company helps lead the way to digitizing health records

Operating on 800 acres of former farmland near Madison, Wis., Epic Systems supplies electronic records for large health care providers like the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles ...

18 Jan 2012

Health influence of combustion conditions in wood-burning stoves

Wood-burning stoves are a popular source of heating in many countries. However in recent years there has been much debate about the potential negative health effects associated with wood smoke. A Norwegian researcher has studied the influence of combustion conditions on the emissions and their health effects.

18 Jan 2012

Insurance in the states: New York retailers often don't cover employees, HHS steps up scrutiny of Ariz. insurers

In New York City, a new study has found only three of 10 retail workers get health insurance through their job. In the meantime, the federal government is stepping up scrutiny of health insurers in Arizona, and Connecticut considers changes to appeal insurance company coverage denials.

17 Jan 2012

New Yorker mistakenly billed for $44.8 million from hospital

Unemployed doorman Alexis Rodriguez says he almost became ill when he received a $44.8 million bill from the Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center. Rodriguez was hospitalized last spring with pneumonia and was afraid the bill was legitimate. His actual bill stood at $300.

17 Jan 2012

Choosing the right plate size and color could help you eat less

Choosing the right size and color of your bowls and plates could help you eat less, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.

17 Jan 2012

Dental Lab Products magazine recognizes Objet Eden260V 3D Printer as 2011 Readers' Choice

Objet Ltd., the innovation leader in 3D printing for rapid prototyping and additive manufacturing, today announced that the Objet Eden260V 3D Printer has been recognized as a 2011 "Readers' Choice" by subscribers to Dental Lab Products magazine.

17 Jan 2012

AAN neurologist receives prestigious award at Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum

The American Academy of Neurology(AAN) has named neurologist Constantine Moschonas, MD, of Scottsdale, Ariz., as the AAN Donald M. Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum Advocate of the Year. Moschonas received his award at the Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum on January 14, 2012, in Austin, Texas, for his outstanding work in raising awareness about brain diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, stroke, autism, Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis.

17 Jan 2012

UBC study: 1 in 10 Canadians cannot afford prescription drugs

One in 10 Canadians have problems affording medications they have been prescribed, and one in four people without drug insurance cannot afford to have their prescriptions filled, according to a study in CMAJ.

17 Jan 2012

Canada should prohibit disclosure of fetal sex until 30 weeks of pregnancy

Canada should prohibit disclosure of the sex of a fetus until after 30 weeks of pregnancy to combat female feticide which is practised by some ethnic groups in Canada and the United States, states an editorial in CMAJ.

17 Jan 2012

Hot yoga practicing tips

Yoga is one of the hottest fitness trends and a style known as "hot yoga" is gaining in popularity. Hot yoga refers to yoga practiced in a heated environment, with the room temperature generally reaching 90 to 105 degrees. The theory behind it is that hot yoga helps the body to sweat out toxins while allowing the practitioner to safely achieve deeper poses. Bikram is a common form of hot yoga.

17 Jan 2012

FRAX tool now available as version 3.5 in 18 languages

FRAX, which is available free online at http://www.shef.ac.uk/FRAX/, is being used by an increasing number of physicians around the world - the online version alone is used to calculate 10-year probability of fracture in approximately 2.8 million patients annually, with numbers growing steadily.

17 Jan 2012

Study finds wide disparity in melanoma mortality rates by education

A new study from the American Cancer Society finds recent declines in melanoma mortality rates in non-Hispanic Whites in the U.S. mainly reflect declines in those with the highest level of education, and reveals a widening disparity in melanoma mortality rates by education.

17 Jan 2012

Traditional autopsy is still the gold standard in determining cause of death

TV crime shows like Bones and CSI are quick to explain each death by showing highly detailed scans and video images of victims' insides. Traditional autopsies, if shown at all, are at best in supporting roles to the high-tech equipment, and usually gloss over the sometimes physically grueling tasks of sawing through skin and bone.

17 Jan 2012

Study finds high hospital-patient acceptability of nurse-delivered SBIRT

The U.S. Joint Commission recently approved new hospital accreditation measures related to alcohol screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for all hospitalized patients. Yet little is known about the effectiveness of brief interventions (BIs) or inpatient acceptability of SBIRT when performed by healthcare professionals other than physicians. A new study has found high hospital-patient acceptability of and comfort with nurse-delivered SBIRT.

17 Jan 2012