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Hospital patients with pneumonia may face risk of sudden cardiac arrest

Hospital patients with pneumonia may be at risk of experiencing sudden cardiac arrest, often with few or no warning signs, according to research from the University of Chicago Medical Center under the auspices of the American Heart Association's Get with the Guidelines project.

16 May 2011

Viewpoints: Snappy headlines, prose on Romney and Medicare dominate Today's opinions and editorials

The first question he got from the audience after his speech Thursday was the right one: What's to prevent states from a "race to the bottom," where they cut their costs by slashing spending on health care? Romney had no good answer beyond a vague assertion that Americans are a "generous people" who would not deny health coverage to their fellow citizens.

16 May 2011

With release of trustees' report, Medicare's finances likely to get even more attention

Congress is putting off changes to Social Security, but the massive retirement and disability program still faces long-term financial problems from an aging population and an economy that has been slow to rebound.

13 May 2011

Scientists 'tinker' with HIV drug chemistry hoping to reduce costs

The Clinton Health Access Initiative, founded by former President Bill Clinton, with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.K. government, has hired former pharmaceutical company scientists "to tinker with the chemistry used to synthesize a key [HIV] drug, tenofovir" in an effort to reduce "the cost of manufacturing," the Wall Street Journal reports.

13 May 2011

AP reports on Global Fund commitment to transparency, fund responds

After an Associated Press story on Tuesday that reported the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria's board "is considering scaling back its groundbreaking philosophy of full transparency about how it spends billions of dollars in health care in poor countries"

13 May 2011

Supreme Court of Canada opens hearings on safe drug injection facility

The Supreme Court of Canada on Thursday began hearing the Canadian government's case against Insite, a Vancouver-based legal injection site where people can obtain clean needles and syringes to inject their own drugs under a nurse's supervision, the Canadian Press reports. Proponents of the program say it "prevents overdose deaths, reduces the spread of HIV and hepatitis, and curbs crime and open drug use".

13 May 2011

Cockroaches are a leading trigger of allergies and asthma attacks

May marks National Allergy and Asthma Awareness Month, and the National Pest Management Association warns families that cockroaches are a leading trigger of allergies and asthma attacks. The pests' saliva, droppings and decomposing bodies contain allergen proteins known to trigger allergies and increase the severity of asthma symptoms, especially in children.

13 May 2011

WHO launches Decade of Action for Road Safety

The WHO on Wednesday in Geneva officially launched the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020 to raise awareness of and reduce the number of traffic-related deaths and injuries worldwide, the Washington Post reports (Brown, 5/11).

13 May 2011

Pro-gun interests, doctors clash over gun discussions

Three states are considering laws that would penalize doctors and other health care providers for asking patients or their parents whether they have a gun at home.

13 May 2011

Research roundup: Medicare costs in nursing homes; Docs reluctant to adopt EHRs; Health law to improve access to care

Medicare Expenditures Among Nursing Home Residents With Advanced Dementia -- Researchers followed 323 dementia patients in 22 nursing homes for up to 18 months and found that over an 18-month period, "total mean Medicare expenditures were $2303 per 90 days but were highly skewed; expenditures were less than $500 for 77.1% of the 90-day assessment periods and more than $12 000 for 5.5% of these periods.

13 May 2011

Obama, Senate Republicans meet in search of budget compromises

President Barack Obama opened the private session by asking all parties to look for common ground, but the entrenched positions in play will make that difficult to achieve. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., for instance, laid out specific conditions that must be met in order to gain GOP support. These included immediate budget caps on discretionary spending followed by eligibility changes to Medicare and Medicaid.

13 May 2011

Two Congressmen launch caucus to improve aid effectiveness

Reps. Ander Crenshaw (R-Fla.) and Adam Smith (D-Wash.) on Thursday launched "a bipartisan group that aims to improve aid effectiveness to further U.S. national security and foreign policy objectives," Devex's blog "Obama's Foreign Aid Reform" reports.

13 May 2011

U.S., Egyptian officials launch report documenting results from USAID health assistance in Egypt

U.S. and Egyptian officials on Thursday gathered for the launch of Egypt's Health and Population Legacy Report, which documents the results of USAID health sector assistance in Egypt, Daily News Egypt reports.

13 May 2011

HHS: Health law saves Medicare $120 billion

The administration credits the significant savings to changes in the Medicare program that were put in place by the health law combined with other steps to cut down on fraud and abuse, quality of care incentives, and efforts to streamline care for people with disabilities.

13 May 2011

Minnesota GOP lawmakers file brief in health care lawsuit

Republican legislators ... have filed an amicus brief supporting 26 states that are claiming that federal health care reforms signed into law last year are unconstitutional. ...

13 May 2011

Milliman study finds health costs really are increasing

[T]he latest report from the green-eyeshade experts at Milliman does include a few surprises about what is — and isn't — driving [health care] costs higher. ... Last year, health costs rose by 7.3 percent, which is the slowest rate of increase in more than a decade. By comparison, though, the Consumer Price Index rose only about 1.5 percent last year.... So what's driving the increases?

13 May 2011

The Leonardo da Vinci Prize competition invites project submissions

International philanthropists, prestigious Universities, Hospitals, Order of Physicians, Public Administrations support and sponsor this initiative to follow scientific procedures to identify solutions with the highest potential to reduce premature cancer death and cost.

13 May 2011

Medicaid flexibility bill approved by House Energy and Commerce subcommittee

The measure, which Medicaid advocates say would "devastate the program," would repeal the maintenance of effort provision in the health law which prevents states from cutting eligibility rules before 2014. GOP backers argue it is the best way to give states more flexibility to deal with the program as they face budget shortfalls.

13 May 2011

New ACR Dose Index Registry allows imaging community to measure effectiveness of dose lowering efforts

Medical imaging facilities can now submit anonymized dose information for all CT exams performed to the Dose Index Registry (DIR) — allowing them to compare their dose indices to other facilities of similar size or geographic area and to national benchmarks. Participating facilities receive periodic feedback comparing their dose levels to these benchmarks, enabling them to make any necessary adjustments to lower dose received from scans.

13 May 2011

House Energy and Commerce Committee approves malpractice legislation

The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday passed new limits on lawsuits against doctors after defeating Democratic amendments to preserve more lenient state laws.

13 May 2011