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Reduction in alcohol prices increases alcohol-related mortality

Does a reduction in the price of alcohol result in an increase in deaths due to alcohol? This was the subject of a study following a significant reduction in taxes in Finland in 2004 (30% for spirits, 3% for wine).The abolition of import quotas by the EU in 2004 also made it possible to import from other member countries and this led to an increase of approximately 10% in alcohol consumption in Finland.

8 Apr 2011

Doctors backing single payer system fault Vermont's plan

Physicians for a National Health Program suggest the proposal in Vermont falls "far short" of their goals, The Hill Reports. Meanwhile, The Boston Globe has an interview with one of the architects of the Vermont plan.

8 Apr 2011

Revised definition of catastrophic impairment may result in reduction of benefits

The Alliance of Community Medical Rehabilitation Providers is urging the government to protect seriously injured car accident victims when it considers the report of the Catastrophic Impairment Expert Panel. The report is scheduled to be released next week.

8 Apr 2011

Giffords' case leads to push for brain-injury care to be 'essential benefit'

A letter from the office of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., urges HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to include such care in the health law's essential benefits package, despite budget pressures looming in Congress.

8 Apr 2011

Medicare doctor payments sometimes pit specialties against each other

One of the biggest disputes in the Relative Value Scale Update Committee came in 2005, when members clashed over primary-care groups' push for increases in the payments for doctor office visits, which are among the most commonly-billed Medicare services.

8 Apr 2011

Ryan's plan to reshape Medicare triggers cost, political concerns

News outlets report on how the plan to privatize Medicare may actually increase costs and how the GOP plan could turn out to be a "front-burner" issue during the presidential primary.

8 Apr 2011

Hospital-owned practices winning over physicians

[Many doctors] are giving up ownership of their practices to become part of hospital-owned practices or larger groups with multiple specialties. ... Young doctors in particular are choosing to work for larger organizations rather than starting their own practices, they say.

8 Apr 2011

Is the U.S. prepared for a nuclear emergency?

A blunt assessment circulating among American officials says "Current capabilities can only handle a few radiation injuries at any one time." That assessment [was] prepared by the Department of Homeland Security in 2010 ...

8 Apr 2011

NHIC to cover PTNS using Uroplasty's Urgent PC Neuromodulation System for overactive bladder

Uroplasty, Inc. announced that NHIC Corp., the Medicare carrier for Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont, will cover posterior tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) using Uroplasty's Urgent® PC Neuromodulation System for the treatment of overactive bladder and associated symptoms, effective May 22, 2011.

8 Apr 2011

Research Roundup: The cost of medical errors; 'Unreasonable rate increases'

Health Affairs: The $17.1 Billion Problem: The Annual Cost Of Measurable Medical Errors - "The estimated total cost of measurable medical errors in the United States was $17.1 billion in 2008, which was 0.72 percent of the $2.391 trillion spent on health care," write the authors of this study that used an "an actuarial approach to measure the frequency and costs of measurable U.S. medical errors, identified through medical claims data."

8 Apr 2011

AP: New gov't plan designed to reduce health disparities unveiled

From cradle to grave, minority populations tend to suffer poorer health and get poorer health care than white Americans. In a first-of-its-kind report, the government is recommending steps to reduce those disparities.

8 Apr 2011

2011 budget deal elusive as GOP policy riders threaten progress

With the high-stakes negotiations currently at an impasse, the differences among the GOP, Democrats and the White House involve more than just the total dollar figure attached to spending cuts. It also involves controversial "policy riders." Meanwhile, without resolution, a government shutdown is just hours away.

8 Apr 2011

Despite economic challenges, Henry Ford Health System made $60 million last year

The Henry Ford Health System — the largest provider of hospital care in the region — made $60 million last calendar year in spite of a stubborn economy and increasing costs to care for poor and uninsured people, officials announced Thursday. The system's continued success — its eighth consecutive year of financial growth — has made it the largest system in southeast Michigan in revenue and in-patient volume, said Robert Riney, president and chief operating officer for the system.

8 Apr 2011

Some consumers left out of Anthem's delay to planned rate hikes

Although the insurer announced last month that it would delay a planned premium rate increase for about 600,000 policy holders, reports indicate that as many as 120,000 people will still experience the increases.

8 Apr 2011

State News: N.Y. billing for disabled patients questioned

While the nation's attention has been focused on state worker battles in union strongholds such as Ohio and Wisconsin, quiet but consequential labor battles are breaking out in Kansas, Texas and other states where collective bargaining rights for public workers were weak or non-existent to begin with. The outcome of these confrontations will have a big impact.

8 Apr 2011

The MED Group creates National Orthotics and Prosthetics Network

The MED Group, a Managed Health Care Associates, Inc. (MHA) company, and a leading group purchasing and business solutions company focused on Home Medical Equipment providers is pleased to announce the creation of The MED Group National Orthotics and Prosthetics Network. Tim Pederson (formerly of WestMed Rehab) has joined The MED Group and will be leading the development of The MED Group's National Orthotics & Prosthetics Network.

8 Apr 2011

Viewpoints abound on impact of Ryan plan, government showdown

If the federal government shuts down at midnight on Friday — which seems likely unless negotiations take a sudden turn toward rationality — it will not be because of disagreements over spending. It will be because Republicans are refusing to budge on these ideological demands: No federal financing for Planned Parenthood. ... No local financing for abortion services in the District of Columbia. ... No funds for health care reform.

8 Apr 2011

States mull Medicaid grants

Republicans talk a lot about how Medicaid block grants could help governors bring down their costs, but they don't talk as much about what, exactly, the states would do with them. It's not that they have no answers. Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi has said he'd like to provide home-based care for children with special medical needs, rather than resort to more expensive hospital care, but federal rules get in the way.

8 Apr 2011

HCP closes acquisition of HCR ManorCare facilities for $6.1 billion

HCP announced that it closed the acquisition of 334 post-acute, skilled nursing and assisted living facilities of HCR ManorCare for a total consideration of $6.1 billion in cash. In connection with the closing, HCP entered into a long-term triple-net master lease under which HCR ManorCare will continue to operate the facilities.

8 Apr 2011

Vascular Disease Foundation invites applicants for ambassador program

If you or someone you love have been affected by vascular disease and have a willingness to help others, the Vascular Disease Foundation (VDF) is calling for applications to join its ambassador program to help promote vascular disease awareness.

8 Apr 2011