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Medically vulnerable families can benefit from high-deductible health plans

People who are medically vulnerable -- those with low incomes or chronic health problems -- who enroll in high-deductible health plans are at no more risk for cutting back on needed health care than other people who enroll in the plans, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

20 Apr 2011

In ongoing take-over saga, Community Health makes all-cash offer for Tenet

Community Health Systems Inc sweetened its $3.3 billion offer for Tenet Healthcare Corp on Monday, persisting with its hostile bid even as revelations of a U.S. government probe into Community's billing practices sent its shares lower.

20 Apr 2011

Opinions: Cambodian aid; Tobin tax; Japan recovery; Inflation, infectious disease in Asia

In a Washington Post opinion piece, Joel Brinkley, a professor of journalism at Stanford University who authored a book about Cambodia, writes about a donor-pledge meeting in Cambodia scheduled for Wednesday and discusses a potential law that would require NGOs to register with the government.

20 Apr 2011

Are GPs preventing patients from hearing properly?

Nearly 15,000 UK consumers answered questions about their hearing and their knowledge of hearing aids in the most comprehensive and largest survey ever undertaken in this field. The EuroTrak UK study will provide invaluable data for GPs, the NHS, Department of Health and the audiology profession. This study is now being publicised by The British Hearing Aid Manufacturers Association (BHAMA).

19 Apr 2011

New guidelines allow definition of pre-Alzheimer's

The emphasis on the need to diagnose Alzeheimer's during its earliest stages is also evident in Congress, where legislation introduced this month would create new, specific Medicare cost codes for early-disease diagnosis to address these steps, including the discussions between the physician and caregivers.

19 Apr 2011

First Edition: April 19, 2011

Today's headlines include a report about new guidelines that will allow an earlier definition of Alzeheimer's and associated legislation that would make key, related changes in Medicare cost codes.

19 Apr 2011

New neoprene inhaler cover for children with asthma

InhalerWear announces a new neoprene cover for inhalers that will help make carrying around an inhaler trendy and cool to children and teenagers. The new inhaler cover is affordable, stylish and can simply be clipped to a backpack, sports bag or keychain like an accessory.

19 Apr 2011

SXC receives Health Alliance's three-year HCIT service contract

SXC Health Solutions Corp., a leading provider of technology and pharmacy benefit management services, announces that it has been awarded a three-year Health Care Information Technology service contract from Health Alliance Plan of Michigan, a health plan with an annual health spend of approximately $250 million. Health Alliance Plan markets health plan products in the commercial and Medicare Part D market segments.

19 Apr 2011

New research confirms cigarettes' toxic impact on environment

Each year more than 360 billion cigarettes are smoked in the United States. Where do all those butts go? Public roads, waterways, parks and beaches. New research released today further demonstrates the negative impact that cigarette filters and discarded cigarette butts have on the environment.

19 Apr 2011

Cumberland acquires Vanderbilt's ifetroban rights

Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on hospital acute care and gastroenterology markets, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the rights to ifetroban, a new Phase II development product.

19 Apr 2011

BIDMC: Physicians need to create healthy distance between work, home online identities

With ubiquitous social media sites like Facebook and Twitter blurring private and professional lines, there is an increasing need for physicians to create a healthy distance between their work and home online identities, two Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center physicians assert.

19 Apr 2011

Two-thirds of nations on track to meet poverty, hunger MDGs by 2015, WB-IMF report says

Two-thirds of developing countries are on track or close to reaching the U.N. Millennium Development Goal targets to reduce extreme poverty and hunger, according to a World Bank-IMF report released Friday to coincide with a meeting of the groups in Washington, D.C., over the weekend, Agence France-Presse/Edmonton Journal reports.

19 Apr 2011

AMGA survey Physician turnover rates have increased since 2008

As the economy perks up, it appears that rates of physician turnover rise with it. For the first time since 2008, physician turnover has increased, reminding medical groups of the delicate balance between physician supply and demand.

19 Apr 2011

Study: 73% of hospital executives do not have formal definition for patient experience

New research conducted by The Beryl Institute shows that while patient experience is a top priority for hospital executives, it is still largely undefined. This landmark study of more than 790 hospital executives examined the state of the patient experience in the nation's hospitals and identified the greatest roadblocks to implementing change.

19 Apr 2011

Ryan, Obama deficit plans continue to generate OpEd heat on Medicare, Medicaid provisions

Mr. Ryan called the vote "our generation's defining moment," and indeed, nothing could more clearly define the choice that will face voters next year. His bill would end the guarantee provided by Medicare and Medicaid to the elderly and the poor, which has been provided by the federal government with society's clear assent since 1965.

19 Apr 2011

Axolotl, HealthInsight partner to create Nevada HIE suite

HealthInsight, a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving Nevada's health care system, announced today that it has selected Axolotl Corp. to build the community-based Health Information Exchange infrastructure to help Nevada providers improve the timeliness, quality, and coordination of care for their patients.

19 Apr 2011

Commonly used strategy has no effect in reducing MRSA, VRE in hospital ICUs

A new research study of the effect of a commonly used strategy to reduce the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in hospital intensive care units shows that the strategy had no significant effect. That's the surprising finding of a multisite study led by Mayo Clinic investigators.

19 Apr 2011

Overweight and obese parents more likely to view school-time activity as inadequate

Childhood obesity affects 1 of every 6 kids in the United States, in part due to a lack of physical activity. Schools can play a key part in offering elementary-age kids lots of chances to be active—on the playground during recess and when they're in gym.

19 Apr 2011

CPF announces $100,000 grants for patient care projects

The Cautious Patient Foundation, the outreach and educational arm of PatientAlwaysFirst, a nonprofit organization committed to educating and empowering patients in the quest for quality health care, today announces a new grants program to support initiatives that successfully move patients towards greater engagement in their personal or family healthcare process.

19 Apr 2011

Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist takes new challenge to combat cancer

Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist John Kaplan has taken on a new challenge: to give away 10,000 DVD copies of his new nationally acclaimed autobiographical film, Not As I Pictured to anyone affected by cancer.

19 Apr 2011