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Differing reports on how businesses, health law are interacting

Reuters reports that Health and Human Services data show the business community is a big winner as a result of the measure's early retiree program. But The Fiscal Times notes that some "corporate giants" are at odds with the overhaul.

28 Mar 2011

How is the health care safety net faring?

News outlets examine the safety net from varying vantage points to see how it is holding up in advance of the health law's coverage expansions and during difficult economic times.

28 Mar 2011

New pill may protect DNA from radiation damage

The Japanese nuclear crisis has caused a surge in the demand of potassium iodide, causing shortages not only in Japan, but as far away as California, western Canada, and even southeastern Russia. Although potassium iodide does not provide generalized radiation protection because it only shields the thyroid, manufacturers and pharmacies are being bombarded with orders as the radiation hysteria mounts.

28 Mar 2011

Hospital pricing, mergers grab headlines

In Texas, reports indicate that costs vary widely by hospital. Meanwhile, merger talks begin in Connecticut.

28 Mar 2011

Exploring the donor kidney market

Should you be paid to part with a kidney?

28 Mar 2011

First Edition: March 25, 2011

Today's headlines include reports about mini-med plans and accountable care organizations as well as the ongoing impasse in Congress regarding current year spending.

28 Mar 2011

Metagenics announces 2011 schedule for educational programs in lifestyle medicine

Metagenics Inc., a nutrigenomics and lifestyle medicine company dedicated to reducing chronic illness and improving health, announced today the 2011 schedule for educational programs in lifestyle medicine as well as for certification programs for its FirstLine Therapy, a turnkey, lifestyle medicine program.

28 Mar 2011

Asbury Communities offers management and support services for older adults

In 2010, more than 4 million baby boomers turned 50, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Boomers today represent 28 percent of the U.S. population, or 76.1 million people. With so many people aging, how is the senior living industry going to provide services to this group of older Americans?

28 Mar 2011

MediConnect CEO to discuss on risk adjustment health services at HCC conference

MediConnect Global today announced that Amy Rees Anderson, the company's CEO, is among a renowned group of healthcare professionals speaking at the 5th annual HCC Management Summit in Nashville, Tennessee.

28 Mar 2011

Cleveland Clinic, Elsevier to offer physicians with evidence-based clinical content

Elsevier, a world leader in health care and medical publishing and online solutions, today announced a strategic relationship between First Consult and Cleveland Clinic to provide physician-author support of content for First Consult, an evidence-based resource integrated into the clinical workflow to deliver trusted medical information at the point-of-care.

28 Mar 2011

DAW prescriptions can increase annual health system costs to $7.7 billion

Approximately five percent of prescriptions submitted by CVS Caremark Pharmacy Benefit Management members in a 30-day period during 2009 included a "dispense as written" designation.

28 Mar 2011

Research: Written action plan with prescriptions can improve asthma control in children

It sounds unbelievably simple but it's true - a written action plan for asthma treatment, attached to the drug prescription, improves asthma control in children. "Acute care visits for asthma often signal a management failure," said Dr. Francine Ducharme, of the University of Montreal's Department of Pediatrics and the Sainte-Justine University Hospital Centre.

28 Mar 2011

Science Magazine reports on recent push to make preventing, treating cancer a global priority

Science Magazine reports on the recent push to make preventing and treating cancer a global priority, particularly in developing countries, where it's estimated "less than 5% of the world's cancer resources are spent."

28 Mar 2011

IFC, Gates Foundation work with India’s Bihar State to improve health payments system

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation are working with the government of Bihar state to find ways to make government payments to health workers and health beneficiaries more efficient, transparent, and timely.

28 Mar 2011

Study finds surgeon availability linked to fewer MVC-related deaths

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine claim that the availability of surgeons is a critical factor in public health and suggest that surgery should become an important part of the primary health care system.

28 Mar 2011

GOP presidential candidates lash out at health law

A handful of high-profile Republicans who may be eyeing the White House told hundreds of conservative activists Saturday that most Americans agree with their values, and insisted that opposition to the president's health care overhaul could help the GOP make historic gains in 2012.

28 Mar 2011

China to implement ban on smoking in indoor public spaces

Chinese health officials this week announced the country will move forward in May with a ban on smoking in all indoor public spaces "in an effort to shield the world's most populous nation ... from the harmful effects of the habit," Reuters reports.

28 Mar 2011

Nurses Lounge completes online professional network proof of concept in Dallas area

MedCAREERS GROUP, Inc. today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Nurses Lounge, has completed a successful proof of concept of its online professional network for nurses in the Dallas area and a broader Texas market.

28 Mar 2011

Blue Cross Blue Shield facing Justice Dept. questions on hospital agreements

The U.S. Justice Department is widening a probe into whether Blue Cross Blue Shield health-insurance plans are artificially raising premiums in several states by striking agreements with hospitals that stifle competition from rival insurers. Federal investigators and some state attorneys general have sent civil subpoenas to "Blue" health plans in Missouri, Ohio, Kansas, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and the District of Columbia, according to people familiar with the matter.

28 Mar 2011

New study: Women with early stage breast cancer worry about recurrence

A new study has found that certain types of women with early stage breast cancer are vulnerable to excessive worrying about cancer recurrence. Published early online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the study also indicates that worrying about cancer recurrence can compromise patients' medical care and quality of life.

28 Mar 2011