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N.Y., Fla. lawmakers consider Med-Mal damage caps

In New York, the issue is among the most contentious and is tied to the state's budget, which must be completed by April 1. In Florida, the measure approved by the state's appropriation's panel is matched by a similar version moving in the Senate. Both are part of an effort to overhaul Florida's Medicaid program.

25 Mar 2011

Aetna sues N.J. doctors, pricing central issue

Aetna Inc. (AET) is suing six New Jersey doctors over medical bills it calls "unconscionable," including $56,980 for a bedside consultation and $59,490 for an ultrasound that typically costs $74. The

25 Mar 2011

Fraud updates sought by top Senate Finance members

Top members of the Senate Finance Committee have asked the Obama administration for frequent progress reports on its work to cut down on fraud and abuse in health programs.

25 Mar 2011

New studies demonstrate advantages of Masimo noninvasive and continuous measurements in ICUs

Masimo announced today that three new studies presented at the International Symposium of Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (ISICEM) Annual Meeting in Brussels, Belgium, demonstrate the accuracy, reliability, and clinical impact of Masimo noninvasive and continuous measurements—noninvasive hemoglobin (SpHb®), Pleth Variability Index (PVI®), and Perfusion Index (PI)—in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) patients.

25 Mar 2011

Kenya requests emergency order of 45M condoms from PEPFAR

A condom shortage in Kenya caused by high demand and procurement bottlenecks has forced the country to request an emergency order of 45 million condoms from PEPFAR, Kenyan health officials said Wednesday, Agence France-Presse reports. According to the news service, a January order of 19 million condoms was exhausted in about six weeks (3/23).

25 Mar 2011

Swallowed button battery can generate electrical current and cause serious tissue damage

To mark National Poison Prevention week, Trauma specialists at The Montreal Children's Hospital (MCH) of the McGill University Health Centre are urging parents to seek immediate medical attention if their child has swallowed a button battery. Parents should not assume the tiny battery will harmlessly pass through their child's system.

25 Mar 2011

Countries ban imports of Japanese food as radiation leak continues

Countries worldwide on Thursday banned or limited food imports from Japan, as radioactive steam continued to leak from the Fukushima nuclear plant damaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, Agence France-Presse reports.

25 Mar 2011

New Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital has established a Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Service, led by Dr. Heakyung Kim. In this role, Dr. Kim will provide specialized care for children with neuromuscular disorders and other special needs at the Hospital's two major centers for pediatric care: Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center and the Komansky Center for Children's Health at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.

25 Mar 2011

Polls showcase national divisions, opinions about health law

A year has passed and polls still highlight the steadiness in the public rift on the health law.

25 Mar 2011

IOM offers standards to develop clinical practice guidelines

Modern Healthcare reports that the Institute of Medicine has issued eight recommended standards to develop clinical practice guidelines. Meanwhile, it also reports on the findings of a national survey regarding medical mistakes.

25 Mar 2011

Qualifacts CareLogic Enterprise achieves Complete EHR certification

Qualifacts Systems Inc. announced at the kickoff of its 2011 Users' Conference that CareLogic Enterprise is 2011/2012 compliant and was certified as a Complete EHR on March 22, 2011, by the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT®), an ONC-ATCB, in accordance with the applicable Eligible Provider certification criteria adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

25 Mar 2011

First Edition: March 25, 2011

In his latest Kaiser Health News column, John Goodman writes: "As governors across the land struggle with fiscal pressures and pepper the federal government with requests to scale back Medicaid - many people are losing sight of the fact that health care reform requires a huge expansion of Medicaid".

25 Mar 2011

'Consent rituals' cause life-threatening delays

Current rules requiring researchers to obtain consent for patients to take part in clinical trials in emergency situations are causing life-threatening delays to treatment, experts have argued.

25 Mar 2011

New study finds 74.8% increase in hospital emergency visits due to Ecstasy use

A new national study indicates that the number of hospital emergency visits involving the illicit drug Ecstasy increased from 10,220 in 2004 to 17,865 visits in 2008 - a 74.8 percent increase.

25 Mar 2011

Experts to address worldwide impact of Alzheimer's disease at ADI conference

On Sunday March 27 leaders at the 26th Annual Conference of Alzheimer's Disease International will challenge the World Health Organization and countries around the world to take action on the dramatic surge in the global incidence of Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

25 Mar 2011

Study finds that 25% of health messages in school text books lack scientific evidence

Most school text books contain messages about health, but 24.6% of these are not based on any scientific evidence, according to a study by the Knowledge Management Unit at Baza Hospital (Granada), published in the journal BMC Public Health.

25 Mar 2011

FXB and Merck partner to improve systems for prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Botswana

The Francois-Xavier Bagnoud Center (FXB) of the University of Medicine and Dentistry (UMDNJ) School of Nursing will provide training to 150 clinicians in Botswana who will then train more than 6,000 healthcare workers thanks to a grant of nearly $375,000 from The Merck Company Foundation.

25 Mar 2011

Health law waivers the target of new lawsuit

Crossroads Global Policy Strategies, a political organization founded by former George W. Bush adviser Karl Rove, has filed suit in an effort to force the Obama administration to reveal its reasons for granting these waivers.

25 Mar 2011

State-level action, reactions coincide with health law anniversary

Party politics appear to be a key determinant in how states and state-level officials are reacting to the measure's implementation.

25 Mar 2011

CoC honors 90 cancer care facilities with Outstanding Achievement Award

The Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons has granted its Outstanding Achievement Award to a select group of 90 currently accredited and newly accredited cancer programs across the United States as a result of surveys performed during 2010.

25 Mar 2011