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Federal officials confirm states may lose some Medicaid drug rebate money

"The federal agency that oversees Medicaid confirmed Thursday that some money states receive as rebates from drugmakers will now be redirected to the federal government to help pay for the new health overhaul," Kaiser Health News reports.

24 Apr 2010

IBM, athenahealth sign business process services agreement

IBM today announced that it has signed a business process services agreement with athenahealth, Inc. a leading provider of Internet-based business services for physician practices. The engagement will enable athenahealth to focus its resources on simplifying and improving administrative and reimbursement processes while reducing staff workload, allowing physicians to focus on delivering higher quality care to their patients.

24 Apr 2010

Court upholds Maine's ruling to cut insurance premium hikes; Florida voters to decide whether to amend constitution to fight federal mandate

The Wall Street Journal: "A state court upheld a Maine official's decision to deny a profit margin for a WellPoint Inc. unit in a health-insurance rate request—a ruling that may resonate in other states where regulators are battling premium hikes. Thomas E. Humphrey, chief justice of the Maine superior court, wrote that the approved 2009 rate for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield's individual health-insurance product line met the state's legal standard and wasn't 'inadequate'" (Matthews, 4/23).

24 Apr 2010

20 volunteers receive ADAO PRESIDENTIAL VOLUNTEER SERVICE AWARD

Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization today announced it has awarded 20 volunteers with the PRESIDENTIAL VOLUNTEER SERVICE AWARD, a national honor offered in recognition of volunteer service.

24 Apr 2010

ACE, Lilly Diabetes create "Diabetes Disaster Plan"

The Power of Prevention: Diabetes Disaster Plan is a checklist of essential items and tips to help diabetes patients prepare for the unexpected. Since Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005, ACE and Lilly Diabetes have worked together to create a comprehensive checklist of items for diabetes patients to prepare in anticipation of disaster.

24 Apr 2010

Officials continue health overhaul sparring, news outlets examine new law's potential improvements for women

Republicans are continuing to pressure officials at the Department of Health and Human Services on health reform as the focus shifts to implementation of the health care overhaul and the first deadlines are approaching, Politico reports.

24 Apr 2010

New Zimmer Institute training center opened at TMT facility in Parsippany, New Jersey

Zimmer Holdings, Inc. today announced the opening of a new Zimmer Institute training center at its Trabecular Metal Technology facility in Parsippany, New Jersey. The Zimmer Institute at TMT will be Zimmer's first full-time BioSkills training center outside of the Zimmer Institute's headquarters in Warsaw, Indiana.

24 Apr 2010

New eTransform Initiative to improve healthcare infrastructure in developing countries

The World Bank and Pfizer Inc. today announced they will collaborate to improve the healthcare infrastructure, specifically the supply chain, in developing countries, starting with Africa. The novel public-private collaboration will focus on enhanced use of Information and Communication Technologies' transformative power to improve healthcare delivery.

24 Apr 2010

Unitrin terminates previously announced negotiations with Physicians Mutual Insurance

Unitrin, Inc. said today that its previously announced negotiations with Physicians Mutual Insurance Company for the sale of Unitrin's Reserve National Insurance Company subsidiary have been terminated due to a failure by the parties to reach a definitive agreement.

24 Apr 2010

AmeriHealth New Jersey extends health insurance coverage for young adults currently under parents' plans

Beginning June 1, AmeriHealth New Jersey will extend health insurance coverage for young adults up to age 26 who are currently covered by their parents' individual or employer-sponsored health plans.

24 Apr 2010

Recent releases in Global Health

"What is still needed [to fight malaria] is the only tool that has ever truly conquered any infectious disease: an effective and affordable vaccine. And here, the global malaria community has been too complacent," a Lancet editorial asserts in an article highlighting achievements and drawbacks in attempting to provide universal access to malaria prevention and treatment.

24 Apr 2010

PMI releases 6-year malaria strategy

The U.S. government Thursday released a six-year strategy to address malaria globally, Reuters reports (Fox, 4/22). The plan was issued through the President's Malaria Initiative (PMI) in conjunction with World Malaria Day, April 25, and is a "core component of President [Barack] Obama's Global Health Initiative," according to a USAID press release (4/22).

24 Apr 2010

Reuters: Wellpoint targets breast cancer patients for rescission

That tens of thousands of Americans lost their health insurance shortly after being diagnosed with life-threatening, expensive medical conditions has been well documented by law enforcement agencies, state regulators and a congressional committee. ... And a congressional committee last year said WellPoint was one of the worst offenders.

24 Apr 2010

Health IT policy group calls for patient safety oversight program

Modern Healthcare: The federal Health Information Technology Policy Committee is calling for the development of a national program that would monitor patient safety problems in health care IT systems. "The first among the work group's recommendations was a proposal to create 'a national transparent oversight process and information system,' similar to a patient-safety organization, that could receive reports from various sources about patient-safety issues linked to the use of healthcare IT systems."

24 Apr 2010

Broadspire, Medcor partner to provide direct immediate post-injury treatment for employees

Broadspire, a Crawford Company and leading third party administrator of workers compensation claims, liability claims and medical management services, and Medcor, a leading injury triage provider, are partnering to implement services to more effectively direct immediate post-injury treatment for employees.

24 Apr 2010

Federal officials confirm a shift in Medicaid drug rebates

Kaiser Health News staff writer Christopher Weaver writes: "The federal agency that oversees Medicaid confirmed Thursday that some money states receive as rebates from drugmakers will now be redirected to the federal government to help pay for the new health overhaul" (Weaver, 4/22).

24 Apr 2010

OSI Systems: Spacelabs Healthcare expands patient monitoring portfolio with Spacelabs Ultraview 2900

OSI Systems, Inc., a vertically-integrated provider of specialized electronic products for critical applications, announced that its Healthcare Division, Spacelabs Healthcare, has expanded its patient monitoring portfolio with the introduction of the Spacelabs Ultraview 2900.

24 Apr 2010

Military health care costs on the rise

USA Today: Rising costs of military health care are leading the Pentagon and lawmakers to consider the first rate increase of out of pocket health care spending in fifteen years for members of TRICARE, the military health program. "The rapid rise has been driven by a surge in mental health and physical problems for troops who have deployed to war multiple times and by a flood of career military retirees fleeing less-generous civilian health programs," said Rear Adm. Christine Hunter, deputy director of TRICARE.

24 Apr 2010

Today's Opinions: Government power grab on health; A doctor's interface with computers; A focus on wellness

Following the passage of Democratic health-care reform legislation, President Obama assured the country that it was a 'middle-of-the-road, centrist approach' instead of an intrusive, government power grab. But the government seems incapable of resisting the nannying impulse that undermines this claim (Michael Gerson, 4/23).

24 Apr 2010

JET Health Solutions introduces JET InsureFuse V3.0 for healthcare agents, underwriters and insurers

JET Health Solutions, the healthcare product and solutions division of AAJ Technologies, is premiering JET InsureFuse V3.0, an automated medical underwriting process system at LOMA's Health Underwriters Study Group Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas.

24 Apr 2010

Healthcare News

Federal officials confirm states may lose some Medicaid drug rebate money

IBM, athenahealth sign business process services agreement

Court upholds Maine's ruling to cut insurance premium hikes; Florida voters to decide whether to amend constitution to fight federal mandate

20 volunteers receive ADAO PRESIDENTIAL VOLUNTEER SERVICE AWARD

ACE, Lilly Diabetes create "Diabetes Disaster Plan"

Officials continue health overhaul sparring, news outlets examine new law's potential improvements for women

New Zimmer Institute training center opened at TMT facility in Parsippany, New Jersey

New eTransform Initiative to improve healthcare infrastructure in developing countries

Unitrin terminates previously announced negotiations with Physicians Mutual Insurance

AmeriHealth New Jersey extends health insurance coverage for young adults currently under parents' plans

Recent releases in Global Health

PMI releases 6-year malaria strategy

Reuters: Wellpoint targets breast cancer patients for rescission

Health IT policy group calls for patient safety oversight program

Broadspire, Medcor partner to provide direct immediate post-injury treatment for employees

Federal officials confirm a shift in Medicaid drug rebates

OSI Systems: Spacelabs Healthcare expands patient monitoring portfolio with Spacelabs Ultraview 2900

Military health care costs on the rise

Today's Opinions: Government power grab on health; A doctor's interface with computers; A focus on wellness

JET Health Solutions introduces JET InsureFuse V3.0 for healthcare agents, underwriters and insurers

Revolutionizing Life Science: An Interview with SCIEX on ASMS, the SCIEX 7500+ System, and AI-Driven Quantitation

From Discovery Biology to ELRIG Chair

Breathing New Life into Diagnostics: Plasmion's SICRIT Technology

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