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Mayo Clinic Center forms Social Media Health Network to promote healthcare

The recently formed Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media today announced the formation of the Social Media Health Network, a group dedicated to using social media to promote health, improve health care and fight disease.

29 Sep 2010

HHS announces grants to help seniors, people with disabilities and caregivers navigate long term care options

Modern Healthcare: As part of the new health law, HHS is distributing $68 million in grants "to help people navigate their health and long-term-care options. The grants will be going to states, territories, tribal and community-based organizations to help seniors, individuals with disabilities and caregivers make more-informed decisions about their health and long-term care.

29 Sep 2010

Computer-assisted decisions can sometimes cause problems for prescribing

Experts hoped computers could help doctors make treatment safer for patients, but it turns out they have side effects, too. The Wall Street Journal's Health Blog reports, for one study,the anti-clotting drug warfarin and a certain antibiotic can produce hazardous effects when taken together.

29 Sep 2010

Politico examines reactions to Obama's development policy

"The U.S. development community is pronouncing itself 'thrilled' with the Obama administration's recently unveiled new development policy," Politico's Laura Rozen reports on her blog, which examines reaction to President Barack Obama's speech at the U.N. Summit on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) last week.

29 Sep 2010

Enzi targets HHS regulations, House will consider medical debt relief legislation

CongressDaily reports that Senate Republicans are trying to stop the health care law "one rule at a time." Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is expected to table the resolution from Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., regarding the law's "grandfathering" rule, "which allows plans that existed before March 23, 2010 — the date the healthcare law was signed — to be exempt from certain consumer protections enacted in the law, as long as plans do not significantly reduce benefits or raise consumer costs.

29 Sep 2010

GAO, Senate question role of hospital supplies middlemen

Group Purchasing Organizations, "which effectively act as middlemen between hospitals, suppliers and vendors," received mixed reports from the Government Accountability Office and the Senate Finance Committee, CongressDaily reports. "Many GPOs are paid through fees from manufacturers and vendors rather than by hospitals directly. As a result, the industry has enjoyed a special safe harbor from anti-kickback laws.

29 Sep 2010

News outlets examine what you should know about new health law provisions

USA Today, on how the new health law has started helping consumers: "Provisions of the health care reform law that took effect Sept. 23 prohibit some of the industry's most controversial practices." Insurers must now cover children with pre-existing conditions and cover preventive care for everyone.

29 Sep 2010

Past malpractice claims help doctors avoid future mistakes

Medical providers are using past malpractice cases to help avoid future mistakes, The Wall Street Journal reports.

29 Sep 2010

Study: Employees will pay more for health insurance in 2011

Companies' health costs will rise about 9 percent on average next year as a result of the aging workforce, growing medical costs and health law-related changes, and employees can expect to pick up an ever-growing share, the Los Angeles Times reports. Human resources consultant Hewitt's survey of 350 medium to large firms found companies "will spend $9,821 per employee on average for insurance next year, up from $9,028 this year — an 8.8% increase and more than double what they paid in 2001."

29 Sep 2010

FDA issues warning letters to three companies for claiming plaque removal by mouth rinse products

The FDA today issued warning letters to three companies that manufacture and market mouth rinse products with claims that they remove plaque above the gum line or promote healthy gums. These claims suggest the products are effective in preventing gum disease when no such benefit has been demonstrated.

29 Sep 2010

Former Geisinger head to run CMS Innovation Center

CQ HealthBeat reports that Richard Gilfillan, a former head of the Geisinger Health Plan in Pennsylvania, will run the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services Innovation Center that was created by the health law. Gilfillan was chosen Monday. At Geisinger, Gilfillan ran a plan that "many health policy analysts see as a national model for delivering quality, affordable care" (Reichard, 9/27).

29 Sep 2010

Medicare Advantage plans draw attention

The Boston Globe: "Harvard Pilgrim Health Care has notified customers that it will drop its Medicare Advantage health insurance program at the end of the year, forcing 22,000 senior citizens in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine to seek alternative supplemental coverage." The reason is that federal reimbursements for such plans have been frozen, and Harvard's particular Advantage product, a private fee-for-service plan, would have to develop a network of contracted providers for the first time under the new rules (Weisman, 9/28).

29 Sep 2010

Text: The Republican 'Pledge' on health care

With an eye on the midterm elections, Republicans in the House of Representative released "A Pledge to America" -- an outline of what they plan to do if they gain control of Congress.

29 Sep 2010

Today's Opinions: Challenging health law critics' words; The case for Calif. health exchange; Holes in the GOP pledge

If critics really want to go back to the days when insurance companies ran wild with no accountability, they should have the courage to say so openly instead of hiding behind distracting attacks. In the meantime, we're going to keep standing up for American families and small business owners who deserve a system that works for them (Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, 9/28).

29 Sep 2010

IAPP Privacy Academy attendees to preview findings on healthcare, data privacy

Attendees at the International Association of Privacy Professionals Privacy Academy will preview early findings of The Ponemon Institute's latest research that examines healthcare providers' compliance with the HITECH Act data breach privacy provisions. They will also learn how to protect patients' medical privacy and how to comply with the latest regulations.

28 Sep 2010

Healthcare professionals need appropriate training, support to help people who self-harm: Research

Healthcare professionals are still not receiving the appropriate training and support they need to help people who self-harm and this can result in negative attitudes and inadequate levels of care.

28 Sep 2010

Study finds that 90% of EDs nationwide also offer preventive-care services

People go to emergency departments when they've broken a leg, been stabbed or otherwise need urgent care. But a new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine finds that 90 percent of EDs nationwide also offer preventive-care services.

28 Sep 2010

$IOF report reveals poor state of post-fracture care in Russian Federation$

IOF report reveals poor state of post-fracture care in Russian Federation

Preliminary findings from an upcoming new report by the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) show alarming projections and reveal the poor state of post-fracture care in the Russian Federation and many other countries in the region. The findings were announced today at a press conference in St. Petersburg at the IOF Summit of Eastern European and Central Asian Osteoporosis Patient Societies.

28 Sep 2010

Plackers joins OHA campaign to promote oral health awareness

Plackers, a leading brand of consumer oral care products, has partnered with Oral Health America, the nation's leading independent organization dedicated to eliminating oral disease through access, education and advocacy, on the Fall for Smiles program to promote oral health awareness nationwide.

28 Sep 2010

New Formulary Forum reports market growth of immune biologics

HealthLeaders-InterStudy and Fingertip Formulary find that the market growth of immune biologics will come from the expansion of indications for immune biologics in response to limited off-label use and competition for preferred status.

28 Sep 2010