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Northwestern Mutual launches Disability Income Insurance Knowledge Center

To promote greater awareness about disability income insurance (DI) among physicians and dentists, Northwestern Mutual has launched the Disability Income Insurance Knowledge Center, an online resource for medical professionals.

20 Aug 2010

Afghanistan, African countries lead global food insecurity list

Afghanistan and nine African countries top a list measuring global food insecurity, which was released on Thursday, Agence France-Presse reports.

20 Aug 2010

CMS: Seniors will see modest increase in Medicare drug premiums but improved benefits

The Associated Press: "Seniors will see a modest increase in their Medicare prescription premiums next year but benefits will also improve, federal health officials said Wednesday. The average monthly premium charged by Medicare drug plans for standard coverage will rise to an estimated $30 in 2011, an increase of $1 over 2010..." But, the AP notes that "Medicare prescription plans vary widely in costs and benefits.

20 Aug 2010

Report: Diabetes costs account for nearly a quarter of all hospital spending

The Fiscal Times examines a recent report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality about diabetes, "a disease that's costing Americans $83 billion a year in hospital fees—23 percent of total hospital spending. ... Add to this the costs of the hidden diabetes epidemic: $18 billion for the estimated 6.3 million people with undiagnosed diabetes, and $25 billion for 57 million, or one in four, American adults with pre-diabetes.

20 Aug 2010

Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation to support 2010 National PF Week

The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF) today expressed its support for the 2010 National Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Week activities, to be held from September 11-18, 2010 in Washington D.C.

20 Aug 2010

Palliative care recipients live longer and in less pain, study finds

The New York Times: "In a study that sheds new light on the effects of end-of-life care, doctors have found that patients with terminal lung cancer who began receiving palliative care immediately upon diagnosis not only were happier, more mobile and in less pain as the end neared — but they also lived nearly three months longer.

20 Aug 2010

Moderate alcohol in family setting can prevent young people from binge drinking: Study

Italian youths whose parents allowed them to have alcohol with meals while they were growing up are less likely to develop harmful drinking patterns in the future, according to a new study led by a Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) researcher.

20 Aug 2010

Business Group: Large employers grappling with health law changes

Reuters: As large employers take steps to comply with the health overhaul law, such as removing plans' spending limits and covering more preventive services at no cost to patients, they are also planning to shift more health care costs to workers, according to a report by the National Business Group on Health.

20 Aug 2010

Grand Junction, Colorado: Still the health care poster child

In this story for Kaiser Health News, Bill Scanlon reports: "Just a year ago, as opposition to the proposed health overhaul flared at town hall meetings around the country, President Barack Obama made this western Colorado town of 53,000 people a crucial stop on his tour to revive the stalled initiative" (Scanlon, 8/19).

20 Aug 2010

SIGVARIS joins Vascular Disease Foundation's National Corporate Round Table

The Vascular Disease Foundation (VDF) announced today that SIGVARIS, has become a member of VDF's National Corporate Round Table. The National Corporate Round Table serves to help the foundation in its public awareness and educational efforts.

20 Aug 2010

After multiple medevac crashes, NTSB wants increased safety technology

USA Today: "The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is calling on regulators to require new lifesaving technologies on many air ambulances, including night-vision goggles, terrain avoidance computers and autopilot controls.

20 Aug 2010

The Center for Pediatric Dentistry opens in Seattle on September 1, 2010

At today's ribbon cutting ceremony, The Center for Pediatric Dentistry, created to address the growing epidemic of childhood dental disease, announced the grand opening of its facility on September 1, 2010. The Seattle-based institute is the first of its kind in the country, providing pediatric dental care, education for dentists and medical professionals, research, and policy under one roof.

20 Aug 2010

Hospitals seek to end emergency room violence

NPR: A Maryland program is seeking to curb hospital violence. "Hospital emergency rooms are filled with the fallout of violent crime. Sometimes, the victims and the perpetrators are one and the same. It's a cycle of violence many would like to end.

20 Aug 2010

SAMHSA provides guidance for NREPP program submission

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) today provided guidance for those interested in submitting programs and practices to its National Registry of Evidence Based Programs and Practices (NREPP).

20 Aug 2010

Schwarzenegger announces Calif. health IT network plan

Los Angeles Times: California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger unveiled a high-tech vision for his state Tuesday, including an unprecedentedly broad computer network. "Schwarzenegger joined U.S. Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra at the UC Davis Cancer Center on Tuesday to announce the launch of the country's largest 'telehealth' system, which organizers say will one day connect patients to hundreds of hospitals and clinics statewide using broadband technology." The broadband network will be devoted entirely to the health care sector (Hennessy-Fiske, 8/18).

20 Aug 2010

Cetero Research expands Clinical Dermatology and Transdermal Delivery System services

Cetero Research, the leading early stage contract research organization (CRO), today announced the expansion of multiple Clinical Dermatology and Transdermal Delivery System (TDDS) services to four Cetero clinical facilities.

20 Aug 2010

Quality issue roundup: J & J revamping controls; The odds for orthopedic surgery; Automatic prescription refills and patient compliance

The New York Times: Johnson & Johnson has said it will "revamp its quality controls, creating a single framework for its drug, medical device and consumer health care divisions." The move comes after the drugmaker saw a number of recalls of its medicines, such as Tylenol and Motrin, as well as probes by a congressional committee and the FDA into actions at its McNeil Consumer Healthcare subsidiary.

20 Aug 2010

KHN column: For cost control, vouchers and Medicare don't mix

In his latest Kaiser Health News column, Austin Frakt writes: "With the ambition of reducing the federal debt, Congressman Paul Ryan has offered a proposal to convert Medicare to a voucher-based program.

20 Aug 2010

Today's Opinions: Vouchers and Medicare; The shortage of doctors; Eliminating health system's disparities; Protecting cancer patients

With the ambition of reducing the federal debt, Congressman Paul Ryan has offered a proposal to convert Medicare to a voucher-based program. … Though rarely described this way, the private Medicare Advantage plans are a (voluntary) voucher system (Austin Frakt, 8/19).

20 Aug 2010

First Edition: August 19, 2010

In the news today, modest premium increases are ahead for Medicare drug plans while a survey finds that big employers expect health cost hikes in 2011.

20 Aug 2010