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Ethicon Endo-Surgery launches EESadvancements.com

Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. today announced the launch of EESadvancements.com, a new Web site designed to give surgeons advanced access to some of the company's newest surgical technology innovations before they reach full-scale release in the marketplace. The site also offers a collaborative environment where healthcare partners including surgeons, materials managers and OR Directors can share ideas on advancing the surgical continuum beyond minimally invasive procedures.

24 Aug 2010

Children affected by Katrina still face emotional problems, study finds

USA Today: "Five years later, Hurricane Katrina continues to wreak havoc in the lives of thousands of children who suffer from serious emotional disturbances, often compounded by a lack of stable housing, a study reports today.

24 Aug 2010

WHO calls on countries to prevent, control spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria

Amid the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance, the WHO on Friday urged countries to take greater action to limit the spread of drug-resistant bacteria, CIDRAP News reports. "Calling such pathogens 'a growing and global public health problem,' the WHO said, 'Countries should be prepared to implement hospital infection control measures to limit the spread of multi-drug resistant strains and to reinforce national policy on prudent use of antibiotics, reducing the generation of antibiotic resistant bacteria,'" according to the news service (Roos, 8/20).

24 Aug 2010

Overhaul could vex both insurance executives and brokers

Two professions at opposite ends of the insurance business might not be thrilled with the health overhaul: Senior insurance company executives, and agents and brokers.

24 Aug 2010

HHS to offer $32 million to increase health care access for rural Americans

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today more than $32 million in FY 2010 funds to increase access to health care for Americans living in rural areas. The funds reach across seven programs administered by the Office of Rural Health Policy in HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration.

24 Aug 2010

Rural development in Australia

Rural health services in Australia are in bad shape. Cancer mortality rates are higher, waiting lines for doctor visits are longer, and budget share of Medicare spending is lower. Despite this the issue has not drawn the attention of the election campaign.

23 Aug 2010

Medica teams up with OptumHealth to deliver CDHPs to all commercial health plan customers

Medica today announced that it has teamed with OptumHealth Financial Services to deliver consumer-directed health plans to all of Medica's commercial health plan customers - making Medica the first health plan in Minnesota to offer a full spectrum of health benefit services to employers of all sizes.

23 Aug 2010

'Village' movement and community health clinics offer alternative models of care

"The village movement dates to the 2001 founding of Beacon Hill Village in Boston. This year, the Village to Village Network launched to help other communities create their own senior support groups. Other sites created to help arrange help for seniors who want to live independently at home: Senior Helpers' services include companionship, conversation, meal planning and house cleaning as well as Alzheimer's and dementia care."

23 Aug 2010

Publix Super Markets to introduce flu immunization program

"Flu clinics are an extension of the services our pharmacies provide to our customers as a convenient and affordable way to receive their vaccinations," said Maria Brous, Publix director of media and community relations. "At Publix, our pharmacies are dedicated to building relationships with our customers and their families for total health and wellness all year long."

23 Aug 2010

San Antonio City Council passes new comprehensive smoke-free ordinance

Workers in the second-largest city in Texas can now breathe easier. On August 19, the San Antonio City Council announced that the city's workplaces will now be free of secondhand smoke and risks that come along with it.

23 Aug 2010

Today's opinions: More on the trustee's report, cutting the deficit

Republicans claim to be deeply worried about the deficit — their favorite political target, followed closely by President Obama's relentlessly demonized health care reform. So why are they so determined to overturn one of the central cost-control mechanisms of the new reform law? (8/21).

23 Aug 2010

Medical loss ratio rules for insurers could bring controversy to Sebelius' office

Once the National Association of Insurance Commissioners finalizes recommendations on insurance companies' spending on medical costs versus administrative expenses, the next stop for that proposal will be the desk of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Politico reports.

23 Aug 2010

JAFRA donates more than $100,000 to help SOS Children's Villages in Vietnam

JAFRA Cosmetics International, Inc., a leader in direct-sales, today announced it has donated a portion of product sales, totaling more than $100,000, to help SOS Children's Villages construct a new village in Vietnam. The donation is part of a larger gift to the SOS Children's Villages that was made by JAFRA parent company, the Vorwerk Group, a family-owned business based in Germany.

23 Aug 2010

Health overhaul raises regulators' profiles, confuses consumers

Modern Healthcare's 2010 list of the sector's most powerful players is out, and because of the health law, regulators in usually lower-profile federal agencies have carved out places near the top of the roster for the second year in a row. The magazine reports, "Carolyn Clancy, director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, stood at No. 31 on the list three years ago. This year, just as in 2009, she holds the No. 7 spot. Clancy's clout has risen with the agency, which was created 20 years ago to support and conduct healthcare outcomes research."

23 Aug 2010

RelayHealth achieves full accreditation with ePAP from EHNAC

RelayHealth, a leading provider of healthcare connectivity services, announced today that it has achieved full accreditation with the e-Prescribing Accreditation Program from the Electronic Healthcare Network Accreditation Commission. EHNAC's ePAP accreditation demonstrates the operational integrity of companies that use e-prescribing, by ensuring compliance with HIPAA regulations, accommodation of industry standards and proper use of relevant formats.

23 Aug 2010

Health law changes rules for docs with in-house imaging machines

"For years, John Finkenberg, an orthopedic surgeon in San Diego, sent patients who needed MRIs to outside imaging centers. But last year, he and his five partners bought their own million-dollar machine and now, he says, the doctors can work more closely with the technicians and give their patients immediate results" (Galewitz, 8/23).

23 Aug 2010

VNA clinical staff achieve CCP certification

Eight members of the clinical staff of the Visiting Nurse Association of Greater Philadelphia have completed education and training to achieve Chronic Care Professional Certification. The certification was awarded by Health Sciences Institute, St. Petersburg, FL.

23 Aug 2010

Obama administration rewriting medical privacy rules

The Obama administration is rewriting new rules on medical privacy after an outpouring of criticism from consumer groups and members of Congress who say the rules do not adequately protect the rights of patients. Hospitals and insurance companies, seeking to maintain greater control over patient notification, generally support the rules.

23 Aug 2010

Readers of Modern Healthcare magazine name Obama as most powerful person in healthcare

President Barack Obama was voted the most powerful person in healthcare by readers of Modern Healthcare, the nation's leading weekly healthcare business news magazine. It's the second consecutive year Obama topped the magazine's annual ranking of the 100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare.

23 Aug 2010

First Edition: Aug. 23, 2010

Today's headlines include news about developments related to the nation's medical privacy rules and the power struggle surrounding implementation regulations for a key section of the new health law.

23 Aug 2010