Healthcare News

RSS

AdvaCAL named official partner of National Osteoporosis Foundation

AdvaCAL® calcium supplements is proud to announce that it has been named as an official partner of the National Osteoporosis Foundation (NOF), the nations' leading voluntary health organization dedicated to osteoporosis and bone health. This designation is reserved for companies that provide financial support to NOF, with products judged to be consistent with the NOF mission.

5 May 2010

Increase in spending for AIDS drugs validates price cuts offered to ADAPs

On the heels of a report released by the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors (NASTAD) yesterday regarding the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP), AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) noted that new data contained in the report validates recent drug company price cuts offered to the program.

5 May 2010

Health IT Roundup: Many obstacles, much promise

The Boston Globe: There is a lingering "professional resistance to electronic records systems that computerization advocates say threatens the goals of the new health care overhaul law. These advocates argue that using computers to track what care patients receive, for instance, is vital to deciding what medications and treatments work best."

5 May 2010

Most women pay for abortions out of pocket; Okla. and Fla. abortion restrictions in the news

"Most women getting abortions pay for them out of their own pockets, with private insurers picking up the cost for just 12%, according to a new survey" from the Guttmacher Institute. The Journal adds that abortion coverage was "a flash point" in the health reform debate, "with abortion opponents seeking to block plans that include abortions from the new federally mandated insurance exchanges set to launch in 2014."

5 May 2010

Families need to achieve optimal oral health: New study

According to a new study surveying U.S. moms, a significant majority (69 percent) feel meeting the specific oral health care needs of each family member is very important, however, nearly half of moms (48 percent) report using a "one size fits all" approach when it comes to oral health care products in their home.

5 May 2010

Clinical preventive services can reduce death rates

"Prevention is the best medicine," the saying goes. According to a new study, increasing the use of that medicine could prevent a significant number of adult deaths annually.

5 May 2010

Polls show slowly shifting opinion on health law

USA Today: "Fifty-five percent of Americans rate the nation's health care system as good or excellent, compared with 44% in February and 35% when President Obama first proposed his health care legislation, according to a poll released today by Rasmussen Reports." USA Today notes that even though many of the changes are not going to be implemented until 2014, many insurance companies are voluntarily changing some practices early (Fritze, 5/3).

5 May 2010

High risk pools, medical loss ratios and other health law implementation issues

News outlets report on state high risk pools and other implementation issues for the new health law.

5 May 2010

AARP implores Governor to enact HIE legislation

Legislation that will help modernize medical records, reduce errors, and improve quality of care for all Illinoisans passed both houses of the Illinois General Assembly and is on its way to the Governor's desk. AARP, which backed the measure, is urging Gov. Quinn to sign it into law.

5 May 2010

Teaching doctors the price of primary care

Reporting for Kaiser Health News, in collaboration with The New York Times, Susan Okie writes: "Doctors in training have traditionally been insulated from information about the cost of the tests and treatments they order for patients — in fact, for decades, the subject was virtually taboo when professors and trainees discussed treatment decisions during hospital rounds.

5 May 2010

Health law program may benefit early retirees, big firms

A health law program that will go into effect next month will steer $5 billion to buttress employer-sponsored health plans for retirees who are not yet old enough to qualify for Medicare and have no other options for buying coverage, The Associated Press reports.

5 May 2010

CBO: Medicare payment 'doc fix' is more expensive than expected

The debate over what to do about Medicare payments to doctors continues. Physicans have been lobbying "to repeal the Sustainable Growth Rate formula, which triggers automatic Medicare payment cuts if spending rises above a certain level," CongressDaily reports. Those cuts have been put off for years.

5 May 2010

Supreme Court decides federal doctors cannot be sued for prisoner's death

The Los Angeles Times: "The family of a Los Angeles-area immigrant who languished in federal detention for nearly a year while a cancerous growth went untreated cannot sue government doctors for medical neglect, the Supreme Court ruled Monday."

4 May 2010

Queensland Health payroll errors still not corrected fully

The payment woes of many Queensland Health care staff continue this pay cycle according to the Queensland Nurses Union. After the installation of a new computerized payroll system this March tens of thousands of health staff have been underpaid, overpaid, or not paid.

4 May 2010

Reprints Desk launches ePrints NRx scientific article collection service

Derycz Scientific, Inc., the content repurposing company, today announced that its subsidiary Reprints Desk, an award-winning provider of information services and content workflow solutions, has launched ePrints NRx, a new scientific article collection service that simplifies the re-use of PDFs by medical marketers, brand managers and sales professionals.

4 May 2010

Cerner, Fort HealthCare collaborate to create connected health community

Cerner Corporation announced a strategic partnership with Fort HealthCare, an integrated hospital and health system in Fort Atkinson, Wis., to create a connected health community. Fort HealthCare will work with Cerner to improve the quality of care and make care processes more efficient for more than 120,000 residents in the organization's service area through the use of Cerner Millennium® solutions.

4 May 2010