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States face health care budget cuts, seek health-related legislation

Parents, caregivers and advocates joined hospital executives and legislators Tuesday to complain about the potential impact of [Louisiana] Gov. Bobby Jindal's proposed budget cuts and privatization initiatives on Louisiana's most vulnerable residents.

1 Apr 2010

Crack, cocaine usage increases risk of HIV in adolescents

Teens with a history of crack or cocaine use are significantly more likely to engage in unprotected sex than youth who have never used these drugs, putting themselves at increased risk for HIV, according to a study in the April issue of the Journal of Child and Adolescent Substance Abuse.

1 Apr 2010

CIA, Justice, other Federal depts. won't get health IT data, Blumenthal says

There's no need to fear that patients' health information will end up in the hands of CIA officers, FBI agents or other federal agencies that deal in security and law enforcement, David Blumenthal, the national coordinator for health information technology, said last week, according to Modern Healthcare. He "denied allegations that a framework for selecting data transmission standards for the proposed national health information network would configure the system to afford federal control over patient data and funnel that information to federal agencies, including the CIA, Justice Department and National Security Agency."

1 Apr 2010

Early use of CT and MRI scans may reduce duration of hospital stay and hospitalization costs

Advanced imaging techniques such as computed tomography (CT) scans and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) might shorten the length of a person's hospital stay and decrease the high costs associated with hospitalization if used early, according to a study in the April issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology (www.jacr.org).

1 Apr 2010

International medical graduates earn medical residency placement

More than 80 international medical graduates (IMGs) who have just earned a coveted medical residency placement came together this evening to celebrate their achievement with The Hon. Deb Matthews, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care.

1 Apr 2010

Likely CMS pick Berwick has advised governments around the world

The Boston Globe explores the background of President Barack Obama's likely pick for head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. "Governments around the world have long sought Donald Berwick's expertise to help solve stubborn health care problems — from hospital-acquired infections to medication errors."

1 Apr 2010

Rochester Endoscopy and Surgery Center selects Wolters Kluwer Health's ProVation EHR

Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information for healthcare professionals and students, announced today that Rochester Endoscopy and Surgery Center has selected its ProVation® EHR electronic health record and patient charting solution.

1 Apr 2010

Small businesses prepare for health reform changes

As business owners across the country consider the newly enacted health overhaul, "they're looking to Massachusetts for harbingers of things to come. Massachusetts' law, which mandates near-universal coverage and requires that businesses with 11 or more workers offer insurance, provided the blueprint for the health law signed by President Barack Obama.

1 Apr 2010

Synch-Solutions signs agreement to deliver IT systems to healthcare organizations

Synch-Solutions announced today that it has signed an agreement with MedAssets Supply Chain Systems, one of the largest group purchasing organizations serving more than 1,700 hospitals and 40,000 non-acute care providers across the U.S.

1 Apr 2010

Health dept. IG says six Medicare Advantage insurers broke rules

Health New Florida: "A multinational company and two members of the Fortune 500 were named among six insurers found in violation of Medicare marketing rules when federal inspectors checked their books and sat in on presentations as 'secret shoppers,' documents show." The three big firms were Aetna, Universal American Corp and Munich American Holding Corp.'s Sterling Insurance.

1 Apr 2010

Quality Interactions Patient Decision Support Tool to care for diverse patient populations

Manhattan Cross Cultural Group is now offering a special introduction to the Quality Interactions® Patient Decision Support Tool for small healthcare organizations at http://www.qualityinteractions.org/index.new.html. This one-of-a-kind online resource allows healthcare organizations to access valuable information related to cross-cultural care to care for diverse patient populations at time of service.

1 Apr 2010

Physicians face pressures from increased patient loads, looming payment cuts

Two provisions of the new health overhaul law "may accelerate a trend" of doctors leaving their profession. It points to parts of the legislation that would ask physicians to accept new administrative chores and standards, although some of them might result in better reimbursement rates from insurers and the government.

1 Apr 2010

Obama's gamble on a health care overhaul

Bloomberg BusinessWeek examines President Obama's long push for health care reform. "That Obama chose to stake his presidency on the U.S. health overhaul will define his legacy even as he risked the careers of many fellow Democrats in doing so. ... Obama's pursuit of health care reflected his desire to succeed where no other president had, as much as a determination to seize the chance to fix a broken system, according to [former Sen. Tom] Daschle.

1 Apr 2010

Insurers comply with new coverage rules for sick children

Early Tuesday, insurers agreed to new rules for covering sick children, including a ban that will take effect in September on "pre-existing condition exclusions" for children younger than 19.

1 Apr 2010

A roundup of health overhaul fack-checking

Will all Americans get health coverage as good as lawmakers' insurance under the overhaul, as Democrats pledged? Apparently so. Even though most federal workers will maintain their federally employee's benefits, lawmakers will have to sign up for insurance plans through the new, state-run exchanges offered through the health legislation (Barry, 3/31).

1 Apr 2010

Changes in daily behavior can influence remembering to take daily medication

For many people, remembering to take a daily medication can be the difference between life and death. Yet, people forget all the time. Now a landmark study from North Carolina State University has found that changes in daily behavior have a significant effect on whether we remember to take our medication - and that these changes influence older and younger adults differently. That's good news, because it means there's something we can do about it.

31 Mar 2010

CAMH embarks on next phase of landmark redevelopment project

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health is making history. On April 6, CAMH is breaking ground on the next phase of its landmark redevelopment project, transforming the site of what was originally the 1850 Provincial Lunatic Asylum into a modern, welcoming 'urban village' in the heart of Queen Street West. Nothing quite like this has ever been done before.

31 Mar 2010

Social networks can spread misunderstandings about proper use of antibiotics

Misunderstandings about proper use of antibiotics have the potential to spread widely through social networks such as Twitter, according to a report in the April issue of AJIC: American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. (APIC).

31 Mar 2010

MSCHIE launches Phase 2 of HIE deployment

The Mississippi Coastal Health Information Exchange (MSCHIE) has launched Phase 2 of its HIE deployment - which will expand its services to four additional health systems, launch a community outreach training program, and integrate with additional EHR vendors throughout the community - marking a major milestone in its efforts to improve patient care coordination and clinical outcomes in the Mississippi counties hit hardest by Hurricane Katrina.

31 Mar 2010

Hospital outpatient ER visits by Medicaid recipients increased more than 6%

SDI, a leading healthcare market insight and analytics firm, today reported that the number of Medicaid-subsidized inpatient hospital stays originating in the emergency room increased more than 6% in 2009 compared to 2008. The growth rate of all inpatient hospital stays that began in the hospital outpatient ER was less at just over 1%.

31 Mar 2010