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NFCA and Partners Against Pain team up to create new Caregiver Cornerstones resource

The National Family Caregivers Association (NFCA) has teamed up with the national pain management education program, Partners Against Pain®, and advocate and author Lee Woodruff to create the new Caregiver Cornerstones resource.

6 Jan 2010

States that receive federal funds are more likely to implement obesity-prevention programs

States that received funding from two obesity prevention programs founded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention implemented more than twice as many obesity-prevention policy initiatives as states that did not receive funding, according to a study by researchers from RTI International.

6 Jan 2010

Ford transfers health care liabilities union trust

Dow Jones Newswires/The Wall Street Journal: "Ford Motor Co. said Monday it completed the transfer of its union retiree health-care liabilities to the United Auto Workers Retiree Medical Benefits Trust as part of a court-approved settlement agreement." The transfer "removed a substantial health care liability from the Detroit auto maker's balance sheet and significantly reduced its health care expenses."

6 Jan 2010

Health bills include proposals for new physician payment system

The health care overhaul bills on Capitol Hill do not upend traditional 'fee for service' payment for doctors, but they do include financial incentives for doctors to cut medical costs and improve patient care. Both the House and Senate bills include provisions to encourage the creation of accountable care organizations, or ACOs, as a way to test their viability.

6 Jan 2010

Multidisciplinary care, patient decision aids rarely offered by breast cancer surgeons

Most breast cancer surgeons' practices do not follow standards associated with the best quality of care, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

6 Jan 2010

Most of world's 13m preterm births occur in Africa, Asia

The "vast majority" of the world's 13 million preterm births each year occur in developing countries where the babies' "chances of survivals are low," according to an article published Monday in the January issue of the Bulletin of the World Health Organization, Reuters reports.

6 Jan 2010

Rural Americans often struggle to access care

Access to care remains a major burden for Americans in rural areas, according to recent media reports. The Texas Tribune reports: "Across much of rural Texas, emergency or trauma care is simply nonexistent, or limited to one ambulance and a part-time EMS crew. ... Roughly half of the state is covered by the trauma centers in El Paso and Lubbock. In remote counties in West Texas, South Texas and the Panhandle, residents are often more than an hour from any trauma care at all."

6 Jan 2010

For pregnant African tourist, U.S. health care system comes through

Kaiser Health News, in collaboration with The Washington Post, reports about Jeanne d'Arc Kayembe, an African tourist who came to Washington in May 2007 on what was meant to be a month-long respite from an abusive boyfriend and a chance to visit relatives before going home. But sharp pains signaled trouble with her pregnancy and she eventually delivered her son here.

6 Jan 2010

Clinton foundation releases donor list

Former president Bill Clinton on Friday released a list of the donors who have given money to his foundation "under an agreement with President Obama to prevent the appearance of conflicts with Hillary Rodham Clinton's role as secretary of state," the Washington Post reports.

6 Jan 2010

State lawmakers vow to fight variations in health overhaul's costs for Medicaid expansions

Newspapers report on the controversy about variations in individual state costs for a Medicaid expansion in health care overhaul legislation.

6 Jan 2010

Governor's threats to fight health reforms would do more harm than good for Idahoans, says ARRP

As Congress readies to merge the Senate and House health care reform bills, some states, including Idaho, are stepping up to serve as the latest roadblock. Before even seeing the details of the final legislation, Idaho's Governor "Butch" Otter recently announced he would fight reform efforts and possibly sue the United States over the constitutionality of the issue.

6 Jan 2010

H1N1 flu vaccine now available at CVS/pharmacy locations throughout California

CVS/pharmacy announced today that it has expanded the availability of H1N1 flu vaccine to more than 220 stores throughout the State of California.

6 Jan 2010

C-SPAN asks Democrats to open health reform conference negotiations

C-SPAN has asked congressional Democrats to open to the public the conference negotiations on reconciling the two health care reform bills, Politico reports.

6 Jan 2010

MHA acquires Net-Rx

Managed Health Care Associates, Inc. (MHA), the largest Alternate Site Group Purchasing Organization (GPO) in the country, is pleased to announce the acquisition of Net-Rx. Net-Rx is a leading provider of pharmacy reimbursement management services and offers a full suite of technology products to help pharmacies lower costs and increase profitability.

6 Jan 2010

Congress likely to skip formal conference committee negotiations regarding health reform

"The House and Senate aren't officially back in session until later this month, but action is already well under way on merging their health-care bills," The Wall Street Journal's Washington Wire blog reports.

6 Jan 2010

U.S. health spending slows in '08, but federal share soars

A new government report shows that U.S. health spending grew 4.4 percent in 2008 to $2.3 trillion, the slowest annual rate of increase since federal tracking efforts began in 1960, USA Today reports.

6 Jan 2010

Also in global health news: Aid in S. Somalia; virus-resistant mosquitoes; composting toilets in Haiti; U.S. Congressional Group visits India

The U.N. World Food Program (WFP) announced Tuesday that it has been forced to halt "aid distribution to about 1 million people in southern Somalia because of attacks against staff and demands by armed groups that aid groups remove women from their teams," the Associated Press reports.

5 Jan 2010

Wisconsin rural hospitals hope for federal money to offset state Medicaid cut

Wisconsin's rural hospitals hope to offset a state Medicaid cut with a tax that would bring more federal money to the hospitals. The proposed tax on the state's 59 'critical access' hospitals, all in rural areas, would prevent the hospitals from closing important services, officials say.

5 Jan 2010

Exercise does not result in significant weight loss

Constantly linking exercise with weight loss is causing more people to fail at reaching their goals, claims bariatric physician Dr. Sasson "Dr. Sass" Moulavi, M.D. Exercise is ideal for maintaining weight once goals are met, but is usually counterproductive in trying to lose weight.

5 Jan 2010

Congress would make insurers spend more money on consumers' care

Slate: "One of the biggest lingering criticisms of the Democrats' health care reform plan is that it doesn't control costs. This line persists in part because it's hard to refute in simple terms. ... But for those who want a single, clear example of how reform will attempt to keep the cost of health care -- or, at least, the cost of insurance -- down, there's no easier-to-grasp concept than the medical loss ratio."

5 Jan 2010