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Health reform big week ahead: Insurance antitrust exemption, COBRA, Obama's bipartisan meeting

While the talk in the Senate will largely be about jobs, both houses of Congress are expected to take some action on health reform.

7 Feb 2010

Stronger animal disease traceability system will help minimize harm to other food animals, food producers and the public

In response to a statement by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) is reaffirming its call for a strong, national animal disease traceability program to help maintain and improve the health of U.S. livestock.

6 Feb 2010

Report on the Canadian heart health strategy

The Conference Board of Canada, the Heart and Stroke Foundation and the Canadian Cardiovascular Society will hold a press conference on Monday, February 8 to announce the findings of the report, The Canadian Heart Health Strategy: Risk Factors and Future Cost Implications.

6 Feb 2010

HealthSpring nurse practitioner identifies impending heart attack

Olive Branch, Miss. resident Glenn Lusk has a special perspective on the value of his Medicare Advantage plan. It was a HealthSpring-contracted nurse practitioner who discovered during a home visit in November that Lusk was experiencing serious heart trouble.

6 Feb 2010

Innovative health text messaging applications launched

Health Txts assists people in changing unhealthy behaviors by sending text messages that encourage specific self-improvement goals at the times and in the places people need it most. For example, someone may receive a message at 10pm saying "only floss the teeth you want to keep." Health Txts can be used for nearly any self-improvement goal such as reducing drinking, eating healthier or even becoming more environmentally conscious.

6 Feb 2010

Haiti relief efforts: HFHN distributes $35M

"Hope for Haiti Now" (HFHN) today announced the distribution of $35M as the first installment of funds raised through the January 22nd telethon: "Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief." Six of the telethon beneficiaries (Oxfam America, Partners In Health, the American Red Cross, UNICEF, United Nations World Food Programme, and Yele Haiti Foundation) submitted proposals last week.

6 Feb 2010

EuroHOPE study: Performance evaluation of the European healthcare system

The performance of the European healthcare system will be evaluated in the EuroHOPE study (European Health Care Outcomes, Performance and Effectiveness) coordinated by the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) and funded by the EU.

6 Feb 2010

AMIA members lead authorship of articles on global e-health

Five articles, whose lead or senior authors are nationally known informatics leaders and members of the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA), appear in the Feb. 2010 issue of Health Affairs and provide a glimpse into the future of health care delivery in an increasingly information-driven era of health care in the developing world.

6 Feb 2010

MetroSouth Medical Center launches campaign to raise awareness on heart disease

More than 100 MetroSouth Medical Center staffers tossed off their sterile booties, donned cowboy boots and line danced to the tune "Achy, Breaky Heart," made famous by Billy Ray Cyrus.

6 Feb 2010

Kidney care advocates urge passage of key legislation for Georgia’s kidney patients

On Tuesday, February 9, kidney patients from across the state of Georgia will join Dialysis Patient Citizens (DPC) – a national, non-profit, patient-led organization representing approximately 1,300 members in Georgia and 22,000 members nationwide – in holding a briefing at the State Capitol, followed by a series of meetings with lawmakers and staff, urging the passage of key legislation this year that would help thousands of Georgia’s kidney failure patients who are struggling to access health insurance for the medical care they need.

6 Feb 2010

Veterans battle not yet over: Red tape in the complicated military and VA health care and disability systems

Today, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), the nation's first and largest non-partisan, nonprofit organization representing veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, released a revealing new report highlighting the countless bureaucratic roadblocks, lengthy waits for care, and complicated disability systems facing wounded veterans.

6 Feb 2010

URAC seeks public input for Pharmacy Quality Management Accreditation programs

As part of its commitment to a comprehensive review of its standards, URAC, the nation's leading health care accreditation and education organization, today called for public comment on revisions to its suite of Pharmacy Quality Management® Accreditation programs.

6 Feb 2010

Research roundup: Medicare spending, community health centers, children's dental services

Health Affairs: Prices Don't Drive Regional Medicare Spending Variations - "Per capita Medicare spending is more than twice as high in New York City and Miami than in places like Salem, Oregon.

6 Feb 2010

Valentine's Day designated as National Organ Donor Day, drive for registration

While many commemorate Valentine's Day with cards, candy and flowers, Pennsylvanians are encouraged to give the ultimate gift of love by signing up to become organ and tissue donors. With the support of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Valentine's Day has been designated as National Organ Donor Day to raise awareness of the lives that can be touched -- potentially more than 50 at a time --through one person becoming an organ and tissue donor.

6 Feb 2010

About 8% of Americans report difficulty in accessing specialty care

Among the 36 percent of U.S. adults age 18 and older who needed to see a specialist in 2007, about 8 percent reported that getting to see one was a big problem, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

6 Feb 2010

Two U.S. insurers approve coverage of radioembolization for treatment of unresectable liver cancer

MDS Nordion, a global leader in providing products and services for medical imaging and radiotherapeutics, today announced that two of the largest health insurers in the United States have recently approved coverage of radioembolization to treat unresectable liver cancer, which includes the use of MDS Nordion's TheraSphere(R) treatment. The two insurance companies and their affiliates together serve more than one-quarter of Americans and do business in all 50 states.

6 Feb 2010

For readers, health information from doctors is more reliable than blogs

Health information written by a doctor is rated as more credible when it appears on a Web site than in a blog or a homepage, according to a study of college students.

6 Feb 2010

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries reaches settlement in principle to resolve claims under federal, state False Claims Acts

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. announced today that several of its subsidiaries in the United States reached a settlement in principle to resolve claims brought by Ven-A-Care of the Florida Keys, Inc. on behalf of the United States, Texas, Florida, and California under federal and state False Claims Acts.

6 Feb 2010

Opinion: IVAWA marks 'first step' towards making women central focus of U.S. foreign policy

In a Politico opinion piece, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Rep. Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.), lead sponsors of the International Violence Against Women Act (IVAWA), together with Larry Cox and Kerry Kennedy of Amnesty International USA, reflect on the significance of the legislation introduced in the House and Senate on Thursday.

6 Feb 2010

In jobs bill, Democrats push to include extension of COBRA benefits, Medicare 'doc fix'

The New York Times reports that Democrats are trying to address some health coverage considerations in their jobs bill even as they grasp "for ideas to keep alive their health care legislation." Negotiators on the Senate Finance Committee may be close to a jobs agreement. "Democrats were also pushing to include an extension of unemployment benefits and of health care coverage for those out of work." Also under discussion was the possibility of "attaching other initiatives, including a provision to prevent a steep cut in Medicare payment rates for doctors" (Hulse and Zeleny, 2/4).

6 Feb 2010

Healthcare News

Health reform big week ahead: Insurance antitrust exemption, COBRA, Obama's bipartisan meeting

Stronger animal disease traceability system will help minimize harm to other food animals, food producers and the public

Report on the Canadian heart health strategy

HealthSpring nurse practitioner identifies impending heart attack

Innovative health text messaging applications launched

Haiti relief efforts: HFHN distributes $35M

EuroHOPE study: Performance evaluation of the European healthcare system

AMIA members lead authorship of articles on global e-health

MetroSouth Medical Center launches campaign to raise awareness on heart disease

Kidney care advocates urge passage of key legislation for Georgia’s kidney patients

Veterans battle not yet over: Red tape in the complicated military and VA health care and disability systems

URAC seeks public input for Pharmacy Quality Management Accreditation programs

Research roundup: Medicare spending, community health centers, children's dental services

Valentine's Day designated as National Organ Donor Day, drive for registration

About 8% of Americans report difficulty in accessing specialty care

Two U.S. insurers approve coverage of radioembolization for treatment of unresectable liver cancer

For readers, health information from doctors is more reliable than blogs

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries reaches settlement in principle to resolve claims under federal, state False Claims Acts

Opinion: IVAWA marks 'first step' towards making women central focus of U.S. foreign policy

In jobs bill, Democrats push to include extension of COBRA benefits, Medicare 'doc fix'

Digital pathology and the PathoVerse: A conversation with Dr. Singh

Bioprocess Efficiency with Cell Density Monitoring

Exploring electron microscopy for plant and microbial imaging at the John Innes Centre

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