Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Tenn.-based hospital company to pay $98 million to settle improper billing claims

Community Health Systems and the federal Justice Department announced the settlement Monday. In other hospital news, Tenet says its financial outlook is improving.

6 Aug 2014

Eating beans, peas, chickpeas can increase fullness, may lead to better weight management

Eating about one serving a day of beans, peas, chickpeas or lentils can increase fullness, which may lead to better weight management and weight loss, a new study has found.

6 Aug 2014

Potential health concerns, but limited data on electronic cigarettes safety

Electronic cigarettes (ECIGs) are booming in popularity-but there's still only limited evidence on their potential health risks, or their advertised benefits in helping people to quit smoking, according to a research review in the July/August Journal of Addiction Medicine, the official journal of the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

6 Aug 2014

Laboratories at TSRI investigate antibodies to fight Ebola virus

Laboratories at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) are investigating antibodies to fight Ebola virus, including the three antibodies recently used to treat two American health care workers infected with the Ebola virus.

5 Aug 2014

Study suggests that cuts in Medicare prices may slow overall hospital spending

A recent study in Health Services Research based on 15 years of hospital data suggests that cuts in Medicare prices under the Affordable Care Act may slow the growth in total overall hospital spending.

5 Aug 2014

Ascendant Solutions’ subsidiary acquires Family Pharmacy

Ascendant Solutions, Inc. ("Ascendant" or the "Company") today announced that its Healthcare subsidiary, Dougherty's Holdings, has acquired Family Pharmacy ("Family"), located in Lewisville, Texas and has combined Family's operations with Dougherty's Pharmacy location at Forest Park Medical Center.

5 Aug 2014

Federal judge strikes down Alabama abortion clinic law

U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson ruled Monday that state lawmakers exceeded their authority when they passed a law last year requiring doctors at abortion clinics to have hospital admitting privileges.

5 Aug 2014

Hospitals see new revenues, stiffer fines from Obamacare

A surge in insured patients using health services has increased hospital revenues, even as Medicare stiffens penalties for facilities with high readmission rates or patients who contract infections and injuries while admitted for other reasons.

5 Aug 2014

iMedicor announces launch of cloud-based EHR software system for dentists

iMedicor, Inc. announced today, the launch of its second cloud-based software product one week following the launch of iCoreMD. iCoreDental is a fully customizable, cloud-based, Electronic Heath Record (EHR) system for dentists.

5 Aug 2014

California insurance giants create patient database

Two major insurers -- Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of California -- are creating a joint health-information exchange, making the medical records of about nine million plan members available to participating doctors and hospitals.

5 Aug 2014

MD Anderson partners with HIAE to address cancer burden in Brazil

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has announced a partnership with Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein to pioneer multidisciplinary patient care in Brazil and advance MD Anderson's mission to eliminate cancer globally.

5 Aug 2014

Aeterna Zentaris signs strategic co-promotion services agreement with ASCEND

Aeterna Zentaris Inc. today announced a strategic co-promotion services agreement with ASCEND Therapeutics US, LLC.

5 Aug 2014

First Edition: August 5, 2014

Today's headlines include coverage of a partnership between two of California's largest insurers in which they will join forces to create a database of patient medical records.

5 Aug 2014

Team debriefings linked with good neurological survival for kids suffering from cardiac arrest

A new study found that staff members who joined structured team debriefings after emergency care for children suffering in-hospital cardiac arrests improved their CPR performance and substantially increased the rates of patients surviving with favorable neurological outcomes.

5 Aug 2014

$5.8 million grant for coalition project to help reduce strokes and heart attacks in San Diego County

Approximately 84 million people in the United States suffer from some form of cardiovascular disease, and about 720,000 Americans have a heart attack every year, which works out to one every 44 seconds.

5 Aug 2014

Findings support regular mammography screening in women ages 75 and older

Mammography-detected breast cancer is associated with a shift to earlier stage diagnosis in older women, subsequently reducing the rate of more advanced, difficult-to-treat cases, according to a new study published online in the journal Radiology.

5 Aug 2014

The health law fading from the campaign trail spotlight

News outlets report that the sweeping overhaul appears to be less of a point of contention among candidates and less of a rallying point for voters.

5 Aug 2014

Cost-saving strategy for orthopedic procedures at hospitals fails to meet goals

A pilot program intended to implement and test a cost-saving strategy for orthopedic procedures at hospitals in California failed to meet its goals, succumbing to recruitment challenges, regulatory uncertainty, administrative burden and concerns about financial risk, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

5 Aug 2014

Justice Dept. seeks full court appeal hearing in health overhaul case

Last month, a three-judge panel ruled against the administration in the case Halbig v. Burwell, which is viewed as a blow to the Affordable Care Act. Meanwhile, Stateline reports that, based on that ruling, only those states with clear state-based exchange credentials are on solid legal footing.

4 Aug 2014

Exposure to natural light may be best medicine for nurses

For the health and happiness of nurses - and for the best care of hospital patients - new Cornell research suggests exposure to natural light may be the best medicine.

4 Aug 2014