Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

GOP counteroffer includes raising Medicare's eligibility age to 67

The Republican marker, which was almost immediately rebuffed by the White House, includes cuts to federal safety net programs, but does not meet the president's "test of balance" because it rejects tax increases for the wealthy.

5 Dec 2012

HHS says health law changes to Medicare drug program saved seniors $5 billion

The administration announces that almost 2.8 million people have saved an average $677, because the law is closing the prescription drug doughnut hole.

5 Dec 2012

Roundup: Building more Texas medical schools; Calif. mental health care for children

Recommendations in a new draft report on Texas undergraduate medical education caution against rushing to build any new medical schools, which may irk those that are pushing to do exactly that. The report was prepared by the staff of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and posted on the agency's website on Monday in preparation for an upcoming meeting of their Task Force on Graduate Health Professions.

5 Dec 2012

Appeals court reverses conviction of drug sales rep who talked about off-label uses

In a case that could have broad ramifications for the pharmaceutical industry, a federal appeals court on Monday threw out the conviction of a sales representative who sold a drug for uses not approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The judges said that the ban on so-called off-label marketing violated the representative's freedom of speech.

5 Dec 2012

Study: Medicare pay may cause hospices to discourage enrollment of high-cost patients

Many hospices may be discouraging enrollment for the highest cost treatments, and Medicare's way of paying them may be part of the problem, a new study finds.

5 Dec 2012

Methodist Hospital wins 2012 Patient Voice Award

The Methodist Hospital is proud to announce it has been named a 2012 Patient Voice Award winner.

5 Dec 2012

Baxter enters definitive agreement to acquire Gambro

Baxter International Inc. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Gambro AB, a privately held dialysis product company based in Lund, Sweden, for total consideration of 26.5 billion SEK (approximately $4.0 billion USD at current exchange rates).

From Baxter International Inc. 5 Dec 2012

Viewpoints: David Brooks' formula to avoid Cliff; Krugman says control costs, don't cut coverage

Republicans should go to the White House and say they are willing to see top tax rates go up to 36 percent or 37 percent and they are willing to forgo a debt-ceiling fight for this year.

5 Dec 2012

Health plans welcome some HHS health law implementation rules, gear up for marketplace changes

Insurers are preparing for new approaches to selling plans directly to consumers and how some state exchanges will operate. They are also girding for additional guidance from the Department of Health and Human Services that could help stabilize the insurance market.

5 Dec 2012

Resolving conflict over treatment decisions sometimes impossible

Disputes between healthcare professionals and patients and/or their families about whether medical treatment is futile can be resolved through collaborative efforts and communication, say experts.

4 Dec 2012

Websites offering 'designer vaginas' lack information

Websites for providers offering female genital cosmetic surgery contain poor quality and limited clinical information regarding procedures and risks, show study results.

4 Dec 2012

Kona Medical completes Series C financing

Kona Medical, Inc. today announced it has completed its Series C financing with the addition of $10 million in equity and debt, bringing total proceeds to $40 million.

4 Dec 2012

Roe, Gingrey to lead GOP doctors caucus

Meanwhile, The Hill reports that House Republicans are likely to embrace the same Medicare cuts that GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney had assailed President Barack Obama over, but which are likely to be included again in the House Republican budget. And Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga., is getting encouragement to head the House Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee.

4 Dec 2012

Swedish Medical Center/First Hill named among Leapfrog Group's 2012 Top Hospitals

The Leapfrog Group's annual class of 'Top Hospitals' – just 89 from a field of nearly 1,200 – will be announced today in Baltimore, Md., and includes Swedish Medical Center/First Hill for the third year in a row. The announcement will take place at Leapfrog's Annual Meeting.

4 Dec 2012

Many physicians misinformed about initial diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy

A survey of healthcare providers concerning the initial diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy has found significant misinformation held among physicians who see children who have seizures. Many physicians surveyed are misinformed about what constitutes intractable epilepsy, when to refer their pediatric patients for surgical evaluation, and what types of seizures may be amenable to surgical intervention.

4 Dec 2012

The Leapfrog Group honors Northwestern Memorial and Lake Forest with 'A' Hospital Safety Score

Memorial Hospital and Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital have been selected as 2012 Top Hospitals by The Leapfrog Group, an organization that provides the only national, public comparison of hospitals across safety, quality and efficiency dimensions. Northwestern Memorial and Northwestern Lake Forest are honored among an elite group of only 92 hospitals selected out of nearly 1,200 surveyed.

4 Dec 2012

Study describes 68 cases of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in athletes, military veterans

A study done by investigators at the Boston University Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy (CSTE) and the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, in collaboration with the Sports Legacy Institute (SLI), describes 68 cases of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) among deceased athletes and military veterans whose brain and spinal cords were donated to the VA CSTE Brain Bank.

4 Dec 2012

Blogs address global AIDS issues following World AIDS Day, release of U.S. blueprint

The following blog posts address global AIDS issues, following World AIDS Day on December 1 and the release of the Obama administration's "President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) Blueprint: Creating an AIDS-free Generation" on November 29.

4 Dec 2012

Viewpoints: Disputing Obama's and GOP's commitment to cutting spending and avoiding fiscal cliff

President Obama has said he wants to reform entitlements eventually, someday, after Republicans raise taxes. Republicans want the President to sign on to serious reform now as part of any deal, since AARP and the left will kill anything that isn't passed immediately. Given the political difficulty of reforming entitlements, Republicans are right to try to get Mr. Obama's fingerprints on such a deal this year.

4 Dec 2012

Roundup: Iowa Gov. proposes insurance premium hike for state workers; Mental health care fund questioned in Calif.

Proposition 63, which voters approved in 2004, was touted as a way to address serious mental illnesses in California, but in the years since, critics -- including some of the original supporters -- have argued that it has gone off the rails in its implementation.

3 Dec 2012

Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

GOP counteroffer includes raising Medicare's eligibility age to 67

HHS says health law changes to Medicare drug program saved seniors $5 billion

Roundup: Building more Texas medical schools; Calif. mental health care for children

Appeals court reverses conviction of drug sales rep who talked about off-label uses

Study: Medicare pay may cause hospices to discourage enrollment of high-cost patients

Methodist Hospital wins 2012 Patient Voice Award

Baxter enters definitive agreement to acquire Gambro

Viewpoints: David Brooks' formula to avoid Cliff; Krugman says control costs, don't cut coverage

Health plans welcome some HHS health law implementation rules, gear up for marketplace changes

Resolving conflict over treatment decisions sometimes impossible

Websites offering 'designer vaginas' lack information

Kona Medical completes Series C financing

Roe, Gingrey to lead GOP doctors caucus

Swedish Medical Center/First Hill named among Leapfrog Group's 2012 Top Hospitals

Many physicians misinformed about initial diagnosis and treatment of epilepsy

The Leapfrog Group honors Northwestern Memorial and Lake Forest with 'A' Hospital Safety Score

Study describes 68 cases of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in athletes, military veterans

Blogs address global AIDS issues following World AIDS Day, release of U.S. blueprint

Viewpoints: Disputing Obama's and GOP's commitment to cutting spending and avoiding fiscal cliff

Roundup: Iowa Gov. proposes insurance premium hike for state workers; Mental health care fund questioned in Calif.

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

How agentic AI is reshaping laboratory workflows

Fourier 80: bringing benchtop NMR systems to the laboratory

How industrial hygiene flow calibration supports defensible exposure data

Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Event guide: 3rd Measuring Patient Engagement Summit eBook

How agentic AI is reshaping laboratory workflows

Fourier 80: bringing benchtop NMR systems to the laboratory

How industrial hygiene flow calibration supports defensible exposure data

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