Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

First Edition: October 10, 2012

Today's headlines include reports that GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney has pledged that his presidential agenda does not include abortion legislation.

10 Oct 2012

Obesity rate high among children admitted to hospital

A study by researchers at the Graduate Entry Medical School, University of Limerick and Dalhousie University in Canada has found 34% of children between 6-12 years old admitted to hospital are overweight or obese.

10 Oct 2012

Senate candidates spar over Medicare, health policies

Campaign debates in Virginia and Michigan focus on Medicare and health issues while the GOP candidate in Ohio says he has not yet signed on to Republican plan to revamp Medicare.

10 Oct 2012

In Congress, deal-making mood may emerge from budget issues

The New York Times reports that, as lawmakers on Capitol Hill face "so many potentially calamitous tax and budget issues," necessity may bring consensus.

10 Oct 2012

New rating system to focus on patient data provided by electronic health records

HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is developing a rating system for the growing amount of health information directed at patients. The agency's Health Information Rating System, discussed in a Federal Register posting, will focus especially on patient data provided by electronic health records.

10 Oct 2012

Pew poll: Obama's lead over Romney on health care issues narrowed, post-debate

Overall, the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press poll found that GOP presidential pick Mitt Romney wiped out President Barack Obama's advantage and took the lead by four percentage points.

10 Oct 2012

Report: Health law will benefit many employers, but mid-size firms would see costs rise

According to an Urban Institute study, the health-coverage costs carried by small businesses will likely fall if the 2010 health law is completely implemented, but companies with 101 - 1,000 employees could experience a jump in their costs.

10 Oct 2012

EHRs enhance quality of patient care in community-based settings

A new study by Weill Cornell Medical College researchers, published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, provides compelling evidence that electronic health records (EHRs) enhance the quality of patient care in a community-based setting with multiple payers, which is representative of how medicine is generally practiced across the United States.

10 Oct 2012

GSK, Aeras to advance clinical development of TB vaccine

Aeras announces that it has signed an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline Vaccines, S.A. (GSK) to jointly advance the clinical development of an investigational tuberculosis (TB) vaccine containing GSK's proprietary M72 antigen and AS01E adjuvant.

10 Oct 2012

Roundup: Labor activist's work for Blue Shield raises conflict concerns; R.I. to mandate flu shots for health workers; Minn. safety net hospitals brace for cuts

At a time when public-sector unions across the country are fighting to hold on to generous retirement and health benefits, one of the loudest voices standing up for their rights is Dave Low. A longtime labor activist, Low carries considerable clout as executive director of the California School Employees Assn., a 215,000-member union that represents bus drivers, custodians and other school workers.

10 Oct 2012

Isolated fetal echogenic bowel ‘may be benign’

Results of a Dutch study show that the majority of fetuses with fetal echogenic bowel carry a good prognosis.

9 Oct 2012

Nurses accurate barometers of hospital quality: Study

A new study from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing affirms a straightforward premise: Nurses are accurate barometers of hospital quality.

9 Oct 2012

Feisty campaign ads, debates in congressional races take on health policy themes

News outlets also report on how health policies are playing in specific contests, such as Senate campaigns in Connecticut, Arizona and Wisconsin, as well as the Bilbray-Peters House race in California.

9 Oct 2012

Viewpoints: Romney's views on health care still mysterious; Treating the dying patient

Mitt Romney may know more about healthcare than any other presidential nominee in memory. As governor of Massachusetts, he dove deeply into the subject while creating the most far-reaching state health plan in the country.

9 Oct 2012

MedPAC staffers recommend allowing geographically based Medicare physician payments to proceed

These pay reductions have long been frozen, but that freeze is set to expire on Dec. 31. MedPAC has yet to vote on the issue. Meanwhile, a pair of KHN stories examine separate Medicare issues, including the difficult decisions in play as a family member enrolls in the program, as well as the details of a study about seniors' ER visits.

9 Oct 2012

Maths-based tool can quantify the spread and infectiousness of viruses

Mathematicians have developed a powerful tool to quantify the spread and infectiousness of viruses like the pandemic H1N1 flu strain, which can be used together with modern laboratory techniques to help the healthcare system plan its response to disease outbreaks.

9 Oct 2012

PENTAX Medical to release new EPK-i7000 video processor and i10 series endoscopes

PENTAX Medical, a healthcare industry leader in endoscopic imaging, will release the next generation High Definition (HD+) EPK-i7000 video processor and i10 series endoscopes during the United European Gastroenterology week from October 20-24, 2012 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

From PENTAX Medical Company 9 Oct 2012