Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

First Edition: April 25, 2012

Today's headlines include reports that Medicare is proposing a change in how it decides hospital reimbursements and the latest on the GOP Capitol Hill budget strategy.

25 Apr 2012

Survey: After Supreme Court arguments, public still divided on health law

The Kaiser Family Foundation's tracking poll found that the oral arguments held last month before the high court raised awareness about the health law, but didn't sway public opinion.

25 Apr 2012

Medicare's trust fund to remain solvent until 2024, report calls for fixes

News outlets report on the predictions offered by the Medicare trustees, and examine the assumptions behind them as well as the political landscape.

25 Apr 2012

Capitol Hill is focus of disability protests, claims about effects of health care law

Except for the candidate, and the phone number that flashes on screen at the end, the ads follow a strikingly similar script. Senator Fill-in-the-Blank supports business-smothering regulations and will raise your taxes. He also added trillions to the deficit by voting for "Obamacare" and will cut your Medicare.

25 Apr 2012

Viewpoints: 'Callous' House Republicans; Supreme Court's 'core constitutional role'

For months, House Republicans have been trying to wriggle out of the agreement they made in August that will force deep cuts in military spending. Now we know how they propose to do it: They will take tens of billions out of programs for the poorest Americans, particularly food stamps, along with health care for the middle class.

25 Apr 2012

State roundup: GOP Attorneys General wield health care clout; N.Y. insurance settlement costing patients?

Like the Supreme Court challenge to the Obama-sponsored healthcare law heard last month, the Arizona case is part of a larger story about an escalating battle between Republican-led states and the federal government. All but one of the 16 states that have filed "friend of the court" briefs on the Arizona side have Republican governors. Meanwhile, all of the 11 states lining up with the Obama administration are led by Democrats.

25 Apr 2012

ATA to honor Loyola pediatrician for contributions in the field of telemedicine

Loyola University Medical Center pediatrician Dr. Kathleen Webster, a leader in the growing field of telemedicine, is being honored by the American Telemedicine Association.

25 Apr 2012

Strong link between childhood physical abuse and suicidal behaviours

Adults who were physically abused during childhood are more likely than their non-abused peers to have suicidal thoughts, according to a new study from the University of Toronto.

25 Apr 2012

Politics and policy: Exploring the GOP's health law alternatives

The Los Angeles Times reports that the health reform plan embraced by Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney may be "more revolutionary" than the current health law. Also, Reuters examines some of the policies congressional Republicans are considering if the Supreme Court overturns the law.

24 Apr 2012

Hearings and analyses frame Capitol Hill budget fight over Medicare, deficit

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are tussling over budget proposals that would change Medicare and/or reduce the budget deficit.

24 Apr 2012

Immunosignatures can yield reliable and highly stable diagnostic results

Identifying diseases at an early, presymptomatic stage may offer the best chance for establishing proper treatment and improving patient outcomes. A new technique known as immunosignaturing harnesses the human immune system as an early warning sentry-one acutely sensitive to changes in the body that may be harbingers of illness.

24 Apr 2012

State roundup: Mo. bill would outlaw federal health law; Texas docs got unwarranted Medicare bonuses

The Missouri House thinks the dreaded federal health care reform law is a crime. Or at least a misdemeanor. Going even further than other state legislatures fighting the law, the Missouri state House has passed a bill declaring the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional and therefore "altogether void and of no force." Any federal worker who tries to implement it would be committing a misdemeanor.

24 Apr 2012

Viewpoints: Myths about women voters; Stopping fake drugs; Medicaid innovation not easy; The war over women

Women vote based on "women's issues," such as abortion rights and contraception. A recent poll of voters in swing states showed that women's top priorities are health care, gas prices, unemployment and the deficit -- in that order -- with "government policies toward contraception" coming in last

24 Apr 2012

Robot-assisted surgery more common and successful in treating prostate cancer

Robot-assisted surgery is now both more common and far more successful than radical "open" surgery to treat prostate cancer in the United States, according to a new Henry Ford Hospital study published in the current issue of the medical journal European Urology.

24 Apr 2012

Health Management first quarter net revenue increases 18.4% to $1.485B

Health Management Associates, Inc. today announced its consolidated financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012.

24 Apr 2012

Health law uncertainty sets up 'moment-of-truth' situations

This circumstance is particularly acute regarding states' decisions about setting up health exchanges.

23 Apr 2012

Asubio commences SUN13837 Phase 2 clinical trial for acute spinal cord injury

Today, Asubio announced the initiation of a landmark Phase 2 clinical trial of SUN13837, an investigational medication being developed to improve neurological function in patients with newly diagnosed acute spinal cord injury.

23 Apr 2012

FDA clears Smiths Medical's ViaValve Safety I.V. Catheter

Smiths Medical, a leading global medical device manufacturer, today announced that its ViaValve Safety I.V. Catheter has been cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and can be marketed in the United States.

23 Apr 2012

Healthways announces acquisition of Ascentia Health Care Solutions

Ben R. Leedle, Jr., president and chief executive officer of Healthways, announced that the Company has acquired Ascentia Health Care Solutions, a Philadelphia area based company whose business is designed to support and promote population health management, patient centered programs, payer strategies and physician practice enhancement programs.

23 Apr 2012

IntegenX to accelerate commercialization of human DNA identification system with SV acquisition

IntegenX Inc., a privately held company that is a leader in the emerging field of rapid human DNA identification, today announced that it has acquired SV Corp, a wholly owned subsidiary of GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences. IntegenX will leverage SV Corp's products and intellectual property assets to expand its consumables offering and to accelerate the commercialization of its RapidHIT 200 Human DNA Identification System.

23 Apr 2012