Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

House GOP to propose budget with significant tax code changes; Dems ready to take on its efforts to reshape Medicare

News report suggest that the budget plan being unveiled today by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., will cut tax rates sharply. But Democrats opposed to its expected overhaul of Medicare are already lining up.

21 Mar 2012

MDOL announces acquisition of MD Technologies

MD On-Line, Inc. (MDOL), a leading provider of electronic healthcare solutions that leverage data to improve practice efficiency and industry connectivity, announced today that it has acquired MD Technologies Inc., a healthcare technology company based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

21 Mar 2012

WESTMED collaborates with UnitedHealthcare to launch ACO

WESTMED Medical Group announced it is collaborating with the UnitedHealthcare and Optum businesses of UnitedHealth Group to launch an accountable care organization (ACO) for its more than 220 physicians in Westchester County, N.Y.

21 Mar 2012

MSN completes sale of HomeCare division to Epic

Medical Staffing Network Healthcare, LLC, one of the nation's largest healthcare workforce solutions companies, today announced it has completed the sale of its MSN HomeCare division to Epic Health Services of Dallas, Texas.

21 Mar 2012

Universal to acquire Seitz ProShield assets

Universal Capital Management, Inc. announced today a non-binding letter of intent to purchase ProShield assets, a product owned by Seitz Technical Products, Inc.

21 Mar 2012

HCD implements HLI's Language Engine

Health Language, Inc. (HLI), the global leader in healthcare terminology management, today announced its Language Engine has been selected by Health Care DataWorks, Inc. (HCD), to map disparate data entered into its KnowledgeEdge brand Enterprise Data Warehouse, providing health systems with standard code sets, enhanced analytics, reporting and business intelligence.

21 Mar 2012

Study tests new method of sound simulation for treating tinnitus

A new clinical trial is to test whether a pocket-sized device that uses sound simulation to reboot faulty 'wiring' in the brain could cure people with the debilitating hearing disorder tinnitus.

21 Mar 2012

Healthper mobile application now available for Apple devices

Healthper, Inc., a social game-based health engagement and achievement platform, announced today the launch of a mobile application for Apple mobile devices.

21 Mar 2012

PSG closes acquisition of Artemetrx

Pharmaceutical Strategies Group, LLC, America's largest independent pharmacy benefits consulting firm, has closed on its acquisition of Artemetrx Health Resources, the company announced today.

21 Mar 2012

Indian patent court licenses generic copy of Bayer’s blockbuster anticancer drug

Last week an Indian patent court shocked the $600 billion global pharmaceutical business by ordering Bayer, the German health care giant, to allow a tiny Indian generic drug company to sell cheap copies of the blockbuster cancer drug Nexavar – even though everyone agrees that the drug is protected by a patent. Instead, the court decided that Bayer had an obligation to make Nexavar available to people in India who needed it.

20 Mar 2012

EJSO publishes results from Cytori breast reconstruction cell therapy trial

Cytori Therapeutics announced today the publication of RESTORE-2 trial results in the peer-reviewed European Journal of Surgical Oncology.

20 Mar 2012

Study identifies risk factors for postpartum depressive symptoms

Many Norwegian women postpone pregnancy until they have completed their education and are well established on their career path. This may make them more vulnerable to postpartum depression.

20 Mar 2012

IPAB and health law repeal efforts mixing up political loyalties

Some Senate Demcrats are considering voting with Republicans to repeal the health law's Independent Payment Advisory Board while several GOP lawmakers are voicing concerns about the broader repeal strategy. Also, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., has introduced legislation to change the law's medical-loss ratio.

20 Mar 2012

Obama administration offers proposal to fix contraceptive rule

Under the plan, insurance companies would pick up the cost for providing contraceptives to women employed by religious affiliated employers, but the administration offered ways to help cover those expenses.

20 Mar 2012

Medicaid expansion rule focuses on enrollment process

The Obama administration released a rule Friday detailing the specifics of this coverage expansion and trying to simplify the enrollment process.

20 Mar 2012

Key question for Supreme Court in health law arguments: How far does Congressional power reach?

Media outlets analyze the questions, personalities and precedent-setting issues that will be in play as the Supreme Court takes up the constitutionality of the health law.

20 Mar 2012

Infection preventionists, healthcare epidemiologists play key roles in promoting antimicrobial stewardship

Infection preventionists and healthcare epidemiologists play key roles in promoting effective antimicrobial stewardship in collaboration with other health professionals, according to a joint position paper published today by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) in their respective peer-review journals, the American Journal of Infection Control and Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology.

20 Mar 2012

State roundup: Calpers insurance savings; Harvard Pilgrim challenges 'Partners'; Minn. long-term care costs spike

The California Public Employees' Retirement System happily ended 2010 with insurance rates $15 million lower than they might have been ... Catholic Healthcare West, now Dignity Health, which helped deliver those savings, ended that year with millions of dollars less in revenue. The San Francisco-based hospital system was among the early adopters of accountable care ... Hospital executives trying to control spending face the costly prospect of actively trying to keep patients out of the hospital.

20 Mar 2012

Researchers discover new method to identify cancer-causing translocations

Researchers from Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah report they have discovered a method to identify cancer-causing rearrangements of genetic material called chromosomal translocations quickly, accurately, and inexpensively.

20 Mar 2012

TriZetto QNXT Essentials solution to streamline administration of Ventura County's HMO

Ventura County, Calif., has selected The TriZetto Group, Inc., to help improve the administrative efficiency, care delivery, and provider and member service of the county's health plan. TriZetto's end-to-end solution will streamline the administration of Ventura County's HMO, which serves employees and their families, retirees, Medicare recipients, and county-affiliated organizations.

19 Mar 2012