Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Leavitt says exchanges are here to stay

As efforts to implement the health law move forward, Politico Pro talks to Michael Leavitt about state exchanges, and KHN examines the administration's strategy for prevention funding.

13 Feb 2012

Watson seeks FDA approval to market generic Beyaz

Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today confirmed that its subsidiary, Watson Laboratories, Inc., filed an Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seeking approval to market Drospirenone and Ethinyl Estradiol and Levomefolate Calcium Tablets, 3.0 mg/0.02 mg/0.451 mg and Levomefolate Calcium Tablets, 0.451 mg.

13 Feb 2012

Congressional Republicans vow to overturn contraception rule

Speaker John Boehner was among those who promised Wednesday to get rid of the administration's regulation that would require religious employers, such as hospitals, charities and universities, to cover free birth control for employees.

10 Feb 2012

VCU program reduces cost and utilization of ED among uninsured population

The cost of caring for the uninsured population who will gain coverage through the Affordable Care Act of 2014 can be reduced by almost half once the act is implemented, according to a new study from Virginia Commonwealth University researchers.

10 Feb 2012

Komen's Brinker apologizes for 'how we mishandled this situation'

In her first public statement since her organization reversed a decision to stop donating to Planned Parenthood, Nancy Brinker, the founder of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, said that "I made some mistakes" in the case, which swelled into a massive controversy. Brinker, in a letter to Washington Post columnist Sally Quinn, also noted that many commentators had blamed "culture wars" for the intensity of the criticism over the foundation's cutoff of funding.

10 Feb 2012

Democrats to unveil options to pay for 'doc fix,' other measures

Republicans expect to receive on Thursday a list of Democratic options to pay for a large tax-cut extension measure that includes a freeze in scheduled cuts to Medicare physician pay rates. However, at least one Republican expects negotiations on the legislation to make little progress before a law freezing current policy in place expires at the end of the month.

10 Feb 2012

New program aims to reduce early elective deliveries

The Obama administration launched a $40 million effort Wednesday to reduce premature births, especially early elective deliveries, but it has no plans to stop Medicaid from paying for those deliveries.

10 Feb 2012

Hospitals seek to consolidate in Ga., Wis. and N.Y.; Other state hospital news

Hospitals in Atlanta, Wisconsin and New York are consolidating or partnering more closely with others in a bid to reduce costs and save themselves. In other hospital news, small California hospitals market back surgery to patients and a Minnesota hospital faces a "patient abuse" crisis.

10 Feb 2012

States' capabilities to share patient data vary greatly

According to a Brookings Institution study, the development of state health information exchanges has been slowed by governance, financing and policy issues.

10 Feb 2012

International Congress on Nursing Informatics to be held June 23-27

Informatics leaders, practitioners and other members of the healthcare community will convene June 23-27, 2012, in Montreal, Canada, for the 11th International Congress on Nursing Informatics (NI2012). The Congress gives participants from across the world a forum to discuss the impact of informatics on patient care improvement, global health, professional practice, health policy and research.

10 Feb 2012

Children with multiple psychosomatic symptoms more likely to experience physical abuse

Children who display multiple psychosomatic symptoms, such as regular aches and pains and sleep and appetite problems, are more than twice as likely to be experiencing physical abuse at home than children who do not display symptoms, according to a study in the March edition of Acta Paediatrica.

10 Feb 2012

BGI and VIB's genomics meeting to take place on Feb. 15

Both organizations are already collaborating on several projects, including the mapping of the genomes of more than 1,000 species of gut bacteria, compiled from 577 billion base pairs of sequence data. The leading scientific journal Science selected this work as one of the scientific breakthroughs of 2011. Large-scale genome sequencing is becoming ever more important in life sciences, healthcare and agricultural research.

9 Feb 2012

Prestige Brands third quarter net revenues increase 17.3% to $106.3M

Prestige Brands Holdings, Inc. today announced results for the fiscal 2012 third quarter ended December 31, 2011, including net revenues of $106.3 million, an increase of 17.3% over the prior year's comparable quarter of $90.6 million.

9 Feb 2012

ACC: New community-wide collaboration to reduce impact of chronic diseases

A new community-wide collaboration to reduce the impact of chronic disease and empower patients is generating impressive early results, leaders of the Accountable Care Community (ACC) initiative said today. The Akron-based Austen BioInnovation Institute in Akron (ABIA) is leading the initiative with its founding institutional members and more than 60 public and private community partners.

9 Feb 2012

More collaborative, flexible approach needed to combat NTDs

"To tackle neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), we need a far more collaborative and flexible approach," Mark Booth, acting deputy director of Durham University's Wolfson Research Institute and head of the N8 Parasitology Group, writes in this New Statesman opinion piece.

9 Feb 2012

Roundup: State legislatures consider nursing home, insurance exchange bills

Even as Massachusetts business and government leaders celebrate the most modest premium rate hikes in years for small employers and individuals, speakers at a health insurance seminar here yesterday warned that the main trend restraining bigger increases - fewer people seeking health care in the past year - already may be changing.

9 Feb 2012

Obama aides seek to calm storm over contraceptive rule

Administration suggests there may be ways to meet religious groups' concerns but insists that the president is committed to the policy. Sen. Mitch McConnell suggests Congress may change the rule if the administration doesn't.

9 Feb 2012

Obama administration pledges $156 million for Alzheimer's research and care

Research to investigate the genetic underpinnings of the disease and to test drugs that may arrest its development will get an immediate $50 million boost.

9 Feb 2012

Discussion of SGR fix heats up

Conferees negotiating the legislative package to extend the payroll tax break and to prevent a scheduled Medicare physician pay cut increased their focus on the physician payment piece of the puzzle. Meanwhile, the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing exploring private sector ideas for creating a new physician payment system.

9 Feb 2012

Nearly 200 workers seek to improve staffing and patient care at Telecare La Casa

Nearly 200 workers seeking to improve staffing and patient care at Telecare La Casa Psychiatric Health Facility in Long Beach voted to form a union with Service Employees International Union, United Healthcare Workers - West (SEIU-UHW) today, February 8.

9 Feb 2012