Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Future research critical to ending AIDS epidemic

Mitchell Warren, executive director of AVAC: Global Advocacy for HIV Prevention and a founding member of the Global Health Technologies Coalition, writing in The Hill's "Congress Blog," welcomes Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's November 8 announcement of "an additional $60 million for implementation of a combination of prevention strategies in four sub-Saharan African countries and evaluation of their impact," adding that "this funding can only be viewed as a down payment on the work that needs to be done."

18 Nov 2011

Debt panel deliberations involve gloom, doom and blame

As indications continue to suggest the super committee stalemate continues, the panel members and other lawmakers are pointing fingers and assigning blame. Health programs -- including Medicare -- continue to be a sticking point. News outlets also examine how the threatened cuts that would kick in if the panel doesn't find success would impact the health sector.

18 Nov 2011

VSL#3 classified as refrigerated medical food for three GI conditions

As clinical studies continue to validate the use of probiotics to help promote general gastrointestinal health, a growing U.S. market for probiotics indicates that the U.S. healthcare community and consumers alike are recognizing the value of these beneficial microorganisms. However, because most probiotics are classified as dietary supplements, directing patients to the best probiotic for their individual needs can be challenging.

18 Nov 2011

Emory-Georgia Tech symposium to focus on health and human microbiome

The Seventh Annual Symposium on Predictive Health, to be held on Friday, Dec. 2, 2011, will focus on health and the human microbiome. The human microbiome consists of the microscopic organisms, such as bacteria, fungi and viruses, which reside throughout the body.

18 Nov 2011

State roundup: Calif. cuts make public health outlook bleak

One thing Gov. Mitch Daniels believes with absolute conviction is that consumers need to pay more of the cost of their health care. ... No one can say Daniels isn't practicing what he preaches. Indiana has been using a version of consumer-driven health care for state employees since 2006. Starting next year, 90 percent of Indiana state workers will be covered by a consumer-driven plan with low premiums and high out-of-pocket expenses for actual care.

18 Nov 2011

House gives nod to correcting Medicaid 'glitch'

The House easily gave final approval to a rare revision to the health care reform law Wednesday - and what's even rarer is that it's flown under the radar all week. Following the Senate's unanimous vote last week, the House voted 422-0 to undo a health care reform provision that would have allowed some middle-class individuals to qualify for Medicaid.

17 Nov 2011

Viewpoints: Paul Starr on Obama, Romney and health reform; Glenn close on the need for mental health services

As we testified on Nov. 1 before the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, the principal driver of long-term federal deficits is the rapidly mounting cost of healthcare, particularly Medicare. ... Solving the U.S. debt crisis requires structural changes to slow Medicare's cost growth plus significant new revenue to accommodate the retirement of the baby boomers. Any plan without those two essential components should go back to the drawing board.

17 Nov 2011

Eli Lilly provides $4M in additional funding to IDRI for new TB therapies

Eli Lilly and Company today announced that it is providing more than $4 million in additional funding to the Infectious Disease Research Institute. The funding will allow IDRI to continue its early phase drug discovery efforts focused on identifying new and better therapies in the fight against tuberculosis, including multidrug-resistant strains known as MDR-TB.

17 Nov 2011

Improper payments reduced by $17.6 billion, White House says

This cut in wasteful or improper payments in social welfare programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, applies to the year ending Sept. 30.

17 Nov 2011

Facing pressure from all sides, deficit panel keeps hands off health law

The sweeping 2010 health law has stayed largely intact even as super committee members struggle to slash the nation's deficit. Meanwhile, the clock continues to tick down toward the deadline even as more proposals are being floated.

17 Nov 2011

House subcommittee approves GOP-backed measure to repeal CLASS Act

Members of the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee on Tuesday voted to approve legislation that would repeal the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act included in the healthcare reform law. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act tasked HHS with developing a benefit plan for CLASS, a voluntary long-term-care insurance program, that was financially sustainable and also met the legal requirements of the statute.

17 Nov 2011

Autism Speaks receives $100,000 Royal Arch Masons RARA grant

The General Chapter of Royal Arch Masons International presented Autism Speaks, the world's largest autism research and advocacy organization, with a $100,000 Royal Arch Research Assistance (RARA) grant in support of the Autism Speaks early diagnosis and early intervention initiative to investigate auditory processing disorders in children with autism.

17 Nov 2011

NYU Langone recognized as leading cardiovascular hospital in the U.S.

NYU Langone Medical Center has been recognized as a leading cardiovascular hospital in the United States. The medical center received the Thomson Reuters Top 50 Cardiovascular Hospitals 2012 Award for its high-quality cardiovascular care and excellent performance in key clinical measures. The medical center is the only hospital in New York State to be honored with this year's award.

17 Nov 2011

Physicians want more palliative care despite barriers

A new poll shows that doctors believe that quality of life for dying patients is more important than working to extend that patient's life for as long as possible.

17 Nov 2011

IAC executive director wins ECBT Immunization Leadership Award

The Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) is proud to announce that its executive director, Deborah Wexler, MD, has been selected as the honoree of the Every Child By Two Immunization Leadership Award. Every Child By Two (ECBT), founded by former First Lady Rosalynn Carter and former First Lady of Arkansas Betty Bumpers, is dedicated to protecting all children from vaccine-preventable diseases.

17 Nov 2011

Mass. and Calif. insurers, health systems facing off

Tufts Medical Center and its doctors group say they will stop doing business with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts on Jan. 17 because the two sides can't agree on a new contract. The move could force tens of thousands of Blue Cross members to change doctors and compel employers across Massachusetts to consider switching to another insurer.

17 Nov 2011

Viewpoints: The Supreme Court and the health law; Romney's plan for care for vets

The new mandate to buy health insurance has now reached the Supreme Court, which agreed on Monday to judge its constitutionality. The crux of the constitutional complaint against the mandate is that Congress's ability to regulate commerce has never been understood to give it the power to force Americans to buy insurance, or anything else. But not only is there a precedent for this, there is also clear support for it in the Constitution.

17 Nov 2011

Study finds Medicare changes would impose additional costs on majority of 'healthy' beneficiaries

Several deficit-reduction committees have suggested changing the federal health-care program for seniors to combine the hospital- and doctor-services deductibles that participants currently pay separately. In this system, seniors could have a $550 annual deductible, and be required to pay 20 percent toward all services up to a $5,550 annual limit.

17 Nov 2011

State-financed healthcare causes unnecessary suffering for transsexual persons

In 1972, Sweden became the first country in the world to legislate healthcare for transsexualism within the state-financed healthcare system. In an international perspective, this was considered to be radical.

17 Nov 2011

Excessive vitamin D levels can lead to onset of AF

While previous studies have linked vitamin D deficiency to an increased risk for cardiovascular disease, new research at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute shows that too much vitamin D can lead to the onset of a dangerous heart condition known as atrial fibrillation.

16 Nov 2011