Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Hospice services improve quality of care and support for dementia patients

Hospice services substantially improved the provision of care and support for nursing home patients dying of dementia and their families, according to an analysis of survey responses from hundreds of bereaved family members.

29 Jul 2011

Nation's health care tab continues to grow

The nation's health care tab is on track to hit $4.6 trillion in 2020, accounting for about $1 of every $5 in the economy, government number crunchers estimate in a report out Thursday. How much is that? Including government and private money, health care spending in 2020 will average $13,710 for every man, woman and child, says Medicare's Office of the Actuary.

29 Jul 2011

Time Temp Trac system can aid in successful conservation of stored blood

Human blood is a precious resource. Because stored blood has a very limited shelf life, keeping every available unit of it suitable for medical use is a crucial function at hospitals and other health care facilities - especially during supply shortages such as those currently being experienced in the Triad, other parts of North Carolina and numerous sections of the country.

29 Jul 2011

Health law challenge inches toward Supreme Court

The Supreme Court was asked on Wednesday to hear a challenge to the health care overhaul law, raising the possibility that the justices could rule on the matter by next summer, just months before the presidential election.

29 Jul 2011

Sorrento receives NIAID Phase I STTR grant to develop vaccines against C. difficile infection

Sorrento Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that it has received a Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer Research grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health.

29 Jul 2011

New era of healthcare showcased as NBN switches on in Coastal NSW

Residents in the neighbouring areas of Kiama Downs and Minnamurra, south of Sydney, are set to be the next to experience superfast fibre broadband through the National Broadband Network (NBN) as the first mainland coastal sites go live today.

28 Jul 2011

GE's Innova imaging systems maintain quality at lower dose rates under live fluoroscopy

As the number of interventional procedures to diagnose and treat patients increases worldwide, and the procedures grow in complexity and length, exposure to radiation is a growing concern for both clinicians and patients.

28 Jul 2011

World Bank urges China to address NCDs or face economic consequences

In a report released on Tuesday, the World Bank urged China to step up its efforts to fight non-communicable diseases (NCDs), "the main cause of death in the country, warning of rising health expenditure and an economic slowdown if rapid action is not taken," Reuters reports.

28 Jul 2011

Two large insurers profit by Americans' postponement of care

WellPoint Inc and Aetna Inc , the second and third-biggest U.S. health insurers by market value, are set to report second-quarter earnings on Wednesday that will likely be helped by Americans avoiding doctor visits and delaying medical procedures. The industry has benefited from Americans postponing such care during the weak economy.

28 Jul 2011

Law center presses its health law challenge

"The Thomas Moore Law Center formally asked the Supreme Court Tuesday to reverse an appeals court decision upholding the health care reform law. Marking the first appeal of its kind to reach the nation's highest court, the conservative legal group continues to insist the mandate requiring all Americans to purchase health insurance is unconstitutional".

28 Jul 2011

Bill introduced to increase Medigap MLR

The AARP endorsed the measure, introduced in both the House and Senate, which in 2014 would require Medigap insurers to spend 85 percent of every premium dollar in the group market on medical care.

28 Jul 2011

Boehner plan faces delay as debt deal continues to be elusive

The delay was caused both by a Congressional Budget Office analysis that found the proposal by House Speaker John Boehner didn't score the promised savings and by conservatives' skepticism about the plan.

28 Jul 2011

Smokers are misinformed about safety and efficacy of nicotine replacement therapy

Nearly half of all smokers in the United States attempt to quit at least once per year, yet the majority of these efforts fail. One factor contributing to the low annual rate of successful cessation is that the majority of quit attempts are made without evidence-based treatment such as nicotine replacement therapy.

28 Jul 2011

Moody's: States face Medicaid budget issues, cuts will affect hospitals

Modern Healthcare reports that hospital reimbursements — because of the end of the enhanced federal matching rate that became law as part of the 2009 stimulus package — will be pinched. In addition, congressional action and the federal debt debate is also causing concern at the state level.

28 Jul 2011

State roundup: Cuomo's N.Y. home health reform spurs complaints

Gov. Andrew Cuomo's effort to overhaul New York state's $6 billion home health-care industry is coming under scrutiny from patient advocates and other industry players who say the administration is bowing to the interests of large, politically connected providers.

28 Jul 2011

New study shows high prevalence of gout in the U.S.

A new study shows the prevalence of gout in the U.S. has risen over the last twenty years and now affects 8.3 million (4%) Americans.

28 Jul 2011

BD to acquire Carmel Pharma

BD, a leading global medical technology company, announced today that it signed a definitive agreement to acquire Carmel Pharma, Inc., a Swedish company that manufactures the PhaSeal System, the leading closed-system drug transfer device for the safe handling of hazardous drugs that are packaged in vials.

From BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) 28 Jul 2011

Aetna second-quarter operating earnings increase to $522.8 million

Aetna today announced second-quarter 2011 operating earnings of $522.8 million, or $1.35 per share, a per share increase of 29 percent over 2010.

27 Jul 2011

Hoag signs license and implementation agreement for Unibased ForSite2020 RMS software

Unibased Systems Architecture, Inc. announced today that Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian (Hoag) has signed an agreement for the license and implementation of the Unibased ForSite2020 Resource Management System (RMS) software application suite, including the POCET and CASH physician and consumer portals.

27 Jul 2011

Safeguard Scientifics reports consolidated net income of $121.8M for second quarter 2011

Safeguard Scientifics, Inc., a holding company that builds value in growth-stage life sciences and technology companies, today announced results of operations for the second quarter of 2011.

27 Jul 2011