Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Acuity Brands announces acquisition of Healthcare Lighting

Acuity Brands, Inc. today announced it has acquired for cash Fairview, PA-based Healthcare Lighting, Inc., a leading provider of specialized, high-performance lighting products for healthcare facilities.

13 May 2011

Medicaid flexibility bill approved by House Energy and Commerce subcommittee

The measure, which Medicaid advocates say would "devastate the program," would repeal the maintenance of effort provision in the health law which prevents states from cutting eligibility rules before 2014. GOP backers argue it is the best way to give states more flexibility to deal with the program as they face budget shortfalls.

13 May 2011

New ACR Dose Index Registry allows imaging community to measure effectiveness of dose lowering efforts

Medical imaging facilities can now submit anonymized dose information for all CT exams performed to the Dose Index Registry (DIR) — allowing them to compare their dose indices to other facilities of similar size or geographic area and to national benchmarks. Participating facilities receive periodic feedback comparing their dose levels to these benchmarks, enabling them to make any necessary adjustments to lower dose received from scans.

13 May 2011

First Edition: May 13, 2011

Today's headlines include details of Mitt Romney's major health care speech as well as the latest updates on the debt limit and budget talks and the outlook for Medicare's future.

13 May 2011

PAF, Breakaway from Cancer partner for awareness campaign

The Patient Advocate Foundation – a national non-profit organization that provides professional case management services to tens of thousands of patients every year who are unable to obtain access to care because of financial or insurance denials - is pleased to partner with Breakaway from Cancer, a national fundraising and educational initiative founded by Amgen in 2005 as a complementary component to the company's sponsorship of the Amgen Tour of California, a world-class professional cycling competition, to raise awareness of the important resources available to cancer patients including prevention, education, patient care, advocacy, financial support and survivorship.

13 May 2011

HHS dual-eligible program seeks to lower states' Medicaid costs

The centerpiece of the program, which HHS says could result in savings of billions of dollars a year, would give states access to data detailing how Medicaid populations use Medicare services.

13 May 2011

Next stop for health law appeal includes two GOP-appointed judges

The next appeals court to hear challenges to the law will be the 6th Circuit Court in Cincinnati on June 1. The judges have a much different ideological make-up than the Richmond trio: While Circuit Judge Boyce Martin, Jr. was appointed by Jimmy Carter, Circuit Judge Jeffrey Sutton is a George W. Bush appointee and District Judge James Graham was appointed by Ronald Reagan.

13 May 2011

Romney uses speech to take on his political vulnerability: Health reform

Mitt Romney, GOP presidential hopeful, delivered a speech today detailing what was right about the Massachusetts health reform plan that became law while he was governor, what is wrong with the federal health law that was enacted last year and what he would do to bring change to the health system. He spoke at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor.

13 May 2011

AHRQ: Rural Americans more likely to be treated in emergency departments for eye injury

Rural Americans were five times more likely than urban residents to be treated in emergency departments for eye injuries in 2008, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

13 May 2011

TFAH applauds HHS for new strategic approach to prevent viral hepatitis

The Trust for America's Health applauds the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for unveiling a new strategic approach to dealing with the silent epidemic of viral hepatitis today.

13 May 2011

ACP wins excellence award for health care publishing

The American College of Physicians (ACP) is pleased to announce that ACP Internist, ACP Hospitalist, and ACP InternistWeekly have won awards for excellence in publishing.

13 May 2011

Maximum chest compression during chiropractic manipulation is unlikely to result in injury

Dynamic chest compression occurs during spinal manipulation. While dynamic chest compression has been well studied in events such as motor vehicle collisions, chest compression forces have not been studied during chiropractic manipulation.

13 May 2011

Florida plan to revamp Medicaid raises questions; Texas hospitals complain about Medicaid rate cuts

To visit the low-rise medical offices dotting the sun-bleached highways of Broward County is to meet doctors and patients who complain of being guinea pigs in a social experiment gone wrong.

12 May 2011

First Edition: May 12, 2011

Today's headlines include reports about the upcoming speech by GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, during which he is expected to confront what many say is his main vulnerability: his home state's health reform.

12 May 2011

With today's speech, Romney hopes to inoculate himself on health care issues

Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts and a likely GOP presidential hopeful, will deliver a speech today in which he will confront his biggest political vulnerability — the fact that the state health reform he signed into law as governor is often considered a prototype for the federal health law.

12 May 2011

InTouch Health applauds FDA for recent announcement on Medical Device Data Systems

In response to the recent announcement issued by the Food and Drug Administration regarding Medical Device Data Systems, InTouch Health affirms its position of compliance, and applauds the agency for issuing regulations governing the use of hardware and software in the healthcare information technology space.

12 May 2011

Children can benefit from The Asthma Management Plans in School Act

New legislation introduced by Rep. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) would provide grants for asthma management programs in schools across the U.S. in a step to ensure the nation's 7.1 million children with asthma have access to care that could save their lives.

12 May 2011

Prestige Brands fourth fiscal quarter revenue increases 37.8% to $96.4 million

Prestige Brands Holdings, Inc. today announced results for the fourth fiscal quarter and full year ended March 31, 2011.

12 May 2011

Health Canada approves EMEND IV formulation to prevent chemotherapy-induced nausea, vomiting

Today Merck announced that Health Canada has approved the new intravenous formulation of EMEND IV. Used in combination with a 5-HT3 antagonist class of antiemetics and dexamethasone, fosaprepitant dimeglumine is indicated for the prevention of acute and delayed nausea and vomiting due to highly emetogenic cancer chemotherapy.

12 May 2011

Publicis Groupe announces acquisition of Dreams Communication

Publicis Groupe announced today that it has acquired Dreams Communication, a Chinese agency specialized in healthcare communications regrouping Beijing Dreams Advertising and Beijing Dreams Zhiyang Communication.

12 May 2011