Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

School-based intervention program helps students with asthma better manage symptoms

A school-based intervention program helped New York City high school students with moderate to severe asthma better manage their symptoms, dramatically reducing the need for urgent care, including hospitalizations and emergency room visits, according to a study published online in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

9 Dec 2010

Number of people admitted to hospital for treatment of dog bites increased by 86%: AHRQ

The number of people admitted to the hospital because of dog bites increased by 86 percent - from 5,100 to 9,500 hospital stays - between 1993 and 2008, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

9 Dec 2010

Digestive Disease Specialists deploys Wolters Kluwer Health's ProVation MD software

Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information for healthcare professionals and students, announced today that Digestive Disease Specialists, Inc. has selected its ProVation MD software for gastroenterology procedure documentation and coding.

9 Dec 2010

USAID, PEPFAR and HHS welcome WHO's endorsement of rapid diagnostic test for TB

The United States welcomes the policy statement and roadmap issued today by the World Health Organization (WHO) charting the rollout of the Xpert MTB/RIF rapid diagnostic test for tuberculosis (TB) and rifampicin resistance, a proxy for multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB).

9 Dec 2010

Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center symposium aims for high-value health care system in the US

In a sustained effort to seek consensus-driven, patient-centered priorities that would build a high-value health care system, the Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center hosted a symposium Dec. 5-7 entitled "Achieving the Vision: Advancing High-Value Health Care," which featured patients, providers, payers and national policy experts.

9 Dec 2010

EULAR welcomes EPSCO Council's decision on tackling chronic diseases in Europe

The European League Against Rheumatism welcomes the outcomes of yesterday's Council of the European Union. In its meeting on 7 December, ministers for health adopted Council Conclusions on chronic diseases, in which the Council calls on Member States and the European Commission to adopt concrete, coordinated measures to tackle chronic diseases in Europe.

9 Dec 2010

Enbrel outperforms Humira in treating newly diagnosed RA patients: Report

Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that Amgen/Pfizer's Enbrel is the leading tumor necrosis factor -alpha inhibitor prescribed in newly diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis patients, outpacing Abbott's Humira in the first three lines of treatment.

9 Dec 2010

Urgent reform of Medicaid-financed community care for ADHD children needed

The enactment of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 expands Medicare benefits to scores of previously uninsured individuals including many of our nation's children. While access to treatment is laudable, the quality of such treatment is the subject of an article in the December issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

9 Dec 2010

Exergen's TemporalScanner demonstrates accuracy in temperature assessment for surgical patients

Temperatures taken orally or by temporal artery thermometry "are an accurate means of temperature assessment for adult patients undergoing colorectal or gynecology surgery," according to analysis published by the Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing. Accurate temperature readings are necessary to determine when to intervene for patients at all stages of their hospitalizations but especially during and immediately after surgical procedures to avoid post-operative complications.

9 Dec 2010

Poorly educated people more likely to be admitted in hospital with chronic heart failure

Results from a large European study suggest that poorly educated people are more likely to be admitted to hospital with chronic heart failure than the better educated, even after differences in lifestyle have been taken into account. The study is published online today (Thursday 9 December) in the European Heart Journal.

9 Dec 2010

DPT granted FDA approval to manufacture Collagenase SANTYL Ointment for wound care

DPT Laboratories, Ltd., a pharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing organization, announced today that it received FDA approval to manufacture commercial supplies of a leading sterile ointment for wound care at its Center of Excellence for Sterile & Specialty Products in Lakewood, N.J. Beginning this month, Healthpoint will ship commercial lots of Collagenase SANTYL® Ointment produced at DPT's Lakewood facility to its North American customers.

9 Dec 2010

Docs distrust hospitals; Americans divided over health law; Children's hospitals lose discounts on orphan drugs

"The successful implementation of the new health care reform law will hinge on physicians and hospitals working out trust issues with one another," according to a new PricewaterhouseCoopers survey. "The reform law requires increased collaboration and information sharing between physicians and hospitals, including through new accountable care organization arrangements, to reduce costs and increase quality."

9 Dec 2010

Three drug companies to pay $421 million in fraud settlement

Los Angeles Times: Three pharmaceutical firms — Roxane, Abbott Laboratories and B. Braun Medical — "agreed to pay more than $421 million to settle claims of defrauding Medicare and Medicaid — the latest in a string of large healthcare fraud settlements announced by the Justice Department. The drug companies charged one set of prices to doctors and pharmacies but reported another set of inflated figures that were used as benchmarks by government insurers reimbursing healthcare providers, authorities said" (Zajac, 12/8).

9 Dec 2010

Private insurers, employee wellness programs seek to control costs

Modern Healthcare: "Private insurers may be better at controlling healthcare costs than Medicare, according to a Health Affairs study of two Texas cities. The study is a follow-up to a widely read 2009 New Yorker article by Atul Gawande that showed per-capita Medicare spending in McAllen, Texas, was 86% higher than in El Paso.

8 Dec 2010

Neurologist wins trial for defamation against Utah Medicaid Fraud Control Unit

The worst abuses in government health programs may be by officials who press false charges. Threatening criminal prosecution to try to get a physician to pay monies amounts to "extortion," admitted one prosecutor in sworn testimony published in the winter 2010 issue of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons (http://www.jpands.org/vol15no4/becker.pdf).

8 Dec 2010

Myriad to acquire technology for diagnosis, prognosis of malignant melanoma

Myriad Genetics, Inc. today announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire proprietary technology for the diagnosis and prognosis of malignant melanoma using highly validated genetic markers from Melanoma Diagnostics, Inc. of Altadena, California. Under the agreement, Myriad has the right to commercialize all tests derived from the technology on a worldwide basis in exchange for upfront fees and contingent payments based upon the commercial success of the products.

8 Dec 2010

Aetna to acquire health information exchange firm for $500 million

Aetna, one of the largest U.S. insurers, is expanding its health information technology presence with its $500 million acquisition of technology firm Medicity, Bloomberg reports. "Medicity, based in Salt Lake City, offers technology that helps 760 hospitals and 125,000 physicians in the U.S. exchange medical data, according to the statement." Aetna said it financed the deal with "available resources" that wouldn't affect its financial results (Nussbaum, 12/7).

8 Dec 2010

MedeAnalytics introduces Accountable Care Solution for healthcare provider and payer organizations

MedeAnalytics, a leading provider of healthcare performance management solutions, today announced the launch of its Accountable Care Solution for healthcare provider and payer organizations.

8 Dec 2010

First Edition: December 8, 2010

Today's health policy headlines include more detail on the deal reached to avoid a scheduled cut in physician's Medicare pay.

8 Dec 2010

Memorial Medical Center selects Mobile Aspects iRISecure Tissue Tracking solution

Mobile Aspects announced today that the Memorial Medical Center located in Springfield IL, has selected Mobile Aspects iRISecure Tissue Tracking solution. The system provides secure storage for implantable human tissue utilized in surgical procedures the technology also automates the activity logging and JCAHO compliance workflows required of clinicians.

8 Dec 2010

Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

School-based intervention program helps students with asthma better manage symptoms

Number of people admitted to hospital for treatment of dog bites increased by 86%: AHRQ

Digestive Disease Specialists deploys Wolters Kluwer Health's ProVation MD software

USAID, PEPFAR and HHS welcome WHO's endorsement of rapid diagnostic test for TB

Mayo Clinic Health Policy Center symposium aims for high-value health care system in the US

EULAR welcomes EPSCO Council's decision on tackling chronic diseases in Europe

Enbrel outperforms Humira in treating newly diagnosed RA patients: Report

Urgent reform of Medicaid-financed community care for ADHD children needed

Exergen's TemporalScanner demonstrates accuracy in temperature assessment for surgical patients

Poorly educated people more likely to be admitted in hospital with chronic heart failure

DPT granted FDA approval to manufacture Collagenase SANTYL Ointment for wound care

Docs distrust hospitals; Americans divided over health law; Children's hospitals lose discounts on orphan drugs

Three drug companies to pay $421 million in fraud settlement

Private insurers, employee wellness programs seek to control costs

Neurologist wins trial for defamation against Utah Medicaid Fraud Control Unit

Myriad to acquire technology for diagnosis, prognosis of malignant melanoma

Aetna to acquire health information exchange firm for $500 million

MedeAnalytics introduces Accountable Care Solution for healthcare provider and payer organizations

First Edition: December 8, 2010

Memorial Medical Center selects Mobile Aspects iRISecure Tissue Tracking solution

Industry Focus eBook - Cell & Gene Therapy (1st Edition) eBook

Real-time Raman monitoring for pharmaceutical hot melt extrusion

Synthetic Psychedelics: A Growing Public Health Concern

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Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Industry Focus eBook - Cell & Gene Therapy (1st Edition) eBook

Real-time Raman monitoring for pharmaceutical hot melt extrusion

Synthetic Psychedelics: A Growing Public Health Concern

How the Vutara VXL simplifies single-molecule imaging

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