Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Key findings on plasma cell disorders to be presented at American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting

Caris Life Sciences, Inc., a leading biosciences company focused on enabling precise and personalized healthcare through the highest quality anatomic pathology, molecular profiling, and blood-based diagnostic services, announced that Dr. Raul Braylan, Hematopathologist and Clinical Medical Director of Hematopathology Services, will present key findings related to plasma cell disorders at the upcoming 52nd Annual Meeting and Exposition of the American Society of Hematology.

4 Dec 2010

LifeSpan TR1200i folding treadmill named 'Best New Treadmill'

The LifeSpan TR1200i folding treadmill was named "Best New Treadmill" by Treadmill Doctor in their 2011 fitness equipment reviews. Fitness Professor Review also selected the LifeSpan TR1200i, made by PCE Health and Fitness (www.lifespanfitness.com) as its choice for "Best Treadmill under $1000."

3 Dec 2010

NetDimensions releases Enterprise Knowledge Platform version 6.3

NetDimensions, a global provider of performance, knowledge and Learning Management Systems (LMS), announced today the release of version 6.3 of the Enterprise Knowledge Platform (EKP), the company's award-winning learning management system.

3 Dec 2010

Does saturated fat contribute to development of heart disease?

For over three decades, saturated fat has been accused of significantly contributing to the development of heart disease. However, more and more studies suggest this theory to be false.

3 Dec 2010

Prostate cancer imaging shows real-time tumor metabolism

A UCSF research collaboration with GE Healthcare has produced the first results in humans of a new technology that promises to rapidly assess the presence and aggressiveness of prostate tumors in real time, by imaging the tumor's metabolism.

3 Dec 2010

Obama praised for enhanced health care reform for Alzheimer's community

According to the Society of Actuaries, the leading cause of U.S. long-term care claims is Alzheimer's, the brain disease that renders over 5 million Americans unable to handle all the acts of daily living unaided. Who cares? Evidently President Obama does, having written a pro-active column in the Fall, 2010, issue of care ADvantage, published by the Alzheimer's Foundation of America.

3 Dec 2010

Humana Military receives two contracts to provide patient appointing services

Humana Inc. announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary, Humana Military Healthcare Services, was awarded two contracts to provide patient appointing services for military hospitals and clinics located in the greater Puget Sound, Washington, and Tidewater, Virginia areas.

3 Dec 2010

CRT therapy is cost-effective for symptomatic heart failure patients: REVERSE trial

Medtronic, Inc. announced findings from an economic sub-study of the REVERSE (Resynchronization Reverses Remodeling in Systolic Left Ventricular Dysfunction) trial published in the European Heart Journal demonstrating for the first time that cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is cost-effective in mildly symptomatic heart failure (HF) patients.

3 Dec 2010

New national awards program to recognize healthcare institutions to eliminate HAI infection

A new national awards program will recognize teams of critical care professionals and healthcare institutions able to successfully reduce or eliminate healthcare-associated infections (HAI), a leading cause of death in the United States.

3 Dec 2010

Sentara Heart Hospital commences procedures in AtriCure DEEP AF feasibility trial

Sentara Heart Hospital is breaking new ground in cardiac care and treatment. Surgeons and Cardiologists at Sentara Heart Hospital are first to begin enrolling and performing trial cases in the AtriCure DEEP AF feasibility trial. The first procedure in the country was performed in a new, state-of-the-art hybrid operating room at Sentara Heart Hospital by Jonathan Philpott, M.D., Director of the Sentara Atrial Fibrillation Surgery Program, Ian Woollett, M.D., and John Onufer, M.D., Medical Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology.

3 Dec 2010

More Coloradans lose Medicare Advantage plans, Missouri lawmakers push for doctor's order to buy common cold and allergy meds

The Denver Post: "Nearly 14,000 Coloradans are losing their form of Medicare Advantage plans next year and will need to choose new options, creating a hardship for 1,700 rural Medicare members who won't find similar plans left on the table. Medicare Advantage carriers such as Humana, Anthem, Secure Horizons and MVP dropped some Medicare Advantage plans in Colorado. … The dropped carriers affect 13,936 beneficiaries in Colorado, including 3,832 in the Denver metro area" (Booth, 12/2).

3 Dec 2010

Debt panel proposals target health costs

A White House-appointed commission's deficit-taming proposals would affect every corner of society. Workers with solid coverage on the job, seniors, drug companies, trial lawyers, hospitals, doctors, state governments and federal employees would all feel the effects.

3 Dec 2010

In spite of health care law, patients may still pay for preventive care

Minnesota Public Radio: In principal, the new federal healthcare law "requires insurers to cover preventive care — including colonoscopies, mammograms and immunizations at no cost to the patient — no co-pays, no deductibles." The aim is to encourage people to get preventive care before they develop conditions that are more costly to treat, and while "Medicare will begin covering these tests 100 percent on January 1st ... for other plans there are myriad exceptions.

3 Dec 2010

MHRA issues notice of acceptance for BioMarin's BMN 673 for genetically-defined cancers

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. today announced that the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in the UK has completed review of the Clinical Trial Application (CTA) and has issued a notice of acceptance for BMN 673 for genetically-defined cancers.

3 Dec 2010

Republican governors want health law flexibility, could help insurers with reform

More than a dozen Republican governors-elect plotted ways to unravel the Democrats' health-care overhaul and to give states more freedom in regulating programs like Medicaid during a meeting late Wednesday with incoming Speaker John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

2 Dec 2010

New agreement gives CIGNA customers in-network access to medical center

CIGNA HealthCare and the University of Illinois Medical Center today announced a new agreement now in effect that gives CIGNA customers in-network access to the medical center and its 707 multi-specialty employed physicians.

2 Dec 2010

Super GP clinic minus GP grabs attention

The Government defended the situation saying the $25 million Smart Road Super Clinic is not yet fully open. It has social workers and a dietitian already though. SA Health Minister John Hill said construction would not be finished until next year so only a small section of the clinic was open. He said, “We’re expecting all of the remaining services to be arranged so that when the building is opened some time next year, all of the services will be available.”

2 Dec 2010

ROCHE, Baylor Research Institute partner in human immunology research

Baylor Research Institute (BRI), the research arm of Baylor Health Care System, announced today that it has formed a three-year partnership with Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) to jointly develop programs emerging from the human immunology platforms developed at the Baylor Institute for Immunology Research (BIIR), a component of BRI.

2 Dec 2010

GE announces image exchange solution

GE Healthcare today announced its eHealth Image Exchange software solution: a flexible, standards-based platform for sharing images and integrating workflows across a healthcare community. The eHealth Image Exchange helps improve the quality of radiology care across the healthcare community by reducing costs and inefficiencies caused by using CDs and film to share images, and by enhancing online patient review capabilities among multi-disciplinary teams in numerous locations.

2 Dec 2010

Covidien's iDrive powered stapling system granted FDA 510(k) clearance

Covidien, a leading global provider of healthcare products and recognized innovator in surgical stapling applications, today announced 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the iDrive™ powered stapling system. This reusable stapling platform is battery-powered, enabling one-handed push-button operation of all primary controls and a reduction in the required firing force when compared to traditional endomechanical surgical staplers.

2 Dec 2010