Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Looking beyond repeal vote, House Republicans plan their own health bills

The House GOP moved forward Thursday with targeted measures to advance their own version of health legislation. Four committee chairmen outlined plans to develop specific plans to kill or replace certain elements of the health law. A bill to permit interstate sales of health insurance is among the specific proposals on the table, and a group of conservative Republicans also unveiled a fiscal plan that would stall health law implementation efforts by defunding them.

21 Jan 2011

USC School of Medicine to host the first World Congress of Ultrasound in Medical Education

Ultrasound is a valuable tool that allows doctors to diagnose and treat patients quickly and accurately. It's been around for decades, but there has been revolutionary change in the technology in recent years, making the machines smaller, cheaper and smarter.

21 Jan 2011

HHS announces implementation grants for state health exchanges

As a result of the health law, the state-level exchanges must be up and running by January 2014.

21 Jan 2011

Viewpoints: Disputing the costs -- or savings -- of the health law; Britain's NHS; 'Fixing' Wis. Medicaid

With this week's vote to repeal President Obama's health care reform, House Republicans struck a blow for freedom. They struck a blow for the freedom of hospitals to avoid financial penalties, no matter how many Medicare patients develop infections under their care. They struck a blow for the freedom of hospitals to avoid consequences, no matter how many Medicare patients are readmitted soon after treatment.

21 Jan 2011

Intellipharmaceutics receives purchase agreement commitments for $12,000,000

Intellipharmaceutics International Inc. today announced that it has received purchase agreement commitments from institutional investors to provide the Company with approximately US$12,000,000 in gross proceeds through the sale of its common stock and warrants.

21 Jan 2011

AHF proposes funding solutions to current ADAP crisis

In anticipation of an additional round of cuts to the AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP) to be implemented in the next few months, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) today proposed three possible funding solutions to the current ADAP crisis—which has left more than 5,000 people on waiting lists to receive lifesaving medications and thousands more scheduled to be disenrolled from the program altogether. Currently,

21 Jan 2011

Three million Medicare beneficiaries receive prescription drug cost relief through Affordable Care Act

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced that three million Medicare beneficiaries nationwide have received prescription drug cost relief through the Affordable Care Act. To date, three million eligible beneficiaries who fell into the drug coverage gap known as the donut hole during 2010 have been mailed a one-time, tax-free $250 rebate check.

21 Jan 2011

VIVUS holds End-of-Review meeting with FDA for QNEXA NDA

VIVUS, Inc. today announced that it held an End-of-Review meeting with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the New Drug Application (NDA) for QNEXA®, an investigational drug for the treatment of obesity. The meeting occurred on January 19th at the FDA's offices in Maryland and was attended by senior members of the FDA and VIVUS' management and consultants.

21 Jan 2011

First Edition: January 21, 2011

Today's headlines highlight the House GOP's plans to advance the "replace" part of their strategy to reverse the health overhaul.

21 Jan 2011

HHS announces new funding opportunity for states to implement Health Insurance Exchanges

Today, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced a new funding opportunity for grants to help states continue their work to implement a key provision of the Affordable Care Act - Health Insurance Exchanges.

21 Jan 2011

inVentiv Health to acquire Campbell Alliance and i3

inVentiv Health, Inc., a leading provider of outsourced clinical development, launch and commercialization services to the global healthcare industry, today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Campbell Alliance, a leading management consulting firm specializing in serving the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Yesterday, inVentiv announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to purchase i3 from Ingenix.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 21 Jan 2011

HCLA testifies that medical lawsuit abuse threatens patient care

The Health Coalition on Liability and Access (HCLA) testified today before the Committee on the Judiciary of the U.S. House of Representatives in a hearing titled, "Medical Liability Reform – Cutting Costs, Spurring Investment, Creating Jobs." Stuart L. Weinstein, MD, a spokesperson for the HCLA, called on the Congress to "create a climate for patient centered care by reforming a medical liability system that continues to put everyone's health care at risk."

21 Jan 2011

The Ensign Group to purchase CHRISTUS St. Joseph Villa located in Utah

The Ensign Group, the parent company of the Ensign group of skilled nursing, rehabilitative care services, hospice care and assisted living companies, announced today that it has agreed to purchase CHRISTUS St. Joseph Villa, a continuing care retirement community located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the CHRISTUS Marian Center, a behavioral health center operated within St. Joseph Villa.

21 Jan 2011

Northeast Ohio healthcare sector companies attracted $132 million in investments in 2010

In 2010, 62 Northeast Ohio companies collectively raised $221 million from venture capitalists and angel investors, an increase of 121 percent over the amount raised by companies in 2009. The growth rate of dollars invested in regional companies is higher than recently released data from Thomson Reuters showing a 19 percent increase in dollars invested nationally.

21 Jan 2011

Study highlights relationship between language and health care quality

Wayne State University researchers have found that when patients and providers speak the same language, patients report less confusion and better health care quality.

21 Jan 2011

BOKA Powell releases new images of Methodist Hospital for Surgery in Texas

BOKA Powell released new images today of the completed Methodist Hospital for Surgery in Addison, Texas, a dedicated surgical hospital which opened last month.

21 Jan 2011

U.S., China announce public-private health care partnership

In conjunction with the state visit to the U.S. by Chinese President Hu Jintao, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and several other federal agencies on Wednesday announced a new public-private health care partnership between the U.S. and China, Modern Healthcare reports (Blesch, 1/19).

21 Jan 2011

EDAP announces placement of first Sonolith i-sys electroconductive lithotripter in South Africa

EDAP TMS SA, the global leader in therapeutic ultrasound, reported today placement of the first Sonolith i-sys electroconductive lithotripter in South Africa.

21 Jan 2011

House GOP passes health law repeal

In what is considered to be a symbolic vote, House Republicans joined with three Democrats to fulfill a campaign pledge to pass a bill that would undo the sweeping health overhaul.The vote represented the Republican House majority's first official rebuke of the Obama agenda. Senate action, however, is unlikely.

21 Jan 2011

AHRQ finds 30% increase in Medicaid-covered patient hospital admissions

Hospital admissions of patients covered by Medicaid jumped by 30 percent between 1997 and 2008, compared to a 5 percent growth in those of patients with private health insurance, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

21 Jan 2011