Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

AAPS survey: Doctors should not take 'Stimulus' money to computerize their offices

The key to enforcing healthcare reform was already passed in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, also known as the Stimulus Bill. This contains $17 billion to encourage physicians and hospitals to adopt electronic health records.

18 Mar 2010

Dems move forward with 'deem and pass' strategy; Some Dem. holdouts express support for reform

The Hill's Blog Briefing Room: "The House will have a clean up-or-down vote on the Senate's healthcare vote in the form of a rules vote, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said Wednesday. As Democrats prepare to move forward with health reform efforts, Hoyer seemed to confirm the so-called 'deem and pass' strategy that would see the House indirectly approve the Senate's health bill through a vote on a rule making changes to it.

18 Mar 2010

Massachusetts hospital costs not connected to quality of care, report finds

A new report from Massachusetts finds that the price of hospital care there is not necessarily related to quality.

18 Mar 2010

Drug makers convene to discuss new strategies on how to improve patient care and reduce healthcare costs

Executives from pharmaceutical companies and health care payer and provider organizations convened at the "Selling Pharmaceuticals in 2015" forum in Philadelphia to discuss mutually beneficial partnerships that, if implemented, could replace the traditional model of selling drugs on price, features and benefits with a new model that focuses on quantifying and communicating total value.

18 Mar 2010

Healthcare professionals need expertise in nutrition and intestinal failure

The profession must take advantage of changes in medical education to ensure that all health professionals, but especially gut specialists, are given adequate training in nutrition, urge Dr Penny Nield and colleagues, in the launch issue of Frontline Gastroenterology, the new quarterly companion journal to Gut.

18 Mar 2010

Health overhaul supporters, critics duel on airwaves

McClatchy/Miami Herald: "As a historic vote on sweeping healthcare legislation nears, Democratic moderates in the House of Representatives face relentless pressure as they juggle personal pleas from President Barack Obama, a multimillion-dollar ad barrage and constituents who are fed up with the convoluted congressional process.

18 Mar 2010

AMGA to present Medical Group Preeminence Award to HealthTexas Provider Network

The American Medical Group Association announced it will present the Medical Group Preeminence Award on March 20 to HealthTexas Provider Network, an affiliate of Baylor Health Care System based in the Dallas/Fort Worth area of Texas. The presentation will take place at the AMGA 2010 Annual Conference, being held March 18-20 at the New Orleans Marriott.

18 Mar 2010

Democrats take aim at deficit targets, continue to wait for CBO numbers on health overhaul

"With Congress just days away from an expected vote, Democrats still hadn't settled on final language of the bill and until they do the Congressional Budget Office can't release an estimate for how much the complete package would cost." House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D., Md.) said yesterday that "he hoped Democratic leaders would be able to lock down final details soon.

18 Mar 2010

Dems newly-favored tactic to advance health measure draws GOP rage

The latest strategy House Democratic leaders have considered for passing the health overhaul bill would allow lawmakers to approve a Senate-passed version of the bill without a direct vote, The Washington Post reports. Instead, a so-called "self-executing rule would say that the Senate's version of health-care legislation would be deemed approved if House members adopt a set of changes to that bill."

18 Mar 2010

Access MediQuip enhances Recall Management Service for implantable devices

Access MediQuip, LLC, the nation's first and largest provider of outsourced implantable medical device management solutions to the healthcare industry, announced today it has enhanced its proprietary Recall Management Service, "RMS," for its customers nationwide. The new release is designed to protect patients, inform and empower surgeons and facilities, and help payers improve quality while managing cost.

17 Mar 2010

Industry game changers to watch in healthcare IT

Whatever the outcome of healthcare reform, this much is clear: Information technology will play a critical role in the improvement and delivery of patient outcomes. So, will government contractors — they already are. So, who’s in the lead?

17 Mar 2010

Hospitals can save more than $1M annually by implementing Masimo Patient SafetyNet with SET pulse oximetry

Masimo, the inventor of Pulse CO-Oximetry™ and Measure-Through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry, announced today that a new cost-effectiveness study shows that implementation of the Masimo Patient SafetyNet remote monitoring and clinician notification system with Masimo SET pulse oximetry saved one hospital $817,000 in its first year.

17 Mar 2010

CDISC approves Nextrials as one of 15 registered solutions providers

Nextrials, Inc., a leader in clinical research software and services, has been approved by the Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium as one of 15 registered solutions providers, and is the only company offering an electronic data capture (EDC) product supporting the CDISC Healthcare Link Initiative.

17 Mar 2010

Renhuang Pharmaceuticals' net income for first-quarter of 2010 increases 17.8%

Renhuang Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a developer, manufacturer and distributor of botanical products, bio-pharmaceuticals and traditional Chinese medicines, today announced its financial results for the first quarter ended January 31, 2010.

17 Mar 2010

AHF’s Magic Johnson ‘Testing America’ Tour arrives in Nashville to offer free HIV testing

AHF’s Magic Johnson ‘Testing America’ Tour, a six month, 48 state national cross country HIV testing tour, arrives in Nashville, Tennessee and will offer free HIV testing, along with local partner Street Works at events today and tomorrow.

17 Mar 2010

First Edition: March 17, 2010

Today's news continues to focus on Democratic leaders' efforts to finalize their health reform package and gather the votes necessary to gain House passage.

17 Mar 2010

TSO3 reports net loss of $9.2M for fiscal 2009

TSO3 Inc. an innovator in sterilization technology for medical devices in healthcare settings using ozone, posted sales totalling $1.3 million for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009, compared to $2.2 million one year earlier. During the year, the Company sold five of its first generation STERIZONE(R) sterilizers and accessories, whereas it sold 13 in the preceding fiscal year.

17 Mar 2010

Studies examine ways to increase healthcare personnel vaccination rates through social networking

Healthcare personnel influenza immunization rates have remained low, despite recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other leading healthcare organizations that all healthcare personnel receive annual flu vaccines.

17 Mar 2010

Most controversial issues in urology to be discussed in the Annual Congress of EAU

Some of the most controversial issues in urology will be discussed by leading experts during the five-day 25th Annual Congress of the European Association of Urology in the Fira Barcelona congress venue in Barcelona (ES). From April 16 to 20, close to 12,000 participants and 3,000 company representatives are expected to gather in one of the world's biggest annual professional meetings in urology.

17 Mar 2010

'Quiet corruption' impedes African development, World Bank report says

What the World Bank has dubbed "quiet corruption" in it's Africa Development Indicators 2010 report (.pdf) could be as significant a threat to the continent's development "as the graft scandals that frequently dominate newspaper headlines," Bloomberg/BusinessWeek reports (McGregor/Seria, 3/15).

17 Mar 2010