Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Researchers discover microRNA biomarkers to treat patients with SCLC

Researchers at the Translational Genomics Research Institute, the Van Andel Research Institute and the Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center at Scottsdale Healthcare have discovered a biomarker that could help in the treatment of patients with an aggressive type of lung cancer.

15 Jun 2010

ULURU present Altrazeal at 2010 WOCN/WCET joint conference

ULURU Inc. announced today that six posters detailing clinical experience using Altrazeal™ Transforming Powder Dressing will be presented at the 2010 Joint Conference of the Wound Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society (WOCN) and World Council of Enterostomal Therapists (WCET) on June 14-16 in Phoenix, Arizona.

15 Jun 2010

Texas prepares for health reform's changes despite opposition to new law; Other states brace for federal funding cuts

When Congress approved the sweeping federal health care overhaul in March, Texas Governor Rick Perry was one of the loudest critics. He blasted the initiative as unconstitutional, a government takeover of health care and an unfunded federal mandate on the states. … That sentiment remains widespread in Texas, which has joined with 20 other states in suing to block the law from taking effect.

15 Jun 2010

VA Federal Supply Schedule Service approves CTT as vendor for Calmare Pain Therapy Treatment

Competitive Technologies, Inc. announced today that the Department of Veterans Affairs' Federal Supply Schedule Service has accepted CTT's application to be an approved vendor for its Calmare® Pain Therapy Treatment. This decision will enable CTT to sell Calmare Pain Therapy to physicians throughout the Federal government, with the expectation of significant sales in that market sector, which includes the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, the Indian Health Service, the Bureau of Prisons, and State Veteran Homes.

15 Jun 2010

MRSA survivors unite across the globe to raise awareness and educate public on prevention

MRSA Survivors Network with MRSA survivors, family members and other victims of healthcare-acquired infections unite across the globe and on World MRSA Day, October 2, 2010 in a grassroots movement to raise awareness and push for more mandated reporting of infections, MRSA screening laws, funds to raise awareness and educate the public on prevention, which will save lives.

15 Jun 2010

Cangene third-quarter revenues decline 39% to $41.1M

Cangene Corporation today reports financial results for the third quarter ended April 30, 2010.

15 Jun 2010

HHS issues interim rules for grandfathered health plans

The government suggested that under a highly complicated interim rule released today more than half of employer-sponsored health plans could lose their special status that shields them from some aspects of the new health overhaul. The administration outlined "a number of ways health plans could lose their grandfathered status. Plans that substantially eliminate benefits to diagnose or treat a particular condition would lose the status, for instance.

15 Jun 2010

Behind the Numbers report: Employers' medical costs to increase by 9% in 2011

The nation's employers can expect medical costs to increase by 9 percent in 2011, a decrease of 0.5 percent from the 2010 growth rate, according to the annual Behind the Numbers report published today by the PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Health Research Institute. For the first time, the majority of the American workforce is expected to have a health insurance deductible of $400 or more, as more employers return to "indemnity style" cost-sharing by raising out-of-pocket limits, replacing co-pays with co-insurance and adding high-deductible health plans.

15 Jun 2010

States, Feds look to expand ACOs and medical homes

Crain's New York Business, on ACOs in New York: "Authorized by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act signed into law by President Barack Obama in March, ACOs are intended to reward providers that shift their focus to preventive care and presumably reduce the need for expensive procedures.

15 Jun 2010

ConvaTec presents Vitala Continence Control Device Phase 2 data at 2010 WOCN/WCET joint conference

ConvaTec, a world-leading developer of innovative medical technologies for community and hospital care, today presented data supporting the safety and efficacy of Vitala™, a novel, non-intrusive pouchless ostomy device that provides temporary continence to people with a colostomy. The clinical trial data were presented at the 2010 Joint Conference of the Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses Society (WOCN) and World Council of Enterostomal Therapists (WCET), where the new device is being previewed to U.S. and global healthcare professionals.

15 Jun 2010

Studies show rising health costs, ways to slow them

A PricewaterhouseCoopers report suggests a leap in the portion of health costs paid directly by employees will leave the majority of the American workforce with deductibles of $400 or more for the first time next year, The Associated Press/Los Angeles Times reports. "Two years ago, only 25 percent of companies participating in the annual survey said they asked employees to pay deductibles of $400 or more.

14 Jun 2010

Aesculap receives FDA clearance for SterilContainer product line for use in STERIS V-PRO systems

Aesculap, Inc. is pleased to announce that the SterilContainer S product line has been cleared by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), (510(k) number, K093649) for use in the STERIS Corporation's V-PRO 1 and V-PRO 1 Plus Low Temperature Sterilization Systems.

14 Jun 2010

Cytori Therapeutics enters $20 million secured loan facility

Cytori Therapeutics entered into a $20 million secured loan facility from GE Capital, Healthcare Financial Services, Oxford Finance Corporation, and Silicon Valley Bank. The loan funded June 14, 2010.

14 Jun 2010

Health reform continue to dominate campaigns

After voting "no" on the health reform bill earlier this year, Rep. John Barrow, D-Ga., has gotten significantly less support from colleagues than he did in previous re-election bids, The Hill reports. "Only five lawmakers ... have given money from their personal campaign funds to Barrow in the 2010 cycle. Five other elected Dems gave money to Barrow through their leadership political action committees."

14 Jun 2010

Fluorescent cancerous tumors for early detection

Researchers at the Ecole Polytechnique F-d-rale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland have established a procedure where cancerous tumors in the bladder become fluorescent and are more easily discoverable under blue light. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the technique- already in practice in Europe - for the American market. Under the name Cysview-, the product is commercialized by Photocure and GE Healthcare as the most efficient detection technique for early stage bladder cancer.

14 Jun 2010

Desert Medical Imaging to implement XIFIN's revenue cycle management system

XIFIN Inc., the leading provider of revenue cycle management for diagnostic service providers, announced today that Desert Medical Imaging, (DMI) a multi-modality diagnostic imaging center located in Indian Wells, CA, has selected XIFIN's revenue cycle management system to optimize and help manage its expanding imaging and radiology billing and claims management needs.

14 Jun 2010

AMA's support for health law sparks infighting

A fissure has developed in the American Medical Association, the powerful physicians' lobby that backed the health reform bill earlier this year, about support for the sweeping measure, according to news reports.

14 Jun 2010

WoundVision launches bedside thermographic imaging system

WoundVision™, the healthcare industry pioneer in advanced wound detection technology, is introducing today a revolutionary predictive bedside thermographic imaging system. The WoundVision system brings knowledge bedside by acquiring, analyzing and applying essential patient data to inform healthcare providers in the development of effective treatment and care plans.

14 Jun 2010

HCL Infosystems, Wellogic partner to create India's National Health Information Exchange Environment

HCL Infosystems, India's premier information technology company and Wellogic, a renowned healthcare interoperability and point-of-care solutions provider, today announced that they are working together to create India's National Health Information Exchange Environment (INHIEE), and seeding adoption via Wellogic's world-class portal, electronic health record (EHR), and personal health record (PHR) solutions.

14 Jun 2010

Agile Therapeutics completes $45 million Series B Preferred Stock financing round

Agile Therapeutics, Inc., a late-stage pharmaceutical company specializing in women's healthcare products, today announced that it completed a $45 million Series B Preferred Stock financing. The financing round was co-led by Investor Growth Capital and Care Capital, with strong participation from ProQuest Investments. Kaiser Permanente Ventures and Novitas Capital also joined the financing round. Investor Growth Capital, Care Capital, and Kaiser Permanente Ventures are new investors to Agile.

14 Jun 2010