Primary Care News and Research

Latest Primary Care News and Research

CSMG and CSHA groups awarded highest designation for quality care

For the fifth year in a row, Cedars-Sinai Medical Group and Cedars-Sinai Health Associates have been awarded the highest possible designation for quality care by a leading national organization representing managed care physician groups. CAPG, formerly known as the California Association of Physician Groups, rated both Cedars-Sinai groups as excelling in all six of the criteria used in the 2014 Standards of Excellence survey.

10 Jun 2014

Forerun releases UrgiCare Manager documentation and care management solution

Forerun, Inc. announced today its launch of UrgiCare Manager documentation and care management solution.

9 Jun 2014

State highlights: Rural telemedicine; two Iowa planned parenthoods closed

A selection of health policy stories from South Dakota, Washington state, Iowa, Arizona and Georgia. Fifty years in farming had given Tom Soukup a few brushes with his own mortality, but after a cow pinned him against a wall, death felt closer than ever.

9 Jun 2014

Research roundup: Funding for safety-net hospitals; insurance competition

Safety-net hospitals rely on disproportionate-share hospital (DSH) payments to help cover uncompensated care costs and underpayments by Medicaid

9 Jun 2014

Longer looks: When an ER doctor becomes an ER patient; visualizing end-of-life treatments; Google Glass inside operating rooms

If you are shot or stabbed in or around Oakland, you are likely to be sent [to Highland Hospital). Oakland has the highest violent crime rate in the nation, so I have indeed seen my fair share of victims over my long career here.

6 Jun 2014

New report focuses attention on wait times at El Paso VA facility

The document, which was commissioned by Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-Texas, found wait times as long as 71 days for veterans who sought mental health treatment at the facility. This finding was very different from official statistics.

6 Jun 2014

Utz Quality Foods donates $2 million toward breast cancer survivorship program

Utz Quality Foods Inc., Executive Chairman Michael Rice and his wife Jane, a breast cancer survivor, have donated $2 million toward a breast cancer survivorship program at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center.

6 Jun 2014

Viewpoints: The case for doctors making house calls; the measles threat; the VA's value

At a time when burdensome restrictions enacted in Republican-led states are threatening women's access to abortion care, it is all the more vital that courts scrutinize phony claims that new laws actually protect women's health and safety (Dorothy J. Samuels, 6/4).

6 Jun 2014

Blood pressure has heterogeneous associations with cardiovascular diseases

The associations between blood pressure and cardiovascular disease are variable, reveals a large study that highlights the impact of angina and heart failure.

5 Jun 2014

Healthcare providers reluctant to ask heart failure patients about end-of-life plans

Healthcare providers are reluctant to discuss end-of-life care with heart failure patients and their families because they feel uncomfortable broaching the topic or lack time, according to a new study presented at the Quality of Care and Outcomes Research 2014 Scientific Sessions.

5 Jun 2014

2014 PAINWeekEnd Regional Conference to be held in Tarrytown, NY

There are 116 million people in pain. There are 4,000 pain specialists. That's 29,000 patients per pain specialist. There are simply not enough pain specialists to go around.

4 Jun 2014

Preventive oral health services by nDPCPs may reduce tooth decay related treatment

The International and American Associations for Dental Research (IADR/AADR) have published a paper titled "Preventive Services by Medical and Dental Providers and Treatment Outcomes."

4 Jun 2014

Saint Louis’ medical students care about feet of the homeless

At Saint Louis University, medical students care about the feet of the homeless. That's the focus of the new homeless care clinic, which started earlier this year when Howard Place, M.D., professor of orthopaedic surgery at SLU, approached the Health Resource Center to set up a foot care program for the homeless.

4 Jun 2014

State highlights: NYC mental health task force; Minn. seeks marijuana boss; N.C. disparities for gay community

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a new task force Monday to overhaul how New York City's corrections system treats the mentally ill -- both in jail and out -- following the grisly deaths of two inmates with psychological problems (6/2).

4 Jun 2014

Study results suggest growing support for patient-centered care management

Primary care doctors practicing in a model of coordinated, team-based care that leverages health information technology are more likely to give patients recommended preventive screening and appropriate tests than physicians working in other settings, according to research published today in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

4 Jun 2014

States focus on network adequacy, other issues

States are updating rules to better reflect how the health system has changed as a result of the Affordable Care Act and the Los Angeles Times takes a look at confusion by doctors, as well as consumers, about who's in the new networks.

3 Jun 2014

New study reveals central role of physician leadership in ACOs

In spite of early concerns that hospitals' economic strengths would lead them to dominate the formation of Accountable Care Organizations, a new study published in the June issue of Health Affairs reveals the central role of physician leadership in the first wave of ACOs.

3 Jun 2014

Sanders details plan to overhaul veterans health care

On Sunday, Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., unveiled legislation, called the Restoring Veterans' Trust Act, which is designed to smooth out the troubled Department of Veterans Affairs by -- among other changes -- making it easier for veterans to see outside providers if care isn't available within 30 days.

3 Jun 2014

EHR solutions provider, ChartLogic, partners with Kareo

ChartLogic, a leader in electronic health record solutions for specialty and primary care physician practices, today announced a partnership with billing solutions powerhouse, Kareo, that will allow the company to offer its clients best-of-breed revenue cycle management.

2 Jun 2014

First Edition: June 2, 2014

Today's headlines include reports about state health law implementation activities as well as the next steps regarding the difficulties at the VA health system.

2 Jun 2014