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Federal government seeks power to exclude those involved with health fraud from working again with Medicare

Independent federal investigators hoping to rein in Medicare fraud are asking Congress for broad new authority to boot offending corporate executives from the insurance program. The change is designed to control Medicare claims fraud by punishing culpable owners, managers and other corporate higher-ups, and not just the convicted companies.

17 Jun 2010

New biomarker study explores early detection of ovarian cancer

Despite many research advances, ovarian cancer remains lethal in a majority of cases, due to late diagnosis of the disease. In a new study, Dr. Joshua LaBaer of the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University, along with Arturo Ramirez and Paul Lampe, researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, used a novel method for identifying biomarkers-proteins in blood that can identify ovarian cancer before symptoms appear.

17 Jun 2010

BD Biosciences further expands Research Grant program to support promising stem cell research

BD Biosciences, a segment of BD, announced today a further expansion of its Research Grant program, adding $100,000 worth of reagents, cell culture tools and labware to support promising stem cell research.

From BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) 17 Jun 2010

GOP-led health law repeal vote fails

A vote pushed by House Republicans to repeal the mandate on citizens to carry health insurance failed Tuesday, despite some Democrats joining Republicans to rescind what is known as the requirement known as the individual mandate, Politico reports. "Rep. Dave Camp of Michigan, the top Republican on the Ways and Means Committee, called for the repeal under a 'motion to recommit' — a parliamentary tool often used by the minority party to change bills on the House floor.

17 Jun 2010

CDC survey shows 3 million more uninsured in 2009

The number of uninsured Americans increased slightly last year, compared with 2008, but the change was not statistically significant according to a just-released Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey. "The CDC's National Center for Health Statistics said in its report that 15.4 percent of Americans lacked health insurance in 2009, compared to 14.7 percent in 2008." The number of uninsured, 46.3 million last year, increased by less than 3 million compared to the prior year. Six million children remain uninsured (Fox, 6/16).

17 Jun 2010

BioNeutral announces distribution collaboration for sporicidal formulations with Steri-7

BioNeutral Group, Inc., a specialty chemical technology-based life science company, announced today that in collaboration with Steri-7™, a UK-based specialty chemical health care company, it will be expanding availability of its sporicidal formulations in the UK, Europe and the Middle East. Steri-7™ recently obtained approval from the UK's National Health Service (NHS) to market its formulations as a sporicidal cleaner/wipe.

17 Jun 2010

Alcohol consumption associated with reduced risk of developing several arthritic conditions: Study

Alcohol consumption is associated with a significantly reduced risk of developing several arthritic conditions including Rheumatoid Arthritis, Osteoarthritis, reactive arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and spondylarthropathy, according to results of a new study presented today at EULAR 2010, the Annual Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism in Rome, Italy.

17 Jun 2010

CASMED completes $1.9M private placement of common stock

CAS Medical Systems, Inc. today announced that the Company has consummated a non-brokered private placement of its common stock with a limited group of accredited investors. The placement, for an aggregate consideration of $1,925,000, consists of 1,375,000 shares of common stock at a price of $1.40 per share.

17 Jun 2010

Doctors still waiting for Capitol Hill action on Medicare payment cuts

The Wall Street Journal: The Senate continues to weigh a bill with wide-ranging provisions, including a postponement of the scheduled Medicare pay cut for doctors, but Democratic leaders appear to be having difficulty finding a plan that will appeal to members. "Repeated short-term fixes in recent years have left doctors frustrated and some … are refusing to take new Medicare patients.

17 Jun 2010

AGA Medical commences enrollment in AMPLATZER Cardiac Plug clinical trial

AGA Medical Holdings, Inc. today announced first patient enrollment in the feasibility phase of the prospective, multicenter, randomized AMPLATZER® Cardiac Plug clinical trial. Dr. William Nicholson, an interventional cardiologist and structural heart specialist at York Hospital in Pennsylvania, enrolled the first patient.

16 Jun 2010

Health on The Hill – June 15, 2010

Kaiser Health News staff writer Mary Agnes Carey and the Los Angeles Times' Noam Levey talk with KFF's Jackie Judd about recent events in Congress. For instance, the Senate is debating ways to reverse a 21 percent cut in Medicare physician payments that began on June 1.

16 Jun 2010

Fortis International Oncology Centre equipped with Varian's advanced radiotherapy equipment

The first in a planned series of new radiotherapy centers aimed at improving access to advanced treatments for millions of Indian cancer patients has been officially opened in Noida. Fortis International Oncology Centre, a joint initiative between International Oncology and Fortis Healthcare, is equipped with advanced radiotherapy equipment and software from Varian Medical Systems.

16 Jun 2010

Also in Global Health News: Clinton to Haiti; Global Fund suspends Zambian aid; Ugandan health workers; MDG summit; Rwandan health insurance; HIV drugs in Kenya

Reuters reports that former President Bill Clinton will return to Haiti to "jump-start" the country's post-earthquake reconstruction. Clinton will head the first meeting of Haiti's reconstruction commission, "part of a sorely needed effort to better coordinate international aid efforts, [Prime Minister Jean-Max] Bellerive said." Bellerive hopes the meeting will "establish clear-cut guidelines" for distributing more than $5 billion in aid from 140 countries following the Jan. 12 earthquake (Brown, 6/16).

16 Jun 2010

USPTO issues patent covering Probuphine for opiate addiction

Titan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued patent number 7,736,665 covering Probuphine for the treatment of opiate addiction.

16 Jun 2010

Oncodesign announces technology license agreement with Janssen Pharmaceutica

Oncodesign Biotechnology(R) announced today that it has signed a licensing agreement with Janssen Pharmaceutica NV (hereinafter Janssen) related to Janssen’s macrocyclic chemistry technology. Oncodesign will have exclusive access to this technology for six years.

16 Jun 2010

Dietary guideline on sodium puts Americans at risk

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture may increase health risks, including obesity, by ignoring sound science as they announce recommendations to reduce sodium consumption to 1,500 mg per day, says the Salt Institute.

16 Jun 2010

Management of cardiovascular risk associated with insulin resistance, diabetes, and the metabolic syndrome

Adi Mehta, MD stresses the growing severity of the metabolic syndrome in the May 2010 edition of Postgraduate Medicine. Metabolic syndrome often leads to cardiovascular disease (CVD) because of its key components: diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. With obesity maintaining its status as a huge problem worldwide, physicians must act as soon as possible when they recognize metabolic syndrome or any of its components.

16 Jun 2010

New perspectives in type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular risk, and treatment goals

An article published in the May 2010 issue of Postgraduate Medicine highlights the seriousness of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in patients with type 2 diabetes. Cardiovascular disease is the cause of death in > 65% of patients with diabetes, and when complicated by the presence of obesity, the lifetime risk of developing CVD increases to 90%. The inherent problem is that many of the antihyperglycemic medications used to combat high glycated hemoglobin are associated with weight gain and/or hypoglycemia, which negatively affect CVD.

16 Jun 2010

A review of the response to oral anti-diabetes agents in patients with type 2 diabetes

Patients with type 2 diabetes show a progressive decline in glycemic control and receive antidiabetic therapy in order to reach the target glycated hemoglobin level of < 7% set by the American Diabetes Association and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes. An article published in the May 2010 issue of Postgraduate Medicine reviews the effectiveness of oral antidiabetes (OAD) agents in maintaining glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes.

16 Jun 2010

How to obtain appropriate type 2 diabetes control in the first 180 days of treatment initiation

Type 2 diabetes is characterized by unsatisfactory levels of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) for extended periods. An article published in the May 2010 edition of Postgraduate Medicine reports a proposal to shorten the total time spent with uncontrolled hyperglycemia by minimizing the number of steps along the treatment-intensification ladder. In doing so, patients would decrease their exposure to hyperglycemia and potentially improve long-term outcomes.

16 Jun 2010

Medical News

Federal government seeks power to exclude those involved with health fraud from working again with Medicare

New biomarker study explores early detection of ovarian cancer

BD Biosciences further expands Research Grant program to support promising stem cell research

GOP-led health law repeal vote fails

CDC survey shows 3 million more uninsured in 2009

BioNeutral announces distribution collaboration for sporicidal formulations with Steri-7

Alcohol consumption associated with reduced risk of developing several arthritic conditions: Study

CASMED completes $1.9M private placement of common stock

Doctors still waiting for Capitol Hill action on Medicare payment cuts

AGA Medical commences enrollment in AMPLATZER Cardiac Plug clinical trial

Health on The Hill – June 15, 2010

Fortis International Oncology Centre equipped with Varian's advanced radiotherapy equipment

Also in Global Health News: Clinton to Haiti; Global Fund suspends Zambian aid; Ugandan health workers; MDG summit; Rwandan health insurance; HIV drugs in Kenya

USPTO issues patent covering Probuphine for opiate addiction

Oncodesign announces technology license agreement with Janssen Pharmaceutica

Dietary guideline on sodium puts Americans at risk

Management of cardiovascular risk associated with insulin resistance, diabetes, and the metabolic syndrome

New perspectives in type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular risk, and treatment goals

A review of the response to oral anti-diabetes agents in patients with type 2 diabetes

How to obtain appropriate type 2 diabetes control in the first 180 days of treatment initiation

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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