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Health plan advanced by Senator Baucus is a step in the right direction: CEO of AHCA

The American Health Care Association (AHCA) and Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care (Alliance) characterized the health care finance reform plan released by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus as a step in the right direction, and said the process moving forward to a final bill should avoid steep cuts to Medicare financed nursing home care for the benefit of U.S. seniors, the overall stability of the nation's vital long term care sector, and the ongoing success of quality improvement initiatives.

18 Sep 2009

Two new smoke-free dining areas in the U.S. House of Representatives

On Thursday, the House's last two indoor smoking rooms are being cleaned and converted to smoke-free dining areas. It is no secret that secondhand smoke is dangerous - it causes 50,000 deaths per year in the U.S. Our halls of government should be playing a leadership role in ensuring clean indoor air for their staff and the visiting public and setting a positive example for other work places and public spaces nationwide.

18 Sep 2009

Health policy research roundup

Implementation Choices for the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 - This report examines two key areas of the implementation process of the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (CHIPRA) of 2009 - outreach and enrollment, and quality of care - and issues a set of recommendations. "Recommendations include: giving funding priority to states that will adopt or maintain key simplifications… ensuring quality measures focus on priority health needs for children, and building quality measurement and improvement capabilities into electronic health information systems, among others," according to a Commonwealth Fund description of the report (Simpson, Fairbrother, Touschner and Guyer, 9/10).

18 Sep 2009

Study reveals that caregivers are unable to diagnose the pain levels affecting nursing home residents

Relatives and healthcare staff find it hard to diagnose pain levels in nursing home residents accurately, especially if they are cognitively impaired with illnesses such as dementia or unable to speak, according to a study in September issue of the Journal of Clinical Nursing.

18 Sep 2009

Deterioration in brain function following breast cancer therapy has negative effects on quality of life

One of the most problematic side effects of cancer treatment, chemobrain - a range of symptoms including memory loss, inability to concentrate, difficulty thinking and other subtle cognitive changes following chemotherapy - seriously diminishes women's quality of life and daily functioning.

18 Sep 2009

President Obama's commitment to global AIDS and health is in doubt: GAA

Later today, Ambassador Eric Goosby will be sworn in as the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator. "While we welcome Ambassador Goosby to his new post, and look forward to working with him on a broad range of issues that affect the health and well-being of the world's vulnerable populations, there are a number of as-yet unanswered questions about the true commitment of the Obama Administration to global AIDS and health, including PEPFAR [President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief]," said Dr. Paul Zeitz, GAA executive director.

18 Sep 2009

CNN says Obama may be seeking backup plan even as he rallies Dems

After a long-anticipated overhaul proposal was unveiled by Sen. Max Baucus Wednesday to a chilly reception, President Obama "quietly" held a meeting with Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Bob Bennett, R-Utah, the cosponsors of an earlier, bipartisan plan, CNN reports.

18 Sep 2009

Nasdaq Stock Market issues deficiency letter to American Claims Evaluation

American Claims Evaluation, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMCE) (the “Company”) today announced that on September 15, 2009, the Company received a deficiency letter from The Nasdaq Stock Market indicating that the closing bid price of its common stock had fallen below $1.00 for 30 consecutive business days, and therefore, the Company was not in compliance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a)(2).

18 Sep 2009

HDFS develops program to build healthier relationships in American families

Connecting For Baby (CFB) is a program for low-income, unmarried couples who are new parents or soon-to-be parents. The program, developed by researchers in the Human Development and Family Studies Department (HDFS) in the MU College of Human Environmental Sciences, takes a prevention approach by targeting young couples, ages 18-27.

18 Sep 2009

Baucus Bill not finding favor among Democrats or Republicans

Sen. Max Baucus' health care reform bill is the target of criticism from all sides.

18 Sep 2009

African Americans at higher risk of developing potentially deadly DVT and PE than other ethnic populations

Speaking at the Venous Disease Coalition (VDC) Annual Meeting today, Dr. Garth Graham from the Office of Minority Health at the Department of Health and Human Services followed up on last year's Surgeon General's Call to Action by focusing attention on the African American population which is at significantly increased risk of Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) and Pulmonary Embolism (PE).

18 Sep 2009

Quebec research on contagious period of H1N1 patients to be presented

Members of a group of Quebec researchers will be presenting the preliminary results of their work on Influenza A (H1N1) tomorrow at the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, a prestigious international conference that the American Microbiology Association is currently presenting in San Francisco.

18 Sep 2009

Baylor Health Care System receives national recognition for the second consecutive year

For the second consecutive year, Baylor Health Care System has been named among the 100 best places to work in healthcare by Modern Healthcare magazine.

17 Sep 2009

Research reveals binge drinking weakens the body's ability to fight off infection

As if a bad hangover wasn't enough of a deterrent, new research has shown how binge drinking weakens the body's ability to fight off infection for at least 24 hours afterwards. The study, published today in the open access journal BMC Immunology, focused on the effect of heavy drinking on toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), a protein that has an important role in immune system activation.

17 Sep 2009

Research reveals that reactive oxygen inhibition can limit cancer cell invasion

Researchers at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) have discovered that reactive oxygen species, such as superoxide and hydrogen peroxide, play a key role in forming invadopodia, cellular protrusions implicated in cancer cell migration and tumor metastasis.

17 Sep 2009

Baucus Bill in at $774 billion, would reduce deficit by nearly $50 billion over decade

Sen. Max Baucus' bill, which he said would cost $774 billion over the next 10 years, would reduce budget deficits by about $50 billion over the same time period, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

17 Sep 2009

HCLA urges Senate to include real reform measures in health care bills passed

Following yesterday's release of the "Chairman's Mark" by Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus, the Health Coalition on Liability and Access expressed disappointment that the bill does not take action on medical liability reform, and urges the Senate to include real reform measures in any health care bill it passes.

17 Sep 2009

UCSF chooses Think First to support revenue cycle performance

Think First, a premier provider of revenue cycle services, has been chosen by the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Medical Group to support their efforts to improve revenue cycle performance.

17 Sep 2009

Medicare to create pilot program for medical home model

Medicare will create a pilot program for a "medical home" model. The Wall Street Journal reports: "The Obama administration said Medicare will help fund state pilot projects that use primary-care doctors and teams of coordinators to manage patient care and reduce costs. Under the 'medical home' model, pioneered in Vermont and several other states, physicians are paid more for coordinating care for their patients.

17 Sep 2009

At hearing, Kucinich bashes insurance companies

An afternoon hearing today seeks to better understand how private health insurance works. Capitol News Connection reports: "This afternoon Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) leads Day Two of a House oversight inquiry. The Ohio Democrat wants to know how private health insurance companies decide whom to cover and which claims to pay. And how those decisions translate to profit ratios" (Johnson, 9/17).

17 Sep 2009