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SXC first quarter revenue increases 56% to $1.7 billion

SXC Health Solutions Corp., a leading provider of technology and pharmacy benefit management services, announces its financial results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2012.

4 May 2012

Arena's first quarter net loss decreases to $29.4 million

Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today reported financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012, and reviewed recent developments.

2 May 2012

Kindred Healthcare first quarter consolidated revenues increase 33% to $1.6 billion

Kindred Healthcare, Inc. today announced its operating results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012. The Company's consolidated financial statements include the operating results of RehabCare Group, Inc. since the closing of the acquisition on June 1, 2011.

2 May 2012

House Republicans divided over how to 'replace' health law

Ask each of the 242 House Republicans what kind of health policy they'd like to enact instead of President Barack Obama's health care reform law and you might get 242 different answers. Even after three years of railing against Obama's plan, Republicans have coalesced around only a few basic tenets of health policy -; let alone a full replacement plan.

2 May 2012

Humana first quarter consolidated revenues increase 11% to $10.22B

Humana Inc. today reported diluted earnings per common share (EPS) for the quarter ended March 31, 2012 (1Q12) of $1.49, compared to $1.86 per share for the quarter ended March 31, 2011 (1Q11). The company had previously anticipated earnings per share in the range of $1.35 to $1.45 for 1Q12.

30 Apr 2012

Research roundup: Practice guidelines may not stop defensive medicine; English language ability tied to hospital readmission rates

The Value of Clinical Practice Guidelines As Malpractice "Safe Harbors" -- Overspending on health care has frequently been attributed to doctors practicing defensive medicine -- ordering extra tests, for example -- so that they avoid malpractice lawsuits. The authors of this brief write that while some have said clinical guidelines "should give caregivers a liability 'safe harbor,' shielding them from any malpractice claim for failing to provide services not included in the guideline."

27 Apr 2012

McKesson to settle Medicaid billing lawsuit

The Justice Department says the prescription drug distributor overcharged Medicaid.

27 Apr 2012

First Edition: April 27, 2012

Today's headlines include details of a new study finding that, as a result of the health law, consumers and businesses will receive an estimated $1.3 billion in rebates from insurance companies this year.

27 Apr 2012

Checklist for seniors to reduce risk of falls

For those 65 and older, falling can be fatal; in fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that falls are the leading cause of injury-related deaths among this age group, and some 40 percent of seniors fall at least once each year. Additionally, one in four who sustains a hip fracture from a fall will die within a year, and another 50 percent will never return to their pre-fall level of mobility.

27 Apr 2012

State roundup: 'Green Houses' in Calif.; 'Accredtive Secret Sauce' gets scrutiny in Minn.

A new idea elbowed its way into the familiar pile of health care legislation in the Senate Committee on Health yesterday. A nursing home model -- the "Green House Project" -- bucks the cold, institutional feel of many long-term care facilities. ... The idea is to have a small facility laid out like a regular home, with living areas such as a dining room and kitchen, as well as a private room and bathroom for each patient.

27 Apr 2012

FDA ODAC to review Onyx’s NDA for carfilzomib

Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) will review the company's new drug application (NDA) for carfilzomib for the treatment of patients with relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma who have received at least two prior therapies. ODAC will review carfilzomib at its meeting on June 20, 2012.

27 Apr 2012

Iowa House approves mental health reforms

The bill would replace the county-by-county system in Iowa. Also in state legislative news, N.H. gubernatorial candidate opposes health care compact proposal and California lawmaker seeks cap on consumers' prescription drug expenses.

26 Apr 2012

First Edition: April 25, 2012

Today's headlines include reports that Medicare is proposing a change in how it decides hospital reimbursements and the latest on the GOP Capitol Hill budget strategy.

25 Apr 2012

R-Tech Ueno completes RK-023 phase I study on hypotrichosis of the eyelashes

R-Tech Ueno is pleased to announce the completion of a phase I clinical study of RK-023, a new compound that is being developed for the treatment of hypotrichosis of the eyelashes.

24 Apr 2012

ACP offers recommendations to ensure Medicare beneficiaries

A dozen recommendations to ensure that Medicare beneficiaries have access to high-quality, coordinated care were provided today by the American College of Physicians (ACP). The new policy paper, Reforming Medicare in the Age of Deficit Reduction, was released at Internal Medicine 2012, ACP's annual scientific meeting.

21 Apr 2012

State highlights: Ill. Gov. proposes $1.35B cuts to Medicaid

News outlets report on health care policy issues in California, D.C., Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota and South Carolina.

21 Apr 2012

First Edition: June 20, 2012

Today's headlines include reports that the Veterans' Administration will increase its mental health staffing.

20 Apr 2012

UnitedHealth Group's consolidated first quarter revenues increase 7% to $27.3B

UnitedHealth Group today reported first quarter results, highlighted by strong enrollment and revenue growth in each of UnitedHealthcare's benefits businesses and well-diversified revenue growth at Optum. First quarter 2012 net earnings were $1.31 per share, with continued performance on key financial and operational measures.

19 Apr 2012

USP convenes pharmaceutical supply chain integrity workshop

The increasing globalization of the drug supply presents a host of public health challenges: theft and diversion of medicines, growth of illegal Internet pharmacies and insertion of adulterated medicines or ingredients into the supply chain.

18 Apr 2012

Accidental deaths among kids down but more needs to be done: CDC report

According to U.S. mortality data the overall death rate from unintentional injury among children and teens fell 29% from 2000 to 2009. What was concerning however, was that rates of death by poisoning in young adults - mostly from prescription drug overdose - and suffocation in infants rose. And unintentional injury still accounted for 37% of all deaths in the 19-and-under age group in 2009 and was the fifth leading killer of patients younger than 1, the report said. The CDC report was published in the April 16 issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

17 Apr 2012