Healthcare News

RSS

Health bills don't go far enough in cutting costs, experts say

"Democrats in Congress are embracing the spirit of President Obama's call to slow the runaway rise of health-care costs but are shying away from some of the most aggressive techniques for achieving that," The Washington Post reports. "Instead of revolutionizing how care is delivered and paid for, experts say, the legislation being shaped takes a cautious approach to reining in costs."

4 Nov 2009

Conflicts of interest examined between doctors and medical industry, AARP and reform

Health care reform bills include provisions to examine the financial relationships between doctors and the medical industry while some are questioning the AARP's role in reform.

4 Nov 2009

PAH patients face life-threatening risks from medication errors

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients using infused drugs have suffered serious injury or in some cases died from medication errors in hospitals and other inpatient settings, according to a peer-reviewed study by Accredo Health Group and several university hospitals that surveyed doctors, nurses and pharmacists.

4 Nov 2009

Over 425 hospitals implement Capsule's medical device connectivity solution

Capsule (www.capsuletech.com), the leading provider of medical device connectivity, today announced recent additions to its rapidly expanding list of hospitals that have implemented their solution.

4 Nov 2009

AHDI and MTIA support healthcare reform package

As health information managers and professionals across the country celebrate the health information & technology industry this week, the Association for Health Care Documentation Integrity (AHDI) and the Medical Transcription Industry Association (MTIA) announced their support for a healthcare reform package that improves electronic health records (EHRs) as well as patient safety.

4 Nov 2009

New pediatric simulation center launched by Texas Children's Hospital

Texas Children's Hospital opened the doors of its brand new Simulation Center today, where healthcare teams will be trained in the management of rare, complex, and complicated patient care through a simulated clinical environment. The facility is the only center of its kind in Texas, and one of the largest among the twelve pediatric simulation centers in the United States.

4 Nov 2009

CMS releases WellCare Health Plans from the previously disclosed sanctions

WellCare Health Plans, Inc. today announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”) released the Company from the previously disclosed sanctions, except as noted below. The Company will resume marketing its Medicare Prescription Drug Plans and Medicare Advantage coordinated care plans over the coming days.

4 Nov 2009

Dental marketing campaigns from Patient News Publishing

As the calendar year comes to an end, businesses of all kinds are organizing their marketing plans for 2010 -- and dentists should be no exception, says Patient News Publishing, a leading dental marketing company.

4 Nov 2009

MCERS implements Vitech's web-based customer self-service solution

Vitech Systems Group, Inc., a leading provider of software solutions for benefits administration, announced today that the Milwaukee County Employees' Retirement System (MCERS) has gone live with Vitech's web-based customer self-service solution. This new self-service system will allow the almost 15,000 active and retired employees of Milwaukee County to receive real-time information and to perform real-time transactions related to their retirement and healthcare benefits via the internet.

4 Nov 2009

Medicare patients face problems accessing medical equipment and supplies in certain areas of Montana

In an email sent to Montana home equipment suppliers on October 30th, a Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) official admitted there are "areas within Montana, a Medicare beneficiary may experience supplier access issues in obtaining certain" durable medical equipment and supplies.

4 Nov 2009

SAVE THE PATIENT hosts "Community Health" live call-in show

Continuing its efforts to educate, inform and empower the people of Chicago, SAVE THE PATIENT, a not-for-profit patient-focused organization, is hosting its 25-minute live call-in show, "Community Health," on Chicago Access Network (CAN-TV) on Monday, November 16, at 6:00 PM, CDT, on Channel 21.

4 Nov 2009

Health IT expert to serve as moderator at World Healthcare Innovation & Technology Keynote Panel

Health IT connectivity expert John Feikema has been slated to moderate a keynote panel at the 2009 Annual World Healthcare Innovation and Technology Congress being held November 8-10, 2009, in Washington, DC.

4 Nov 2009

Program for clinical outsourcing and development professionals

The Institute for International Research is pleased to announce that as a chief component of its global branding strategy, the industry-leading Partnerships with CROs event is now known as Partnerships in Clinical Trials.

4 Nov 2009

New FDA-approved heart pump for high-risk patients

Cardiologists at the University of Illinois Medical Center are using a new heart pump that can be inserted without the need for surgery and allows them to treat high-risk patients with a procedure to unblock their heart arteries.

4 Nov 2009

Hospitalization and death of H1N1 patients can occur at all ages, says study

In contrast with some common perceptions regarding 2009 influenza A(H1N1) infections, an examination of cases in California indicates that hospitalization and death can occur at all ages, and about 30 percent of hospitalized cases have been severe enough to require treatment in an intensive care unit, according to a study in the November 4 issue of JAMA.

4 Nov 2009

Oberthur Technologies and Groupe Sephira collaborate to deliver electronic billing solution for French healthcare industry

Oberthur Technologies, the world's second largest provider of Smart Card based solutions, and Groupe Sephira, leading supplier of electronic claims for the French Healthcare Committee, jointly announce their attendance at the Salon CARTES et Identification which will take place in Paris, November 17-19, 2009.

4 Nov 2009

Phase Forward and PharmaNet Development Group sign multi-year agreement

Phase Forward, a leading provider of data management solutions for clinical trials and drug safety, today announced a multi-year agreement with PharmaNet Development Group, Inc., a global drug development services company, that enables PharmaNet to offer Phase Forward’s InForm™ electronic data capture (EDC) solution to PharmaNet customers worldwide.

4 Nov 2009

Stress-reduction workshops for women with history of breast cancer

Are you stressed? Do you have a family history of breast cancer? Health SMART is a study is being conducted by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center to see how stress-reduction workshops can help women with a family history of breast cancer manage their everyday stresses and cancer-risk concerns.

4 Nov 2009

Physicians are showing keen interest to convert paper-based records to electronic medical records: OMA

The Ontario Medical Association (OMA) said today that physicians across the province are showing keen interest in the new provincially funded program to transition physician offices from paper-based records to electronic medical records.

4 Nov 2009

NPAF releases "Must Have Provisions Under Health Reform" analysis

The National Patient Advocate Foundation (NPAF) -- a national, non-profit organization dedicated to the mission of creating avenues of improved patient access to health care through public policy reform at the state and federal levels -- today released "Must Have Provisions Under Health Reform," an independent analysis of proposed insurance market reforms and their role in improving the current health care system.

4 Nov 2009