Rebecca Vesely February 09, 2009 A federal appeals court has dealt a blow to consumer groups that are pushing for more transparency for healthcare claims data, potentially drawing a line in the sand as to how much transparency is too much. ... FULL STORY
David Burda February 09, 2009 Don’t weep for Tom Daschle. By the time he would have been sworn in as the new HHS secretary, the healthcare system in the U.S. would have been rounding the final lap toward a government takeover, and he wouldn’t have much left to do anyway. ... FULL STORY
Melanie Evans February 09, 2009 The nation’s crippled financial system and lousy economy have led many U.S. hospitals to reverse course on strategic investments in technology, construction and other big-ticket items. ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 The Recovery Audit Contractor Program is back in business, with a few key changes. The CMS announced that the parties involved in the protest of the award of the RAC contracts had reached a settlement, putting an end to the stop-work order issued last fall. The CMS “will now continue with the... ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 The Senate considered a $780 billion stimulus plan that contained provisions to increase Medicaid spending, extend unemployment insurance benefits, and boost health information technology among other healthcare measures, but had not reached a conclusion by deadline. Like the House version passed... ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 St. Thomas Health Services, Nashville, said that Jim Houser resigned as its president and chief executive officer, effective March 15. Houser, 58, joined St. Thomas on an interim basis in April 2005 and was named president and CEO in June 2005. Physician criticism of potential cost-cutting measures... ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 Two Providence, R.I., hospitals filed an application to merge under a newly formed holding company, CharterCare Health Partners. If approved by the state’s attorney general, 271-bed St. Joseph Health Services of Rhode Island and 169-bed Roger Williams Medical Center will maintain their individual... ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 Healthcare hiring did not flag last month, even as the U.S. economy continued to hemorrhage jobs. Hospitals and physician-office employment in January remained steady as job losses in construction, manufacturing and other major industries pushed unemployment to 7.6% from 7.2% in December 2008. U.S. ... FULL STORY
Rebecca Vesely February 09, 2009 A federal appeals court has dealt a blow to consumer groups that are pushing for more transparency for healthcare claims data, potentially drawing a line in the sand as to how much transparency is too much. ... FULL STORY
Jean DerGurahian February 09, 2009 Accelerating the adoption of research into best practices is helping hospitals manage requirements by states to report on hospital-acquired infections. ... FULL STORY
Elizabeth Gardner February 09, 2009 Mark Neaman, a longtime chief executive officer at a health system in north suburban Chicago, describes himself as “a throwback to a previous generation” because he has spent his entire career at one institution. But for someone who has been in the same place since 1974, his reach into the... ... FULL STORY
Elizabeth Gardner February 09, 2009 When Kevin Unger took over as president and chief executive officer of 233-bed Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colo., in 2005, he was in his mid-30s and had a mere two years of experience in hospital operations. He got the job because the hospital’s physicians lobbied for him. ... FULL STORY
Elizabeth Gardner February 09, 2009 Don Wagner never dreamed when he was drafted into the Air Force as a physical therapist during the Korean War that he would end up as a brigadier general. But during that first tour, an Air Force hospital administrator spotted him, thought he had management potential, and lured him into... ... FULL STORY
Melanie Evans February 09, 2009 The nation’s crippled financial system and lousy economy have led many U.S. hospitals to reverse course on strategic investments in technology, construction and other big-ticket items. ... FULL STORY
David Burda February 09, 2009 Don’t weep for Tom Daschle. By the time he would have been sworn in as the new HHS secretary, the healthcare system in the U.S. would have been rounding the final lap toward a government takeover, and he wouldn’t have much left to do anyway. ... FULL STORY
Howard Rohleder February 09, 2009 Moral hazard has been widely discussed in the context of the 2008 financial crisis. Simply stated, moral hazard is the concept that, if the risk of failure in a transaction is greatly reduced, some part of the population will choose to undertake imprudent actions they would not otherwise consider. ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 Tom Daschle’s “tax mistakes are regrettable, but his tax mistakes do not change his qualifications to lead on healthcare reform,” Sen. Max Baucus said. “They do not change my support” ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 A list of the nation's largest healthcare law firms, ranked by total membership in the American Health Lawyers Association. Source: American Health Lawyers Association. Published Feb. 9, 2009.The following data points are included in this list: ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 In the long list of “things to fix” in healthcare, it doesn’t seem likely that changing the name of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to the “Centers for Disease Prevention and Control” will make the cut. ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 The economic crisis continues to ripple across the globe in unexpected ways. One small picturesque town in western Ireland is being hit hard by a decision made more than 3,000 miles away by U.S. insurance giant Cigna Corp. ... FULL STORY
February 09, 2009 “There are emergency rooms throughout the state where people, we believe, have died. Some have died in the lobby before they were seen. Some have died shortly after being placed in a bed after having waited in the lobby for hours. … Patients are suffering every day.” ... FULL STORY
