Jean DerGurahian and Shawn Rhea April 27, 2009 In his March address during the White House Forum on Health Reform, President Barack Obama called the ever-growing cost of healthcare “one of the greatest threats” to America’s well-being and economic success. The goal of the forum, he added, was to “determine how we lower costs for everyone,... ... FULL STORY
Joe Carlson April 27, 2009 Top executives at healthcare associations saw their total compensation in 2007 rise faster than the year before, and in some cases it was much faster, according to Modern Healthcare’s eighth annual survey of compensation for association leaders. All told, the median rise in top executive... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 After another delay, the Senate is expected to vote on the confirmation of Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius for the position of HHS secretary sometime this week. Though Republican senators blocked a move to vote on the confirmation April 23 in order to gain more time to consider her nomination, her... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 Two key health reform players introduced legislation that would give the Food and Drug Administration tighter controls over foreign-made prescription drugs and medical devices. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the ranking member on the Senate Finance Committee, and Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.),... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 The American Hospital Association’s latest survey of the economy’s toll on healthcare found fewer patients admitted to hospitals or seeking elective care, and stress on hospital operating budgets. The number of patients covered by safety net insurance has increased among 46% of respondents,... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 America’s hospitals are better prepared to mitigate disasters and public health emergencies than they were eight years ago, but nevertheless are still hindered by communication gaps and potential funding woes, according to a new report conducted for HHS by the University of Pittsburgh Medical... ... FULL STORY
Jean DerGurahian and Shawn Rhea April 27, 2009 In his March address during the White House Forum on Health Reform, President Barack Obama called the ever-growing cost of healthcare “one of the greatest threats” to America’s well-being and economic success. The goal of the forum, he added, was to “determine how we lower costs for everyone,... ... FULL STORY
Joe Carlson April 27, 2009 A new study reporting that specialty hospitals in three markets have not done serious financial harm to their general hospital competitors was immediately attacked and belittled for its narrow scope and lack of hard data. ... FULL STORY
Jennifer Lubell April 27, 2009 As federal regulators work on new provisions to improve the safety of air ambulances, some healthcare experts question whether the government is doing everything it can to prevent more medical transport accidents, which have sharply increased in recent years. ... FULL STORY
Shawn Rhea April 27, 2009 It’s too soon to know what charges, if any, Siemens Medical Solutions might be facing in conjunction with a recent raid by federal investigators on the diagnostic imaging and healthcare information technology company’s headquarters last week, according to healthcare fraud attorneys. ... FULL STORY
Gregg Blesch April 27, 2009 West Penn Allegheny Health System says a “truce” was struck in 2002 between Highmark and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, a system with 12 hospitals that by far is the biggest player in the Pittsburgh market. The alleged conspirators are now the targets of an antitrust complaint, and... ... FULL STORY
Melanie Evans April 27, 2009 Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center last week asked a federal judge to reconsider her decision to throw out its racketeering claims against a health plan and a California hospitalist company. ... FULL STORY
Joe Carlson April 27, 2009 Positions on corporate advisory boards aren’t for just hospital CEOs or physicians, with nurse executives now getting in the game. ... FULL STORY
Shawn Rhea April 27, 2009 Academic medical institutions are being forced to allocate a growing amount of money and employee hours to conflict-of-interest disclosure activities, according to healthcare policy experts. ... FULL STORY
Andis Robeznieks April 27, 2009 Hospitals that treat Medicaid patients in Colorado can expect to reap a windfall of $1.2 billion as a result of a new law signed by Gov. Bill Ritter last week. ... FULL STORY
Rebecca Vesely April 27, 2009 The association representing the nation’s Blues plans, which cover more than 100 million Americans, has drawn a line in the sand in vehement opposition to a public healthcare insurance option under consideration as part of overall healthcare reform. ... FULL STORY
Andis Robeznieks April 27, 2009 When hospitals talk, state legislators listen. Or so it appears as reform or repeal bills have been introduced this year in the legislatures of more than half of the nation’s 36 states with certificate-of-need laws. But statehouse observers aren’t expecting sweeping overhauls in the state programs. ... FULL STORY
Joe Carlson April 27, 2009 Top executives at healthcare associations saw their total compensation in 2007 rise faster than the year before, and in some cases it was much faster, according to Modern Healthcare’s eighth annual survey of compensation for association leaders. All told, the median rise in top executive... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 In response to “A different nursing shortage” (April 13, p. 28), I would like to share the approach that ACMH Hospital has used in its trustee nominating process. The presence of internal and external clinical expertise on our board is greatly appreciated. For your information, the chief medical... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 A list of the nation's top business graduate schools for physician-executives based on the 2008-09 school year. Source: Modern Healthcare's 7th annual survey of business graduate schools. Published April 27, 2009. ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 Humana has named Raja Rajamannar senior vice president and chief innovation and marketing officer, effective April 27. He will be responsible for leading the Louisville, Ky.-based health insurer’s Innovation Center and marketing, corporate communications and government relations divisions. ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 Quentin Young withdrew as chairman of the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board, just four days after Gov. Pat Quinn announced the 85-year-old physician would take the job and restore integrity to the state’s certificate-of-need process. According to a news release from Quinn’s office,... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 After narrowing its international list of CEO applicants to three, the trustees of Jackson Health System, Miami, have decided to offer the top job at one of the nation’s largest public hospital systems to an insider, Eneida Roldan. The appointment is pending negotiations. The Public Health... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 Albert Greene, president and CEO of Valley Presbyterian Hospital, Van Nuys, Calif., has died at age 59 from pancreatic cancer. Diagnosed in June 2008, Greene battled the disease while continuing to lead the hospital. He died on April 16. “Al was a charismatic leader who made a remarkable and... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 Michael Reese Hospital will close after a century of providing healthcare on Chicago’s South Side. That much is certain, but defenders of Chicago’s architectural heritage are fighting to save a collection of post-World War II buildings on its campus they say are the only ones in the city showing... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 Ever since magazine editor Norman Cousins told of how he used vitamin C and repeated viewings of “Duck Soup” to battle his ailments in his 1979 book Anatomy of an Illness: A Patient’s Perspective, laughter has been seen as a viable “alternative medicine.” ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 The story of kickback schemes targeting hospitals at the mercy of the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board has been told over and over throughout the prosecutions of participants, with ongoing speculation that then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich had a hand in the crime. The disgraceful tale was given... ... FULL STORY
April 27, 2009 A story on the economic crisis and hospitals (April 20, p. 12) said that Standard & Poor’s changed ratings or outlooks for 61 not-for-profit hospitals and health systems in February. It should have said that the agency reviewed or assigned new ratings or outlooks for the 61 facilities. ... FULL STORY
