David May August 10, 2009 It's recess time for our senators and representatives in Washington. One question is whether this month's hiatus will provide opportunity for lawmakers to return home to their constituents and have a spirited yet civilized debate over the future direction for healthcare—or will many... ... FULL STORY
Matthew DoBias and Shawn Rhea August 10, 2009 Federal lawmakers looking for a break from the task of producing healthcare reform legislation instead face the prospect of aggressive challenges from healthcare lobbies and segments of the American public during the August congressional recess. ... FULL STORY
Linda Wilson August 10, 2009 Two closely watched dots on the radar screen at HealthEast Care System this year are blood clots and bleeding complications. The two are related, of course. Patients at risk of developing blood clots while in the hospital are often given blood thinners, namely heparin and warfarin. But dosages of... ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 Employment in the healthcare sector continued its slow but consistent growth in July, adding about 19,600 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which was slightly below the average of 21,400 for 2009. The healthcare sector has not posted a negative growth rate during the 20-month... ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 In fiscal 2008 Medicaid fraud control units extracted more than $1.3 billion in restitution, fines, penalties and settlements from people and organizations alleged to have ripped off or otherwise violated their obligations to the state and federal health programs, according to an annual report... ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 Health Management Associates, Naples, Fla., and Jon Vollmer have parted ways after 17 years, the company and Vollmer said. Since 2001, Vollmer, 51, had been executive vice president of hospital operations and a division president for the company. In a brief interview, Vollmer said, “I was a... ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 Carilion Clinic, Roanoke, Va., offered in a proposed consent agreement to “promptly divest” two outpatient centers in order to resolve an antitrust complaint brought by the Federal Trade Commission, according to a motion filed with the commission. Lawyers for the FTC and the... ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 In a unanimous vote, the Senate confirmed the appointment of Francis Collins as the next director of the National Institutes of Health. A physician-geneticist known for his discoveries and his leadership on the Human Genome Project, Collins served as director of the National Human Genome Research... ... FULL STORY
Matthew DoBias and Shawn Rhea August 10, 2009 Federal lawmakers looking for a break from the task of producing healthcare reform legislation instead face the prospect of aggressive challenges from healthcare lobbies and segments of the American public during the August congressional recess. ... FULL STORY
Melanie Evans August 10, 2009 Fraud claims against a California healthcare finance company spurred a federal judge last week to temporarily freeze Medical Capital Holdings' assets and put the company under a receiver. ... FULL STORY
Joseph Conn August 10, 2009 HHS is consolidating authority for both security- and privacy-rule enforcement under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 with the Office for Civil Rights at HHS. Some industry observers say the action could—but not necessarily will—lead to stricter... ... FULL STORY
Jean DerGurahian August 10, 2009 Mandated quality measures don’t always improve quality—if a recent move by regulatory officials is any indication. ... FULL STORY
Melanie Evans August 10, 2009 Huron Consulting Group, one of the largest healthcare consultants, faced speculation last week that it would lose clients and talented consultants after announcing the exit of three top executives and plans to restate its finances from 2006 through the first quarter of this year. ... FULL STORY
Gregg Blesch August 10, 2009 HHS’ inspector general’s office is concerned that too often unqualified people are providing medical services that physicians bill Medicare for but don’t personally perform. But officials don’t have the data that would allow them to figure out exactly how often that happens,... ... FULL STORY
Joe Carlson August 10, 2009 Hospital executives exhaled a collective sigh of relief when the CMS announced it would not impose funding cuts on hospitals of more than $2 billion in Medicare payments and $380 million in capital indirect medical education for fiscal 2010, which begins for discharges on or after Oct. 1. ... FULL STORY
Jessica Zigmond August 10, 2009 Nursing-care providers last week lamented recent Medicare reimbursement changes, which they said could cut about $18 billion in payments to skilled-nursing facilities in the next 10 years. ... FULL STORY
Jean DerGurahian August 10, 2009 With the announcement that it was bringing on information technology guru Todd Park as chief technology officer, HHS has started to look like many IT departments in providers across the country, according to IT executives. ... FULL STORY
Joseph Conn August 10, 2009 It is an odd way to start a magazine story, by recommending that readers rush out and read books. And yet, that is precisely what Newsweek suggested a couple of weeks ago in its article, “Fifty books for our time.” It is a recommendation repeated here for book No. 4 on that list,... ... FULL STORY
Linda Wilson August 10, 2009 Two closely watched dots on the radar screen at HealthEast Care System this year are blood clots and bleeding complications. The two are related, of course. Patients at risk of developing blood clots while in the hospital are often given blood thinners, namely heparin and warfarin. But dosages of... ... FULL STORY
David May August 10, 2009 It's recess time for our senators and representatives in Washington. One question is whether this month's hiatus will provide opportunity for lawmakers to return home to their constituents and have a spirited yet civilized debate over the future direction for healthcare—or will many... ... FULL STORY
Wendy Frieling August 10, 2009 As we all anxiously await the final definition of “meaningful use” of electronic health records, I am surprised to see so little discussion about ownership of patient data, responsibility for maintaining that data and the meaningful exchange of health information. ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 The American Medical Association has made clear that the House bill is an important first step toward improving the health system, and that we will stay engaged to improve the final bill for patients and physicians (“… as AMA defends bill backing,” July 27, p. 10). ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 A list of the nation's largest hospitals ranked by total number of staffed beds, 2007. Source: Health Forum, American Hospital Association Guide, 2009 Edition. ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education held a congress on duty hours this summer at which time it listened to hours of testimony from physician groups and medical specialty societies. ACGME intends to release a report that reviews new duty limits imposed in 2003 and may recommend... ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis, named Richard Liekweg group president of BJC HealthCare as well as president of Barnes-Jewish and Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital. Liekweg, 48, whose position is effective Sept. 14, takes over for Andrew Ziskind, a physician. Ziskind will become... ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 Larry Schreiber was named president of Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Wisconsin after a tenure as vice president and general manager at UniCare, Chicago. The change is effective immediately. Schreiber, 46, replaces Steve Martenet, who was appointed head of specialty insurance... ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 If corporate success can be measured in part by the number of legal entanglements a company is fielding, then medical-device maker Medtronic may be headed for a bang-up year. ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 Lately, Kaiser Permanente has been getting high praise from some members of Congress and even President Barack Obama as a model for healthcare delivery. ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 You'll need more than hand sanitizer to ward against the looming fall flu season, says an article in the September issue of Consumer Reports. ... FULL STORY
August 10, 2009 “Prepare to be stunned” warns a widely circulated e-mail describing how p. 425 of “Obama's health care bill” includes a scheme to “push SUICIDE to cut medicare (sic) spending!!! ... FULL STORY
