Chelsey Ledue
The Department of Health and Human Services has granted $650 million to an initiative that is working toward “creating ways for healthful lifestyle habits to be the natural first choice for Americans.”
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, along with Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas and White House Office of Health Reform Director Nancy-Ann DeParle, have announced an initiative that will allow Medicare to join Medicaid and private insurers in state-based efforts to improve healthcare delivery.
Nearly 45,000 annual deaths are associated with a lack of health insurance, according to the American Journal of Public Health.
Seniors in Medicare Advantage spent fewer days in a hospital and had fewer hospital re-admissions, according to an analysis by America's Health Insurance Plans.
Premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance rose to $13,375 for family coverage this year.
A Robert Wood Johnson Foundation study published in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that 63 percent of physicians surveyed support a health reform proposal that includes both a public option and traditional private insurance.
The National Community Pharmacists Association has asked the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to suspend the Medicare Part B durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies accreditation requirement scheduled for Oct. 1.
The Indian Health Service has awarded a $90.5 million contract for construction of the Norton Sound Regional Hospital in Nome, Alaska.
The California HealthCare Foundation is floating a proposal that insurers do away with fee-for-service payment, which rewards providers for the quantity and complexity of their services, and replace it with a system of financial rewards that encourages the best health outcomes while using resources more efficiently.
If the growth rate in U.S. healthcare spending continues at current levels, a much greater share of personal income and economic resources will be devoted to healthcare, according to Health Affairs.