Managed Care Weekly Digest

Healthcare Coverage - West Virginia steel company moves to cut health benefit for retirees

Healthcare Economics - North Carolina college uses workers' salaries to base health insurance premiums

Heart Disease Prevention - Group rallies to halt silent killer

Home Healthcare - More people in Pennsylvania are opting for in-home care

Hospital Services - Maine hospitals fight over new cardiac service

Immunization - Iowa Senate committees approve bills on blood donation, vaccinations

Immunization - West Virginia House subcommittee kills immunization bill

Infectious Disease - Experts urge tools to protect women's health

Information Technology - Bellevue Hospital automates ICU using CliniComp's Essentris

Information Technology - Cybernet Medical eases remote management of healthcare patients

Information Technology - Florida's AvMed Health Plans adopts ViPS' STARSentinel antifraud software

Information Technology - Joint marketing program signed with Forest Medical

Information Technology - Kryptiq introduces new physician office web portal

Information Technology - Maine Health Alliance expands telemedicine relationship

Information Technology - MedCom USA adds BlueCross/BlueShield of Florida and Texas

Information Technology - Network Health Plan selects QNXT Healthcare Administration solution

Information Technology - New version of clinical information system released for healthcare providers

Information Technology - Resource selected by AHA to help hospitals achieve HIPAA compliance

Legal Issues - Metropolitan Health Networks reaches settlement with IRS

Legislative Issues - Iowa Senate committee approves prescription drug hotline bill

Legislative Issues - New healthcare measures signed into law in New Mexico

Marketing - Study analyzes promotional focus drug companies place on MCO personnel

Medicaid - Draft of audit shows Arkansas owes federal government $20 million

Medicaid Funding - Pennsylvania Senate committee worried about getting enough Medicaid dollars

Medical Disability - Reed Review Services provides independent physician review services

Medical Errors - Michigan IT company helps hospital with patient safety

Medicare - CMS Review: Advantage-plan enrollees will see better benefits, lower costs

Medicare - Cancer patients brace for changes

Medicare - Power wheelchair industry starts lobbying

Medicare - Spending gap among races, between genders disappears in last year of life

Medicare Fraud - Florida doctor convicted of Medicare fraud

Mental Health - Investigation into mental health launched in Connecticut

Mental Health - Mental health centers in Missouri may not have to close

Mental Health - More money for mental health services demanded in Oklahoma City

Mergers and Acquisitions - Acquisition of TheraSense clears review; firm supports FDA's bar code rule

Mergers and Acquisitions - Florida HealthSource acquires Pulmonary Rehabilitation Clinic

Mergers and Acquisitions - Healthcare management firm and a software company subsidiary join

Mergers and Acquisitions - Long Term Care Group announces acquisition of competitor's TPA contracts

Obesity - Florida insurer won't cover gastric bypass surgery

Ophthalmology - Blacks at greater risk for developing cataracts

Pediatric Obesity - National childhood, adolescent obesity initiative launched

Pediatric Oncology - Teens and young adults the new frontier in cancer, says U.S. specialist

Pediatrics - Paper calls for dads to participate more in their children's healthcare

Pelvic Pain - ACOG issues new practice bulletin on chronic pelvic pain in women

Personnel - C. Thomas Smith elected to the board of directors of IPC

Personnel - Healthaxis appoints John M. Carradine president and COO

Personnel - Integrated Healthcare Systems names Robin L. Krueger as CFO

Personnel - Packard Children's Hospital names director of pediatric emergency medicine

Personnel - The Regence Group names new chief marketing executive

Postpartum Depression - Pediatricians can play key role in helping new moms

Prescription Drug Abuse - Report reveals a growing problem in U.S.

Prescription Drug Importation - AARP appeals to pharmaceutical industry to make cheaper drugs available in U.S.

Prescription Drug Importation - Lawmakers grill Thompson over opposition to drugs from Canada

Preventive Medicine - Study seeks to curb hospital visits, cost of treating seniors

Privacy Rights - U.S. federal judge denies request for abortion records

Prostate Cancer - Cancer group promotes public awareness about radiation therapy

Public Health - Book examines health and the "income inequality" hypothesis

Quality Assurance - Baptist Memorial Health Care named among top healthcare networks

Reimbursement - Company offers service that answers need for greater claims editing transparency

Sexual and Reproductive Health - Abortion clinic, contraceptive bills killed by Virginia clinic

Sexual and Reproductive Health - Syphilis increase has health officials concerned in New Hampshire

Staffing - U.S. may have more pediatricians than it needs for the next 20 years

State Medicaid - Experts suggest changes to Louisiana's healthcare system

State Medicaid - Healthcare advocates promise fight over California budget cuts

State Medicaid - Mississippi governor's plan would move thousands from Medicaid to Medicare

State Medicaid - Waiting list for coverage grows in Pennsylvania as funding shrinks

Stress Urinary Incontinence - Study finds few differences between vaginal tape treatment, colposuspension

Suicide - Oregon teen and young adult suicide rate declines

Telemedicine - Network is first in the Dakotas to offer eICU care

Transplant Medicine - Aetna launches transplant life management program

Weight Loss Surgery - Body contouring procedures dramatically increase