Study Highlights Need to Reduce Global Teen Exposure to Second-hand Smoke
January 13th 2015The study evaluated data collected through a global collaboration between research institutes in the United States, India, and Africa. Study results pointed to a high rate of exposure of non-smoking teenagers to second-hand smoke, both at home and outside.
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Right of States to Limit Medicaid Reimbursements Heads to Supreme Court
January 12th 2015Advocacy groups have gone to federal court to force states to make higher payments to Medicaid providers to improve access. But a spokesman for state Medicaid officials said the courts are an inappropriate place for such disputes.
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A New Geriatric Care Model Limits Hospitalization Among Nursing Facility Residents
January 12th 2015A new study reports on the first year of the implementation of OPTIMISTIC, an innovative program they developed and implemented to prevent unnecessary hospitalizations of nursing facility residents.
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Nivolumab Phase 3 Trial in NSCLC Stopped Early; Superior OS
January 12th 2015Mid-trial evaluation by an independent Data Monitoring Committee found overall survival with Opdivo (nivolumab) in the Checkmate-017 trial was significantly better than the control arm. BMS now plans to submit results to the FDA for approval of the PD-1 inhibitor in lung cancer.
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Eliminating Federal Marketplace Subsidies Will Increase Costs Up to 47%
January 10th 2015Studies from RAND and the Urban Institute estimate that eliminating subsidies for the federally facilitated Marketplaces would increase premiums between 35% and 47% and cause at least 8.2 million people to drop coverage.
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Anthem Selects Gilead as Primary Supplier of Hepatitis C Drugs
January 10th 2015Health insurer Anthem Inc has reached a deal under which Gilead Sciences Inc's hepatitis C drug Harvoni will be the primary treatment for patients infected with the most common strain of the liver-destroying virus.
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Medical Clinics Take Over Malls' Empty Spaces
January 10th 2015As retailers struggle to keep up with changing shopping trends, mall operators across the US are looking to fill spaces left empty by the likes of Sears and RadioShack. There is one promising new group of tenants: walk-in medical clinics.
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For-Profit Hospitals Poised for Stronger 2015 Than Not-For-Profits
January 10th 2015Cost cutting and new initiatives aimed at bringing in more patients will lead to another strong year in 2015 for for-profit hospitals. Meanwhile, their not-for-profit counterparts have been given negative outlooks by credit-rating agencies.
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Nanotechnology, Hailed in Biomedicine, Could Have Cardiac Effects, Study Finds
January 9th 2015While nanotechnology has led to countless advancements, a group of Israeli researchers are now raising a flag of caution about its effects on our health. They say exposure to tiny silica-based particles can play a big role in increasing heart attack and stroke risks.
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Reports Look at How Cost-Sharing Among the Insured Fuels Rise in Medical Debt
January 9th 2015The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Kaiser Family Foundation have both examined how rising cost-sharing and the complexity of medical billing put patients at a disadvantage when they are most vulnerable. Patients tell the CFPB that bill collectors are calling even when they can't get complete information about the medical bill in question.
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Controlling Cancer Metastases To Prevent Disease Progression
January 9th 2015Research at Heildelberg University is targeting the production of tumor-promoting growth factors in endothelial cells to prevent metastasis. Pre-clinical results using this strategy in a mouse model reduced lung and bone metastases in treated mice and also improved survival over the control chemotherapy-treated animals.
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The Potential Fallout if SCOTUS Invalidates ACA Subsidies for Federal Exchange
January 8th 2015If the Supreme Court invalidates Affordable Care Act subsidies for consumers on the federal exchange, states without their own Marketplaces will be unlikely to stave off "immediate destabilization" of their insurance market, according to experts.
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Leading Cancer Research Groups Call for US Regulation of E-Cigarettes
January 8th 2015ASCO and AACR called on the FDA to regulate e-cigarettes and other electronic nicotine delivery systems and for more research to occur to find out how long-term use affects health. Leaders of these groups said that e-cigarettes could cause nicotine addiction among teens, and CDC data show rising use of the products among middle- and high-schoolers.
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