Clinical Psychiatry News articles from August 2004

Clinical Psychiatry News archives from August 2004

Ask MDD patients about chronic pain.(News)(major depressive disorder )
August 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- A representative survey has revealed that more than half of California adults with major depressive disorder also have chronic pain, Dr. Maurice M. Ohayon said at the annual meeting of the American College of Forensic...

Adults' perceptions of what occurs in mental health therapy.(Vital Signs)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
August 1, 2004... Adults' Perceptions of What Occurs In Mental Health Therapy Talking about whatever seems most important 58% Talking mainly about the present 23% Talking mainly about childhood and the past 11% Not sure ...

10-year study: ADHD persists as boys become men; Chance of retaining disorder was 56%; Other psychiatric illnesses were prevalent.(News)
August 1, 2004... PARIS -- Boys diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder have a 56% chance of retaining the disorder into manhood, according to a prospective, 10-year follow-up study of 112 boys. Among the boys with attention-deficit...

Percent of children told they have a learning disability or ADHD, 2001.(Data Watch)(Illustration)
August 1, 2004... Percent of Children Told They Have a Learning Disability or ADHD, 2001 Male Female Learning Disability 9.7% 5.5% ADHD 9.1% 3.5% Note: Weighted estimates based on a nationwide survey of...

Soldiers' mental health needs are not being met: only 23%-40% who need help get it.(News)
August 1, 2004... The first study of the mental health of U.S. troops who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan found about one in six reported experiencing a mental health problem and one in eight reported symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder. Of those whose...

Physicians push for liability caps.(News)
August 1, 2004... For many physicians, the arguments on medical liability reform boil down to caps. "We think that a cap [on noneconomic damages] is critical to any kind of liability reform," said Dr. Angela F. Gardner, an emergency physician in Dallas and...

Delegates reject denial of care to trial lawyers.(News)
August 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- Everyone deserves medical care--even trial lawyers. The American Medical Association's House of Delegates embraced this idea by swiftly rejecting a controversial resolution that sparked the ire of physicians and caused a public...

Warnings appearing on antidepressant labels.(News)
August 1, 2004... Warnings about the potential for suicidality and worsening of depression during treatment with antidepressants for major depressive disorder have begun to appear in the label of antidepressant drugs, in response to a request made by the Food...

Eye problems not tied to in utero antidepressants.(News)(research report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... ROCKVILLE, MD. -- To date, the Food and Drug Administration has not identified a recognizable pattern of congenital eye malformations in babies exposed to antidepressants during pregnancy. But the FDA will continue to monitor the Adverse...

Officials invite applications for stem cell work: leading investigators say the strings attached to federal funding remain an obstacle to basic research.(News )
August 1, 2004... BOSTON -- The head of the National Institutes of Health's stem cell task force has told scientists not to let Bush administration restrictions discourage them from applying for federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. Money is not...

Stem cell lines with genetic disorders could benefit research.(News)
August 1, 2004... BOSTON -- A private fertility clinic in Chicago has created the first embryonic stem cell lines with genes for muscular dystrophy and other inherited disorders, according to posters presented at a meeting of the International Society for Stem...

The importance of neutrality.(Fink! Still at Large)
August 1, 2004... Often patients try to engage their psychotherapists in discussions about politics or other matters that are personal. Is neutrality possible in psychotherapy in the face of hot political issues? Listen for Underlying Theme The kind of...

GAD patients often require combined therapy.(Practical Psychopharmacology)(generalized anxiety disorder )
August 1, 2004... It may lack the compulsive behaviors and dramatic attacks of kindred syndromes, but generalized anxiety disorder is by no means simple to treat. Primary care physicians see more than half of patients with anxiety disorders, the highest...

A calorie is a calorie.(Guest Editorial)(diet research)
August 1, 2004... A calorie is a calorie. It's how much you eat that is going to control how much fat you lose. Several studies in recent years have compared high-protein or low-carb diets with low-fat diets and reported some rather dramatic differences in...

Remember the caregiver.(Guest Editorial)
August 1, 2004... My sister, Maud, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when she was 18 years old. She was a freshman at college, and I was 16 years old and living with my parents in Virginia. Our parents went to pick her up at school after getting an...

Warding off false claims actions.(Guest Editorial)
August 1, 2004... Even though many physicians are concerned about protecting their practices from medical malpractice liability, action under the federal False Claims Act (FCA) is becoming much more likely and is a potentially more devastating threat to a...

Northwest passages.(Reel Life)(What the #$*! Do We Know!?)(Group)(What the 'Bleep' Do We Know!?)(Movie Review)
August 1, 2004... Olympia, Wash., has become a center for experimental filmmaking lately. Two films from the region merit attention because they address personal growth: "What the #$*! Do We Know!?" and "Group." The first--also called "What the 'Bleep' Do We...

Much ado about nothing.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2004... Just like borderline personality thinking, in which the world is split into "all this or all that," I see this same paradigm in the letter from Dr. Fred A. Baughman Jr. ("Delusional to the Max," May 2004, p. 16). We can continue to split...

Just the facts on bipolar Rx.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2004... The article "Evidence-Based Tx Largely Ignored in Bipolar Disorder" seems long on opinion and short on facts (June 2004, p. 1). The cost savings for removing Lamictal from a regimen with Depakote plus an atypical antipsychotic, estimated...

Chromosome 9q may be linked to panic disorder.(Adult Psychiatry)
August 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- Recent data provide strong evidence that chromosome 9 may be linked to panic disorder, Dr. Joel Gelernter said at an industry-supported symposium held during the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association. The...

The art of Susan Weinreich.(Visionary Art)
August 1, 2004... Susan Weinreich is a professional artist first and a mental illness survivor second. Her art helped pull her through a harrowing experience with paranoid schizophrenia and into recovery. As she gained more control over her work...

Two studies may provide insight into BPD.(Adult Psychiatry)(borderline personality disorder )
August 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- Neuroimaging data from two studies indicate enhanced activation of the amygdala and ventrolateral areas of the prefrontal cortex in borderline personality disorder patients, Dr. Sabine C. Herpertz said at the annual meeting of the...

Trauma tied to greater risk of depression, PTSD: being near the Pentagon on Sept. 11 resulted in nearly four times greater likelihood of having PTSD.(Adult Psychiatry)(posttraumatic stress disorder)
August 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- People exposed to trauma such as the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks tend to suffer more depression and posttraumatic stress disorder than the rest of the population, according to two posters presented at the annual meeting of the American...

Divalproex may be worse than placebo in PTSD patients.(Adult Psychiatry)(posttraumatic stress disorder)
August 1, 2004... PHOENIX, ARIZ. -- Published case studies and open-label trials of adjunctive mood stabilizers suggest that these agents offer benefits to patients with posttraumatic stress disorder. But the first randomized, placebo-controlled trial of...

Topiramate may be helpful adjunct in treatment-resistant OCD.(Adult Psychiatry)(obsessive-compulsive disorder)
August 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- Topiramate may be useful as an adjunct to serotonin reuptake inhibitors for treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder, Dr. Michael Van Ameringen said in a poster presentation at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric...

Two SSRIs equally effective for GAD treatment: a rare direct comparison showed, however, that escitalopram was better tolerated than paroxetine.(Adult Psychiatry)(Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors)(generalized anxiety disorder)
August 1, 2004... MIAMI -- Escitalopram is as effective as paroxetine for the long-term treatment of generalized anxiety disorder, but it is better tolerated, Dr. Robert J. Bielski reported at the annual conference of the Anxiety Disorders Association of...

Bipolar patients' caregivers can feel self-stigma.(Adult Psychiatry)(research report)
August 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- The caregivers of patients with bipolar illness suffer self-stigma by proxy, Stephanie L. Jaros reported in a poster presentation at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association. Self-stigma results when...

BMI and postpartum depression.(Adult Psychiatry)(Body Mass Index)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... SALT LAKE CITY -- Obese women were significantly more likely to report at least moderate levels of postpartum depression than were other women in a population-based study. Obesity has been associated with a range of obstetric and...

Mortality on antipsychotics.(Clinical Capsules)(resesrch report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Antipsychotics, especially conventional types, appeared to increase the risk of sudden cardiac death in the most comprehensive study to date regarding the issue. Dr. Sabine M.J.M. Straus of Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the...

Olanzapine for stuttering.(Clinical Capsules)(research report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Olanzapine may improve the severity of stuttering in adults, reported Dr. Gerald A. Maguire and his associates at the University of California, Irvine. Compared with 11 patients who received a placebo, 12 patients who received olanzapine...

Selecting antidepressants.(Clinical Capsules)(research report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Few controlled trials provide empirical evidence to back up some of the major reasons why psychiatrists prescribe specific antidepressants for depression, reported Dr. Mark Zimmerman and his colleagues at Brown University, Providence, R.I. ...

Comparing Alzheimer's drugs.(Clinical Capsules)(acetylcholinesterase inhibitors)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The acetylcholinesterase inhibitors used to treat Alzheimer's disease have similar efficacy and safety through a range of dosages, except for minor differences, reported Dr. Craig W. Ritchie of University College London and his associates. ...

Duloxetine for depression.(Clinical Capsules)(research report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Duloxetine is effective in the treatment of depression and appears to have efficacy comparable to that of paroxetine, reported Dr. David J. Goldstein of Indiana University, Indianapolis, and his colleagues. The 91 patients who received...

Ziprasidone may improve cognition in schizophrenia.(Adult Psychiatry)(research report)
August 1, 2004... Switching patients with schizophrenia from either conventional or atypical antipsychotic agents to ziprasidone was shown to improve cognitive function, reported Dr. Philip D. Harvey of Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, New York. These findings...

Vitamin E for tardive dyskinesia.(Evidence-Based Psychiatric Medicine)
August 1, 2004... The Patient You have two patients diagnosed with schizophrenia. Both have been treated with typical and atypical antipsychotics for years. You routinely administer the Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale and discover that one of your...

When thoughts are obsessive.(The Psychiatrist's Toolbox)
August 1, 2004... The patient's obsessive thought was horrifying: In it, she was being destroyed by a plague of locusts, much like the one that had attacked Egypt in biblical times. The thought had become so vivid over the years that living with it had become...

Be sure to differentiate between OCD, cultural differences.(The Psychiatrist's Toolbox)(obsessive-compulsive disorder)
August 1, 2004... MIAMI -- African Americans significantly outscore whites on several popular obsessive-compulsive disorder measures because of cultural differences in beliefs about hygiene and contamination from animals, according to a poster presentation at...

Genetic basis for smoking.(Clinical Capsules)(research on smoking habits of ninth graders)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... In a study of 615 ninth graders, those with the genetic polymorphism DRD2 A1 who had taken at least one puff of a cigarette were significantly more likely to smoke during a 2-year follow-up, compared with adolescents who lacked these genetic...

Too much TV disrupts sleep.(Clinical Capsules)(research report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Adolescents with no history of sleep disorders who watch at least 3 hours of television daily are at significantly greater risk of sleep problems in late adolescence and early adulthood, compared with adolescents who watch less TV, said Jeffrey...

Link between seizures, ADHD.(research report)(attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Children younger than 16 years who suffered unprovoked seizures were 2.5 times more likely to have a parent-reported history of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, compared with controls, said Dale C. Hesdorffer, Ph.D., of Columbia...

Children of antisocial mothers.(Clinical Capsules)(research report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Children whose mothers were antisocial high schoolers are at increased risk of being unable to learn to regulate their aggression, said Richard E. Tremblay, Ph.D., of the University of Montreal and his colleagues. In a longitudinal study,...

Once-daily ADHD treatment.(Clinical Capsules)(attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder)(atomoxetine)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder who received a single morning dose of atomoxetine demonstrated significantly better symptom relief compared with children receiving a placebo, said Dr. Douglas K. Kelsey of Lilly Research...

Early signs of autism can be seen in babies.(Child/Adolescent Psychiatry)
August 1, 2004... CAMBRIDGE, MASS. -- Signs associated with later development of autism are apparent even in babyhood, and a simple screening tool can detect toddlers at risk for the condition, Dr. Margaret Bauman said at a meeting on primary care pediatrics...

Autistic children have a greater risk of GI allergy.(Child/Adolescent Psychiatry)(gastrointestinal system)
August 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- Children with autism are nearly three times more likely to have allergic disorders of the gastrointestinal system than are developmentally normal controls, Dr. Thomas Webb reported in a poster session at the annual meeting of...

Some PET scan coverage backed for suspected AD.(Geriatric Psychiatry)(Alzheimer's disease )
August 1, 2004... Limited Medicare coverage of PET scans for patients with hard to diagnose cognitive impairment may be authorized soon, but federal health officials say that wider coverage of the technology will require more data documenting its value for...

Novel PET tracer reveals plaques, tangles of AD: global binding values clearly distinguish between Alzheimer's patients and controls.(Geriatric Psychiatry)(Positron emission tomography)(Alzheimer's disease)
August 1, 2004... PHILADELPHIA -- Positron emission tomography can reveal the extent of Alzheimer's disease in patients, thanks to an experimental tracer that binds to the neurofibrillary tangles and the amyloid plaques that characterize the disease. ...

Is elderly patient driving? Watch for red flags.(Geriatric Psychiatry)
August 1, 2004... LAS VEGAS -- Telling elderly patients they can no longer drive is one of the hardest things a physician can do. "Some doctors have told me they'd rather tell their patients they have cancer than tell them they have to stop driving," Dr....

Pain assessment difficult in cognitively impaired patients.(Geriatric Psychiatry)(American Society on Aging)(National Council on the Aging)
August 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- Physicians must put on their detective caps to assess pain in cognitively impaired elderly patients, Phillip Wizwer said at a joint conference of the American Society on Aging and the National Council on the Aging. ...

Alcohol intake may preserve cognitive function: Nurses' Health Study data show that moderate drinking had a protective effect for elderly women.(Geriatric Psychiatry)
August 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- Light to moderate alcohol consumption by elderly women is associated with improved cognitive function, compared with that of nondrinkers, according to new data from the landmark Nurses' Health Study. This relationship...

Faster cognitive decline seen in metabolic syndrome subgroup.(Geriatric Psychiatry)(research report)
August 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- The metabolic syndrome appears to accelerate cognitive decline in elderly men and women-but only in those who also have high levels of systemic inflammation, Dr. Kristine Yaffe reported at the annual meeting of the American...

SPECT may predict Alzheimer's progression.(Geriatric Psychiatry)(Single-photon emission computed tomography)
August 1, 2004... PHILADELPHIA -- Single-photon emission computed tomography may provide clues that help predict which patients with mild cognitive impairment will go on to develop Alzheimer's disease and which patients will remain relatively stable, according...

Motivational visit keeps HIV patients on track.(Addiction Psychiatry)(research report)
August 1, 2004... MIAMI -- Motivational interviewing and cognitive-behavioral skills training reduce alcohol use and increase HIV medication adherence, Elana Rosof, Ph.D., said in a poster presentation at a conference sponsored by the American Foundation for...

For women, gambling turns pathological faster.(Addiction Psychiatry)
August 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- Women who meet the DSM-IV criteria for pathological gambling often have behaviors that distinguish their gambling and psychiatric profiles from those of adult male gamblers. Females appear to undergo a more rapid course of...

NIDA is shifting focus to smoking cessation.(Addiction Psychiatry)(National Institute on Drug Abuse)
August 1, 2004... SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ. -- The National Institute on Drug Abuse is putting more emphasis on finding treatments for nicotine addiction, William Corrigall, Ph.D., said at the annual meeting of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco. ...

Methamphetamine abusers with ADHD fare worse after Tx.(Addiction Psychiatry)(attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder)
August 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- Methamphetamine abusers with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder are functionally worse after treatment than are other methamphetamine abusers who have not received help, Dr. Craig Jaffe said at the annual conference of the...

Co-occurrence of serious mental illness and substance use disorders in adults aged 18 or older, 2002.(Data Watch)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
August 1, 2004... Co-Occurrence of Serious Mental Illness and Substance Use Disorders in Adults Aged 18 or Older, 2002 Persons (in Millions) Substance Use Disorders, No Serious Mental Illness 15.75 Substance Use Disorders and Serious Mental Illness...

Address poor practices of insomniacs before bed.(Neuropsychiatric Medicine)(comparitive analysis report on insomniacs with noninsomniacs)
August 1, 2004... PHILADELPHIA -- A population-based study of insomniacs and normal controls is the first to demonstrate that people with insomnia frequently engage in more inappropriate sleep hygiene practices than do noninsomniacs, Catherine Jefferson said at...

Movement disorders may respond to psychotherapy.(Neuropsychiatric Medicine)(research report)
August 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- Outpatient psychotherapy is effective treatment for patients with psychogenic movement disorders, Dr. Vanessa K. Hinson said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology. Psychogenic movement disorders,...

Acupuncture may aid Some with fibromyalgia.(Pain Medicine)(research report)
August 1, 2004... VANCOUVER, B.C. -- Acupuncture is more effective for fibromyalgia patients who are not depressed than it is for those who are, Richard E. Harris, Ph.D., said in a poster presentation at the annual meeting of the American Pain Society. In...

Watch for headache in fibromyalgia.(Pain Medicine)(research report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... VANCOUVER, B.C. -- Three-fourths of fibromyalgia patients have chronic headache, about half with diagnosable migraine, according to an evaluation of 100 patients seen in a fibromyalgia clinic. Test scores showed that the headaches severely...

Multidisciplinary tack helps in chronic pain.(Pain Medicine)
August 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- The challenge of providing effective care for patients with chronic pain within a primary care setting may best be met by looking for help outside the primary care setting, Dr. Paul Chelminski said at the annual meeting of the...

For tension headache, 100 mg of sumatriptan far exceeds placebo.(Pain Medicine)(research report)
August 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- Of patients with self-described or physician-diagnosed tension or stress headache, 88% actually turned out to meet International Headache Society diagnostic criteria for migraine or probable migraine in a large study, Dr....

Weather change triggers migraine in half of patients.(Pain Medicine)(research report)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... VANCOUVER, B.C. -- Weather affects about half of migraine patients, making it as important a trigger as chocolate and red wine, Dr. Marcelo E. Bigal reported at the annual meeting of the American Headache Society. In his study, 77 migraine...

Anger attacks tied to structural brain changes.(Psychosomatic Medicine)(white matter hyperintensities)
August 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- Depression with anger attacks is associated with brain white matter lesions, particularly in subcortical areas, while atypical and melancholic subtypes of depression are not, according to MRI data presented in a poster at the annual...

Depression and ovarian failure.(Psychosomatic Medicine)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- Depression may not be a risk factor for premature ovarian failure, Dr. Jamie Luff said in a poster presentation at a meeting sponsored by the International Association for Women's Mental Health. Depression has been associated...

Personality may affect eating disorder treatment.(Psychosomatic Medicine)
August 1, 2004... ORLANDO, FLA. -- Outcomes in patients with eating disorders may be improved if personality traits are taken into consideration during treatment, Drew Westen, Ph.D., said at an international conference sponsored by the Academy for Eating...

Link between depression and post-MI events is not 'spurious'.(Psychosomatic Medicine)(Myocardial Infarction)(American Psychosomatic Society)
August 1, 2004... ORLANDO, FLA. -- Depression is a significant independent predictor of recurrent infarction or death following acute myocardial infarction, Kenneth E. Freedland, Ph.D., reported at the annual meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society. ...

Family history of breast cancer increases adverse effects of stress.(Psychosomatic Medicine)
August 1, 2004... ORLANDO, FLA. -- Ordinary life stressors such as those experienced in the work place may be more detrimental to women with a family history of breast cancer than to those with normal breast cancer risk, a study suggests. In a study of 217...

'Herbal' ED treatment may be the real thing.(Across Specialties)(erectile dysfunction)
August 1, 2004... SAN FRANCISCO -- Two of seven herbal products marketed for the treatment of erectile dysfunction contained undeclared pharmacologic concentrations of drugs found in Viagra and related medications, an analysis found. Since the advent of...

Rising obesity rates boosting liver disease risk: the typical patient with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease has a BMI above 30 and insulin resistance.(Across Specialties)
August 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Fatty liver disease and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis have become increasingly common with rising obesity rates, Dr. Eugene R. Schiff said at the annual meeting of the American College of Physicians. Nonalcoholic fatty liver...

Obesity beats alcohol use as risk factor for liver disease.(Across Specialties)
August 1, 2004... NEW ORLEANS -- Obesity is a far stronger risk factor for the development of liver disease in the United States than alcohol use, based on an analysis of data collected in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. In fact,...

Candidates, congress vie for vote of uninsured.(Practice Trends)
August 1, 2004... For the uninsured in America, the situation can be summed up as "same old/same old." It's the same old problem, and the same old solutions. The ranks of the uninsured continue to swell--the latest Census Bureau figures show that nearly 44...

State health-access measures focus on high-risk pools.(Practice Trends)
August 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- In an era of tight budgets, state legislatures are focusing their efforts to increase access to health insurance on high-risk insurance pools. "The single health care issue that had most states take action was protecting...

Two programs help physicians close cultural gap.(Practice Trends)
August 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- Two health plans have come up with innovative approaches to train clinicians in "cultural competency." "We don't have enough physicians who can speak particular languages," Karen Ignagni, president and CEO of America's Health...

States suing drugmakers over Medicaid pricing.(Practice Trends)
August 1, 2004... The recent spate of lawsuits by states over drug companies' use of the Medicaid drug pricing system is likely to continue, several experts say. Some of the suits filed by state attorneys general are quite blunt. "The defendants have...

GAO to SAMHSA: get organized.(Policy & Practice)(Government Accountability Office, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The U.S. Government Accountability Office (formerly the General Accounting Office) is urging the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to get more organized. "The agency has operated without a strategic plan since October...

Way station for the mentally Ill ...(Policy & Practice)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Children with mental illness are often left to languish in juvenile detention centers while they wait for mental health services in their communities--a service that costs the centers $100 million each year, according to a survey released by...

... While offenders lack treatment.(Policy & Practice)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... A bill in Congress that would fund mental health courts and other programs for mentally ill juvenile offenders is "the most evidence-based piece of federal legislation on mentally ill offenders that I have seen in 30 years," John Monahan,...

Youth suicide prevention bill.(Policy & Practice)(Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The Senate unanimously passed a bill that would allocate $60 million to fund suicide prevention programs at campus mental and behavioral health service centers and other programs for youth with mental illness. The Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act...

The benefits of drug court.(Policy & Practice)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Drug courts continue to reduce recidivism and save money, according to a recent report from the National Drug Court Institute, an organization that promotes court-based intervention programs. The report cited several surveys to support its...

Haves vs. have-nots?(Policy & Practice)(charity hospitals charging uninsured patients more than those with health insurance)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Are charity hospitals charging uninsured patients more than those with health insurance? So claims Oxford, Miss., attorney Richard Scruggs. His law firm has sued more than 20 charity care hospitals nationwide, alleging that they charge...

Not HIPAA compliant? Expect slower payments.(Practice Trends)(Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996)
August 1, 2004... WASHINGTON -- Not quite compliant with Medicare's new standards for electronic claims? Prepare to wait longer to get your claims paid. To encourage more providers to become compliant with electronic transaction rules required under HIPAA...

AMA looks beyond tax credits for uninsured.(American Medical Association)
August 1, 2004... CHICAGO -- The American Medical Association House of Delegates approved language at its 2004 annual meeting to urge congressional support for a variety of state-based initiatives that are aimed at providing health coverage to low-income...

Delegates support adoption rights.(American Medical Association )
August 1, 2004... Same-sex partners should have the right to adopt, the American Medical Association asserted at its 2004 annual meeting. The resolution approved by the AMA House of Delegates also endorsed adoption by "opposite-sex nonmarried partners" who...