Medical Benefits articles from May 2006

Medical Benefits archives from May 2006

Gaps in health insurance: an all-American problem: the commonwealth fund biennial health insurance survey.(HEALTH CARE POLICY)
May 30, 2006... "National health care spending is climbing by more than 7% per year, outpacing economic growth by a substantial margin. As health care costs have climbed, so has the number of people without health insurance in the United States, even during...

What are the public health effects of direct-to-consumer drug advertising?(HEALTH CARE POLICY)
May 30, 2006... "Only two industrialized countries, the United States and New Zealand, allow direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) of prescription medicines. Proponents of DTCA argue that it helps to inform the public about available treatments and...

Tobacco settlement: states' allocations of fiscal year 2005 and expected fiscal year 2006 payments.(HEALTH CARE POLICY)
May 30, 2006... "In 1998, four of the nation's largest tobacco companies signed a Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) to make annual payments to 46 states in perpetuity as reimbursement for past tobacco-related health care costs. The 46 states that are party...

Public employees' health benefits survive major threats, so far.(WORKPLACE HEALTH & BENEFITS)
May 30, 2006... "Public employees' health benefits have been JL spared many of the changes evident in the private sector. But a growing gap between public- and private-sector benefits and new accounting requirements for government entities' retirement costs...

What business women want: 2006 National Survey of Women Business Owners on top issues.(WORKPLACE HEALTH & BENEFITS)
May 30, 2006... "Health care is by far the most critical issue for members, with no comprehensive solution at hand. [Key findings:] * 79% [of respondents] believe an overhaul of the health care system is necessary. * 65% of WIPP businesses offer...

Unlocking benefits silos: how employers link benefits delivery.(WORLPLACE HEALTH & BENEFITS)
May 30, 2006... "Employers are moving broadly across benefits-program boundaries with new approaches to managing health, absence and disability. Employers that recognize the business value of a healthy workforce, with the resulting need to consider health in...

GAO concludes: improvement needed in FDA's postmarket decision-making and oversight process.(LEGAL PULSE)
May 30, 2006... The US Government Accountability Office has issued a report stating that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lacks a clear and effective process for making decisions about, and providing management oversight of, post-market drug safety...

Report summarizes agreements filed with the FTC under the MMA in FY 2005.(LEGAL PULSE)
May 30, 2006... The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) requires that pharmaceutical companies file certain agreements with the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice within 10 days of execution. ...

Trends in manufacturer prices of brand name prescription drugs used by older Americans--2005 year-end update.(HEALTHCARE COSTS)
May 30, 2006... "The average manufacturer price increase over the three months in the fourth quarter of 2005--1%--was slightly higher than the average price increases during the second and third quarters of 2005, but far below the average increase in the...

2006 small business survey results.(HEALTH CARE COSTS)
May 30, 2006... "In order to determine what the top challenges were of running a business in California, we interviewed small business owners who employed an average of 15.5 employees and who were in business for an average of 14.7 years. We found that...

Estimating Minnesota hospital charge savings with the adoption of a standard enforcement seat belt law.(HEALTH CARE COSTS)
May 30, 2006... "For most people injured in crashes, there are relatively few costs beyond the initial hospital stay. However, certain types of injuries that required inpatient care commonly result in post-discharge costs in the first and subsequent years....

Competition in health insurance: a comprehensive study of U.S. markets.(HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY)
May 30, 2006... "Competition is undermined in hundreds of markets across the country. While a number of large health insurers are posting record profits, premiums for consumers have increased without any increase in benefits. Instead, consumers are paying...

2005 physician retention survey.(HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY)
May 30, 2006... "Physician retention is an important issue facling medical group practices. [Our survey is] an effort to benchmark turnover trends and physician retention practices. Key survey findings include the following: Physician turnover is a top...

Age and injuries and illnesses resulting in days away from work, 2004.(Monthly Labor Review)(Brief article)
May 30, 2006... A total of 1.3 million injuries and illnesses in private industry required recuperation away from work beyond the day of the incident in 2004. This was a decline of 56,600 illnesses and injuries, or 4.3%, from 2003. Percent Distribution...

Go there!(www.health newsreview.org)(Brief article)
May 30, 2006... Web site worth visiting: www.health newsreview.org HealthNewsReview.org is a Web site dedicated to improving the accuracy of news stories about medical treatments, tests, and procedures. It reviews news stories that make a therapeutic claim...

Falling apart: declining job-based health coverage for working families in California and the United States.(REFEERENCE DESK)
May 30, 2006... This study from the UC Berkeley Labor Center analyzes health insurance trends for nonelderly adults (19-65 years of age) in the United States and California from 2000 to 2004, and estimates the impact of premium price increases on health...

2005 U.S. group disability market survey.(REFERENCE DESK)
May 30, 2006... This annual benchmark industry survey covers group long-term disability (LTD) and snd short-term disability (STD) sales and in-force premium results for 2005. Total combined LTD and STD new sales premium is now over $1.9 billion, representing...

Health care options for lower-wage workers.(WORKPLACE HEALTH & BENEFITS)
May 15, 2006... "With some state legislatures moving toward mandatory health care requirements for large employers, rising costs of coverage under most company-sponsored plans, and ongoing pressures to attract and retain talent, companies are under pressure...

2006 DMEC employer behavioral risk survey.(WORKPLACE HEALTH & BENEFITS)
May 15, 2006... "Behavioral risk is 'the review, analysis, and implementation of processes to prevent and limit losses related to a psychological component of claims, absence, and productivity in the workplace.' This process includes examination of the...

Cuts in benefits for GM retirees approved.(WORKPLACE HEALTH & BENEFITS)
May 15, 2006... "The General Motors Corporation, the world's largest private provider of health care, won a federal judge's approval to proceed with $1 billion in cuts in the benefits of its retired workers. The cuts will require more than 475,000 retirees...

Pharmaceutical industry puts $44 million into state lobbying.(drug budgets)
May 15, 2006... "Fighting a flurry of legislative and public policy initiatives aimed at reducing prices and slicing drug budgets, the pharmaceutical industry spent more than $44 million on lobbying state governments in 2003 and 2004. The industry also...

Consumer price index.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... Consumer Price Index CPI, FIRST QUARTER 2006 Inflation Rate for Medical Care Item First quarter * Past 12 months ** ALL ITEMS 4.3% 3.4% Services ...

Producer price index.(health care)(Brief article)(Statistical data)
May 15, 2006... Producer Price Index FIRST QUARTER OF 2006 AND PAST 12 MONTHS Unadjusted percentage change from from...

Many US adults believe health care quality can be fairly assessed.(HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY)
May 15, 2006... "Many US adults believe it is fair to assess healthcare quality, but they are ambivalent and confused about whether payments to doctors and hospitals should be linked to quality metrics. Half (49%) believe there are fair and reliable ways to...

Hospital-acquired infections in Pennsylvania.(HEALTH CARE COSTS)
May 15, 2006... "During the first nine months of 2005, hospitals identified 13,711 hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), compared to 11,668 for 12 months of 2004. [That is] a rate of 11.5 HAIs per 1,000 admissions. This increase most likely reflects...

Health care GPO leaders tell Senate panel that legislation will drive up hospital costs.(LEGAL PULSE)
May 15, 2006... Top leaders of the health care group purchasing industry told Chairman Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) and ranking member Herbert Kohl (D-Wis.) of the US Senate Antitrust Subcommittee that proposed legislation currently being considered would harm...

NY bans discretionary clauses in health and disability insurance policies.(LEGAL PULSE)
May 15, 2006... Commercial insurers, Article 43 corporations, and health maintenance organizations (HMOs) have been notified that the use of discretionary clauses violates state insurance law in that the provisions "encourage misrepresentation or are unjust,...

Behavioral health insurance parity for federal employees.(HEALTH CARE COSTS)
May 15, 2006... "To improve insurance coverage of mental health and substance-abuse services, the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program offered mental health and substance-abuse benefits on a par with general medical benefits beginning in January...

Medicare Advantage plans provide lower costs and substantial savings: 2007 rate increase announced.(HEALTH CARE COSTS)
May 15, 2006... "Primarily because of better health care coordination, Medicare Advantage plans across the country are lowering overall costs and providing substantial savings for beneficiaries. The benefits from the plans include the use of proven...

The effect of periodontal treatment on medical costs.(HEALTH CARE COSTS)
May 15, 2006... "Chronic conditions have been associated with periodontal disease. It is unclear if periodontal treatment can contribute to a reduction in overall risk and medical expenditures for three chronic conditions: diabetes mellitus (DM), coronary...

Lifting the lid off of pricing.(health care costs)
May 15, 2006... "Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt announced [in March] that for the first time, Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal agencies would be required to post the prices they pay for some very routine clinical procedures on a Web...

The effects of legislative reforms on California workers' compensation insurance rates.(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... The approved workers' compensation insurance rates have decreased by 46% (from average rates of $4.81 per hundred dollars of payroll to $2.59 from July 1, 2003, to January 1, 2006). Rates are now below where they were in 1996. These rates...

www.cancer.gov.(National Cancer Institute)(Brief article)
May 15, 2006... The National Cancer Institute annually releases its Cancer Trends Progress Report. The online report summarizes the nation's progress against cancer in relation to the Healthy People 2010 targets developed by the US Department of Health and...

Health benefits in retirement: set for extinction?(REFERENCE DESK)
May 15, 2006... Nearly 18 million people rely on employer-provided retiree health benefits to fill gaps in Medicare's coverage or to provide basic insurance until they reach Medicare age. Rising costs have led many employers to limit benefits, require...

A brief overview of the major flaws with health savings accounts.(REFERENCE DESK)
May 15, 2006... According to this timely brief from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, President Bush's recent proposals on tax subsidies for HSAs--and HSAs in general--suffer from several serious problems: * HSAs would weaken the existing...

Snapshot: health care costs 101.(REFERENCE DESK)
May 15, 2006... Now in its third edition, Health Care Costs 101 offers a concise glimpse of the latest national health spending trends. This year, for the first time, the annual snapshot examines how contributions from households, business, and government...