U-M Medical School’s curriculum revision gets boost from $1.1M award

The University of Michigan Medical School has won a $1.1 million grant from the American Medical Association to accelerate its major curriculum revision, officials announced Friday. U-M is one of 11 schools across the country to win the grant from the AMA in a competitive application process. The five-year grant is intended to promote change in medical education Continue reading

Truven Health Analytics Professional Receives Accredited Health Care Fraud Investigator Credentialing

ANN ARBOR, Mich.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Truven Health Analytics, formerly the Healthcare business of Thomson Reuters, announced today that Kristine Knutson, senior analytic consultant, is the latest member of the Truven Health staff to have earned the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Associations (NHCAA) unique professional credential: Accredited Health Care Fraud Investigator. Knutson joins the growing rank of Truven Health employees who have earned AHFI credentials Continue reading

Leading Health Care Insurance Provider Expands Medicare Claims Processing with Kofax

IRVINE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Kofax plc (KFX.L), a leading provider of smart process applications for the business critical First Mile of customer interactions, today announced that a leading national provider of publicly funded health care insurance programs has invested more than $500,000 to expand its Kofax solution to increase efficiencies in processing a larger volume of Medicare claims and related correspondence, thereby significantly reducing labor costs and expediting claims payments. The customer is using the additional Kofax software to increase the volume of Medicare claims forms and related documents to 24 million per year, and other correspondence to 12 million documents per year. This increases medical claims processing efficiencies by significantly reducing labor costs and expediting claims payments Continue reading

Liberty University lawyer predicts Obamacare back at SCOTUS next fall

President Obama’s national health care law will be back at the U.S. Supreme Court by next fall, according to a lawyer for Liberty University, which is challenging the constitutionality of the law on different grounds from the recent major health care suit. Continue reading

A stroll down health care’s memory lane

The time is at hand this year to bring comprehensive, high quality health care within the reach of every American. I shall propose a sweeping new program that will assure comprehensive health insurance protection to millions of Americans who cannot now obtain it or afford it, with vastly improved protection against catastrophic illnesses. Continue reading

Programs pay off medical school debt

Share this story: In Colorado, there is a serious need for primary care doctors both in rural areas and in Colorado Springs. The National Health Service Corps and the Colorado Health Service Corps are trying to address the need through loan forgiveness grants to medical school students. The National Health Service Corps granted more than $12 million in student loan forgiveness during 2011 in Colorado and contracted with 240 primary care providers to erase medical school debt and get more doctors in rural areas. Continue reading

Md. picks model for essential health insurance benefits

Under national health care reform, insurance policies in Maryland will be required to cover acupuncture for pain management and chiropractic care in certain cases. The plans won’t cover acupuncture for other treatments, such as infertility or stress, and will limit home health care to 120 visits per year and physical therapy for ailments such as sports injuries to 50 days a year. The state panel charged with implementing health care reform in Maryland voted Thursday to include these services among those insurers will be required to cover once reform is fully implemented in 2014. Continue reading

Administrator of Clark & Daughtrey Interprets Health Care Reform Issues

Published: Saturday, September 22, 2012 at 11:58 p.m. Last Modified: Saturday, September 22, 2012 at 11:58 p.m. LAKELAND | Sticking with the status quo won’t solve the woes of the United States health care system, Adil Khan said Friday, but he’s not convinced the changes now being implemented will either. Continue reading

Aon forecasts eight-year high for long term care liability loss rates, claim severity

CHICAGO, July 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Long term care liability loss rates and claim severity reached an eight-year high and are expected to grow steadily in 2013 against a backdrop of health care provider budget constraints and uncertainty about health care reform, according to Aon Risk Solutions, the global risk management business of Aon plc (AON). This finding is illustrated in the 2012 Aon Long Term Care General Liability and Professional Liability Actuarial Analysis, released July 12 in partnership with the American Health Care Association. (Photo:http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120717/CG41708-INFO ) (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100719/AQ37264LOGO) Since 2005, the annual loss rate (liability costs relative to occupied long term care beds) has grown from $1,040 to a projected $1,480 in 2012 and is expected to increase again in 2013 to $1,540, according to the report based on 19,500 individual claims from long term care facilities. Continue reading

Bill Mann's Canada: Canada’s single-payer health plan turns 50

The same week that President Obama’s health-care program squeaked through the U.S. Supreme Court, Canada marked the 50th anniversary of its own national health care Continue reading

New health care law helps more than 3 million young adults get and keep health coverage

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)– A new report released today by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shows that 3.1 million young adults have gained health insurance because of the health care law. Without the health care law the Affordable Care Act these 3.1 million young adults would not have health insurance. Continue reading