14-10-2012 06:04 Americans are going broke paying for healthcare but their money is being wasted, especially by Tim's chrome creation. But will Tim be able to teach him remorse? Find out now! Tim Kirby's channel: Why You Should Care on our website: Why You Should Care on YouTube: Subscribe to RT! Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Google+ RT (Russia Today) is a global news network broadcasting from Moscow and Washington studios. RT is the first news channel to break the 500 million YouTube views benchmark.

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Why You Should Care: US wastes $750 bln on health care (E23) - Video

This is part of a series of stories on issues in the local congressional races, leading up to the election next month. This story focuses on health care. Future stories will look at Social Security, Medicare, federal spending and defense cuts.

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey is the Democrat running for re-election, Tom Smith is the Republican who wants his job and President Barack Obama's national health care reform law highlights their divide perfectly.

Casey proudly voted for the law; Smith wants to repeal it at all costs.

"It was the right vote," Casey said.

"I think it's the most intrusive invasion of personal rights that I've seen in my lifetime," Smith said.

As the two crisscross the state campaigning, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, looms as a major issue.

Then, there's Rayburn Smith, the Libertarian Party candidate, who says he would have opposed the law, and has his own idea of what to do about ensure health care coverage for all Americans.

Signed into law by President Obama on March 23, 2010, the Affordable Care Act aimed to expand health care coverage to an estimated 32 million uninsured Americans, but it comes with plenty of other provisions, some likable, some quite controversial.

Topping the list of the controversial: a requirement that everyone have health insurance and penalties for those who don't, a mandate upheld by the Supreme Court in June.

Among the favorites: elimination of three-quarters of the gap in senior citizen prescription drug coverage by 2020, a prohibition on insurance companies denying anyone coverage for pre-existing conditions and letting children stay on their parent's health insurance plans until age 26.

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Senate candidates debate health care overhaul

For the past few months, I've been working on a big project with a team of some of the smartest people at Forbes ? our first-ever health care conference, hosted by Steve Forbes himself. It will be held here in New York City on the evening of December 4 and all day on December 5. Click here for the conference website.

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First-Ever Forbes Health Care Conference To Focus On Transparency And Transformation

ATLANTA, Oct. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Philips Respironics, a unit of Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI), today at Medtrade 2012 showcases advancements that allow patients to sleep and breathe easier, demonstrating its commitment to improving the quality of life of those who suffer from chronic sleep and respiratory conditions. Medtrade, taking place this week at the Georgia World Congress Center, is the nation's largest conference and exposition focused exclusively on the home medical equipment (HME) industry.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110726/NY41282LOGO )

At Medtrade 2012, Philips Respironics will offer homecare providers a first-hand look at solutions that treat and manage conditions that affect millions of Americans each year such as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. Designed with the patient in mind, these new solutions bring quality care into the home, enabling those with sleep and respiratory conditions to maintain their freedom and independence. Philips Respironics will offer an interactive experience with multimedia displays, hands-on demonstrations and docent tours of its new products and programs.

"The role of the homecare provider has never been more critical," says John Frank, senior vice president, general manager, Sleep and Respiratory Care, Philips Home Healthcare Solutions. "We are committed to helping homecare providers enhance patients' lives by delivering cost-effective solutions that drive better treatment, monitoring and management of their conditions. We are working together with all stakeholders to navigate through the changes in the new era of health care."

Some of the new offerings that Philips Respironics will be highlighting include:

- Fit for Life specialized resupply mask solution

Fit for Life, a comprehensive mask and service program, gives providers a way to offer their patients easy and reliable access to important replacement masks, supplies and resources they need to benefit from their OSA therapy. It also offers simple ways for homecare providers to monitor and document compliance with major commercial and public insurance providers' eligibility requirements and the recently released Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) resupply policy clarification.

"We now have a comprehensive program to help providers meet the needs of their OSA patients through a lifetime of care, while effectively coordinating payer and industry requirements," said Mr. Frank. "Fit for Life acknowledges the operational and economic forces that are shaping the industry and is another example of our commitment to the industry. The program is a natural complement to our growing portfolio of masks."

- Wisp minimal contact hybrid nasal mask (coming soon)

The Wisp minimal contact nasal mask, a hybrid nasal/pillow mask that offers the emotional appeal and benefits of a low profile mask with best in class performance, delivers in four key areas: comfort, ease of use, visual appeal and the ability to fit a wide range of patients. The modular frame comes in two styles that patients can switch between: a reversible fabric and clear silicon. This allows patients to watch television or read a book before going to bed, making it easy to live with.

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Philips Respironics improves health care delivery and quality of life for sleep and respiratory patients

http://www.conferenceboard.ca

OTTAWA, Oct. 16, 2012 /CNW/ - Compared to Canadians in other provinces, Quebecers put more emphasis on the health care system and less on daily activities as the factors having the biggest impact on a person's health, according to an EKOS Research Associates survey released by The Conference Board of Canada today.

"The differences between Quebecers and the national results are slight on most of the individual questions, but, when the survey results are taken as a whole, there is a noticeable difference in perspectives," said Louis Thriault, Director, Health Economics.

When asked to identify the factor that has the biggest impact on the health of the average Canadian, 39 per cent of Quebecers selected daily activities, more than any other factor. Nationally, 48 per cent of survey respondents said daily activities had the biggest impact on a person's health. This figure rose to 60 per cent of respondents in Alberta.

Quebecers were most likely to say that the health care system had the biggest impact on the health of Canadians (21 percent versus 17 per cent nationally). Quebecers were also the most likely respondents in the country to say that food, water and environmental factors had the biggest impact on personal health.

Quebecers considered environmental factors marginally more important than respondents elsewhere in Canada (87 per cent versus 85 per cent nationally) and they were somewhat more likely to see income as an important factor (69 per cent versus 63 per cent nationally).

When asked how important lifestyle factors are to their health: Physical activity: 76 per cent of the national population said being physically active was very important to their health, compared to 71 per cent of Quebecers; Diet and nutrition: 74 per cent of respondents nationally said it was very important to eat a well-balanced diet, compared to 52 per cent of Quebecers; Smoking: Nationally, 82 per cent of respondents said not smoking is very important to their health, a sentiment shared by 79 per cent of Quebecers; Alcohol consumption: 44 per cent for respondents nationally said it was very important not to drink too much alcohol; 37 per cent of Quebecers agreed.

EKOS Research Associates conducted this study to update and refine the understanding of Canadian views on health and the health care system. The methodology involved a nationally representative survey of 2,047 Canadians 18 years of age and older - 519 were surveyed by telephone and 1,528 completed the survey online. The sample source for this study was members of the EKOS panel, which was specifically designed for online/telephone surveys, Results include a margin of errors of plus or minus 2.2 per cent 19 times out of 20. The survey took place in May 2012, and the findings will be released throughout October and November 2012.

The study was supported by the Canadian Medical Association, Accreditation Canada and the Conference Board's Canadian Alliance for Sustainable Health Care (CASHC). Launched in 2011, CASHC is a five-year Conference Board program of research and dialogue. It will delve deeply into facets of Canada's health care challenge, including the financial, workplace, and institutional dimensions, in an effort to develop forward-looking qualitative and quantitative analysis and solutions to make the system more sustainable.

As part of the CASHC initiative, the Conference Board is hosting the Summit on Sustainable Health and Health Care in Toronto on October 30 and 31. The Summit will bring together Canada's health system leaders to discuss the latest research, learn from top Canadian experts, and explore solutions for Canada's greatest health challenges and opportunities.

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Noticeable difference between Quebecers' and other Canadians' perspectives on factors affecting health

WORCESTER, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

UMass Memorial Healthcare (UMMHC), the largest health care system in Central New England, is implementing innovative technology to reduce the frequency of preventable readmissions as per the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Readmissions Reduction Program. The new UMMHC Readmissions Reduction Initiative will cover the entire inpatient and ambulatory environments of UMMHC, including all its affiliated physicians, their outpatient offices and their patients.

The ability to accurately monitor patients clinical status and identify, in real-time, any administrative or clinical deficiencies in patients care that might increase the risk of avoidable readmission, is critical for our success in fighting the readmissions challenge, said George Brenckle, PhD, senior vice president and chief information officer at UMass Memorial Healthcare. Theres so much information about the patient, spread over multiple systems and multiple formats, that only with advanced technology that can consolidate it all into an accurate discrete snapshot of the patients clinical picture, we can provide significant assistance to our clinicians and case managers in maximizing our efforts for better patient care.

UMass Memorial teamed with two technology companies, Informatica and MedCPU, to create a complete Readmissions Reduction initiative. The solution provides full administrative and clinical support, in one application, to providers, care managers and patients in managing and reducing avoidable readmissions. The solution:

With the Readmissions Reduction legislation recently coming into effect, it is imperative that UMass Memorial Healthcare have access to the most accurate and trustworthy data to ensure the best patient care possible, said Richard Cramer, chief healthcare strategist, Informatica. By partnering with MedCPU to address the readmission challenge, weve been able to offer a comprehensive solution that identifies high-risk patients and focuses on intervention and proactive medicine.

Our collaboration with Informatica enables us to deliver a highly accurate and efficient prompting system that overcomes one of the most difficult hurdles in healthcare significant loss of information due to narrative documentation by clinicians, said Eyal Ephrat, M.D., MedCPU CEO and co-founder. UMass Memorial Health Care led us to a highly significant goal of creating a reliable solution that gains the clinicians respect for its accuracy and proficiency in promoting better patient care. We have strong confidence that our partnership shall deliver these expectations, and beyond.

About UMass Memorial Health Care

UMass Memorial Health Care is Central Massachusetts' largest not-for-profit health care delivery system, covering the complete health care continuum with UMass Memorial Medical Center, its academic medical center, member and affiliated community hospitals, freestanding primary care practices, ambulatory outpatient clinics, a rehabilitation group and mental health services. UMass Memorial is the clinical partner of the University of Massachusetts Medical School. To learn more about UMass Memorial, please visit http://www.umassmemorial.org, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

About MedCPU:

MedCPU delivers accurate real-time clinical care advice through its revolutionary Advisor Button technology. It uniquely captures the complete clinical picture from clinicians free-text notes, dictations and structured documentation entered into any EMR, and analyzes it against a growing library of best-practice content, generating real-time precise prompts for best care consideration. MedCPUs founding multi-disciplinary team has been leading the field of real-time clinical decision support for over 17 years, delivering intelligent error reduction software systems to many hospitals in the US. MedCPU applications include clinical and compliance support solutions. For more information, visit http://www.MedCPU.com

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UMass Memorial Health Care Teams Up with Informatica and MedCPU on Innovative Solution for Reducing Preventable ...

By Russ Britt, MarketWatch

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) Two health-care giants, Johnson & Johnson and UnitedHealth Group Inc., moved higher Tuesday after the companies reported third-quarter earnings that beat analyst estimates.

Shares of Johnson & Johnson /quotes/zigman/230812/quotes/nls/jnj JNJ +1.28% got the boost that many investors were looking for, climbing more than a buck at one point as the health-care conglomerate said adjusted third-quarter earnings were $1.25 a share. That was ahead of the FactSet consensus of analyst estimates, which came in at $1.19 a share.

Citigroup Chief Executive Vikram Pandit is stepping down, effective immediately, and will be succeeded by Michael Corbat.

J&J said net income for the quarter was $2.63 billion, or $1.05 per share including one-time charges, compared with $3.2 billion, or $1.15 a share, for the same period a year ago. Sales were $17.1 billion against last years $16 billion. The FactSet consensus called for sales of $17.5 billion, though analysts said the Street consensus was closer to $17 billion, meaning the company came in ahead of forecasts.

J&J also increased its own forecast for full-year results, saying that 2012 earnings should come in at $5.05 to $5.10 a share, up from its earlier prediction of $5.00 to $5.07 a share.

J&J shares should trade higher today in reaction to what we view as a strong, basically clean quarterly beat, Leerink Swann analyst Danielle Antalffy said in a note to clients.

J&J shares were up 78 cents, or 1.1%, to $69.38 in recent action.

UnitedHealth /quotes/zigman/258846/quotes/nls/unh UNH -1.11% , meanwhile, had a similar earnings report but it wasnt as surprising to investors, and so the share boost wasnt as great. UnitedHealth previewed its earnings recently. Shares were up marginally to $57.67 in recent action.

The company said net income was $1.56 billion, or $1.50 a share, compared with $1.27 billion, or $1.17 a share. Revenue for the health-insurance behemoth was $27.3 billion against last years $25.3 billion. Analysts said they had expected the company would earn $1.34 a share.

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Health-care Stocks: J&J, UnitedHealth get a lift from earnings reports

CHICAGO, Oct. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), the nation's largest customer-owned health insurer, and Loveisrespect, the ultimate source of support for young people to prevent and end dating abuse, announce an initiative to educate one million teens on teen dating abuse and prevention.

HCSC, operator of Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, and Loveisrespect's new collaboration will reduce the growing epidemic of teen dating violence with tailored, on-the-ground outreach and awareness programs that will better equip our schools, families and communities with the information and resources needed to respond to this issue. According to multiple studies, one in three adolescents in the U.S. is a victim of physical, sexual, emotional or verbal abuse from a dating partner a figure that far exceeds rates of other types of youth violence and nearly 1.5 million high school students experience physical abuse from a dating partner in a single year.

Through this alliance, communities in Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas will learn to identify the warning signs and better respond to teen dating violence through the creation of school-based initiatives such as "Loveisrespect Institutes." As many as 1,000 free toolkits, the largest single distribution of its kind, will be sent out and will include a curriculum which leverages technology to provide teachers with web-based activities and methods for creating a supportive community.

"As a result of HCSC's support, our innovative service-learning programs will help young people develop healthy definitions of positive relationships. We're creating, conducting, evaluating and distributing a comprehensive dating abuse prevention program that will lead to measurable successes," said Cristina Escobar, director of Loveisrespect.

"We are honored to have an opportunity to team with other organizations who share our commitment to creating pathways for teenagers, their families and friends to build relationships of warmth, mutual respect and love," said Conway McDanald, chief medical officer, behavioral health, HCSC. "In our initative with Loveisrespect, we have tailored the program to our states to spread awareness and provide support to prevent teen dating violence and abuse. The collective impact creates a safe space for teens to talk about things that may be difficult and helps them decide when and where they want to do it, at any time, using any mode of communication they choose."

This program is in conjunction with Healthy Kids, Healthy Families (HKHF), a three-year initiative with a goal of improving the health and wellness of at least one million children in four states, Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.

The HKHF initiative invests in and partners with nonprofit organizations that offer sustainable, measurable programs to reach children and their families in four pillar categories including supporting safe environments, nutrition education, physical activity, and disease prevention and management. Overall, the Healthy Kids, Healthy Families initiative reflects HCSC's commitment to make a meaningful difference across all of the areas we serve. Within the first year, the HKHF initiative granted more than $6 million to more than 90 community partners across the four states it serves. Currently in the second year of the initiative, funding decisions and new partnerships are being identified across our four states. Additional "Healthy Kids, Healthy Families" pillar partners include:

About Health Care Service Corporation Health Care Service Corporation is the country's largest customer-owned health insurer and fourth largest health insurer overall, with more than 13 million members in its Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. A Mutual Legal Reserve Company, HCSC is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information, please visit http://www.HCSC.com, visit our Facebook page or follow us at http://www.twitter.com/HCSC.

About Healthy Kids, Healthy Families Healthy Kids, Healthy Families is a three-year initiative designed to improve the health and wellness of at least one million children through community investments by Health Care Service Corporation and its Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. The initiative will invest in and partner with nonprofit organizations that offer sustainable, measurable programs to reach children and their families in areas of nutrition education, physical activity, disease prevention and management, and supporting safe environments. To learn more about Health Kids, Healthy Families, please visit http://www.healthykidshealthyfamiles.org.

About Loveisrespect Loveisrespect helps teens and young adults, ages 13-24 navigate the spectrum of healthy relationship behaviors. From the program, young people learn there are options, answers and support available to them every hour of every day. Forming the national partnership to end dating abuse, Break the Cycle and the National Dating Abuse Helpline designed the new loveisrespect specifically for young people, emphasizing confidentiality and trust to ensure teens and 20-somethings nationwide feel safe and supported online and off. Find out more at http://www.loveisrespect.org.

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Health Care Service Corporation And Loveisrespect Announce Initiative To Educate One Million Teens On Teen Dating ...