Mary K. Caffrey

Researchers from the University of Washington examined drinking patterns down to the county level, and found wide disparities within state borders. This suggests that solutions to problem drinking must be found locally.

Nursing home operators are asking legislators for a "carve out" from the state's managed care plan. The AARP says this will retain a system that keeps state funds way from caring for the elderly in their homes, which most Louisiana residents prefer.

The system lets consumers pay cash at store register, while clerks scan bar codes sent to their cell phones. The system replaces these consumers sending in money orders each month.

The Kaiser Health Tracking Poll found Americans strongly support ensuring that those with chronic conditions like cancer, HIV, and mental illness can have access to affordable drugs, and this sentiment was shared across partisan lines.

Governor Rick Scott's decision to sue CMS could harm an opportunity to expand a pilot program in Medicaid managed care first championed by former Republican Governor Jeb Bush, which was found to save $118 million a year. It was praised by the conservative Heritage Foundation.

Soaring e-cigarette use will likely increase momentum for FDA's proposed regulation of the product, which critics say is being heavily marketed at teenagers.

The bill ends years of annual "patches" to forestall cuts to Medicare reimburement rates and replaces the sustainable growth rate formula with a transition to a value-based payment model.

Missouri already spends $1.2 billion on Medicaid managed care in less than half its counties. The new plan would extend managed care to all Medicaid clients except the blind, disabled, and elderly. Meanwhile, in North Carolina, the CEO of the Medical Society argued against moving Medicaid to managed care, citing problems in other states.

Recent emphasis of identifying those with prediabetes and intervening to halt its progression is aimed at reducing the financial impact of diabetes in the United States, which was estimated in 2012 at $245 billion.

The move comes after an auditor's report found several rural hospitals in poor financial shape, with low Medicaid reimbursements cited as a reason.

Self-reported data indicate the nation's emergency departments are better prepared to handle pediatric cases, but there is room for improvement.

In Montana, 13 Republicans helped give a Medicaid expansion bill a solid majority to send it back to the Senate for reconciliation. A bill signing could come by next week. In Florida, Governor Rick Scott appeared to reverse his 2013 position that he could not deny the uninsured access to care.

Incentives in employee wellness programs, especially penalties, can hurt morale and lead to legal action. But without incentives, there's no guarantee the employer will see healthcare savings and return on investment.

The study's lead author said delays in melanoma surgery were more common than expected, and the team at Yale School of Medicine is looking into explanations. Right now, there is no "gold standard" for how long it should take between a diagnosis and excision.

Texas Health Resources says that because nurse Nina Pham became ill on the job, her claim is a worker's compensation matter, not one for civil court.

Authors say until now, no one has reported on the discrepancies that arise when applying pediatric vs adult guidelines on young people transitioning to adulthood.

A 2011 switch to Medicaid managed care, which occurred during a budget crisis, has been blamed for financial challenges at rural hospitals and declining numbers of providers. Auditor Adam Edelen said the plight of Kentucky's rural hospitals is complex but must be addressed.

Senator Robert Menendez is accused of using his position to help a Florida doctor who split vials of the eye drug Lucentis and then billed Medicare for multiple treatments.

The "Know Your Tumor" initiative of the Pancreatic Cancer Action network refers newly diagnosed patients to Perthera, which provides a unique service to ensure timely tissue collection, molecular diagnostic testing, and a report with recommendations for the oncologist.

Long before patient-centered care and value-based models were the order of the day, Geisinger was focused on delivery care that was not focused on figuring out who would pay the bill.

A provision of the ACA that calls for the federal government to cover a higher share of Texas' administrative costs will help cover $102 million of a $338 million shortfall in Medicaid costs.

The overhaul would fix the Medicare reimbursement system and align payment with CMS' current efforts to reward value-based care. For the first time, the wealthiest seniors would be asked to pay higher premiums.

Links between cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiovascular events are well-established. More recently, researchers are turning their attention to the connections between fitness and certain cancers.

Diabetic retinopathy affects 33% of all patients with diabetes over 40; 29 million Americans have type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

A deadline for the loss of federal aid for hospitals that serve the uninsured has reignited talk of expansion, and a key CMS leader said this week that the agency is willing to be "flexible."

The most common reasons for repayments or refunds are changes in income or family size. The law allows consumers to report these changes to the Marketplace throughout the year, but with the law being so new, most 2014 reconciliations will happen during tax filing.

Senators passed a bill to turn the transition over to a commission, while the state's largest newspaper called the plan a giveaway for private firms.

Opinion on the Affordable Care Act still breaks sharply along partisan lines, making the prospects for even technical fixes unlikely, much less a major change that might be needed in the wake of a ruling in King v. Burwell that would take away premium subsidies in states without their own exchanges.