September 2007 - The Medical Quack .... by Barbara Duck

FDA tackles illegal hydrocodone products

Products for children 6 and under that have not been approved are the primary targets to include cough suppressants...FDA approved products are not affected...BD The action does not affect other hydrocodone formulations, which have FDA approval. Hydrocodone...

Published Sun, Sep 30 2007 10:50 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Pharma/FDA News

Lab-on-a-chip" breakthrough for on-site diagnostics

October 1, 2007 A Californian based company has produced the worlds first disposable photonic lab-on-a-chip solution for next-generation water and food analysis, chemical and biological agent detection, and point-of-care diagnostics. The PhotonicLab Platform...

Published Sun, Sep 30 2007 9:54 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Technology

Court rules Medicare plans can be sued for nonpayment ...

As this article states from the court decision, payers can be sued for non payment, even if the funds were administered by an HMO/IPA...Pacificare case is still being settled as well when an IPA went bankrupt and couldn't pay the claims...Pacificare was...

Published Sun, Sep 30 2007 9:50 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Insurance

Medical Society Turns the Tables and Asks Doctors to Rate Health Insurers

Survey Says........this one we have not seen...physicians ranking the insurance carriers...consumers have had the opportunity, but not the practices that work with the red tape and administrative heavy paperwork required...and we have seen just about...

Published Sat, Sep 29 2007 1:30 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Medically Related, Insurance

Single-payer healthcare the best idea : Opinion

You can't go wrong listening to a nurse...they live and breathe health care on the front line every day...BD I was one of the nurses in Sacramento last week for the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee convention and was...

Published Sat, Sep 29 2007 1:22 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Medically Related, Insurance

Blue launches wellness consulting

We have read the various posts about United, well enter the Blue plans...I think people would have a much better response to such programs if wellness were the ultimate goal rather than just saving money...no wonder it's hard to trust anyone these days...

Published Sat, Sep 29 2007 1:18 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Insurance

Hospital, insurer at odds -- as of Monday patients will need to file their own claims with Blue Cross in Lake County, IL

Blue Cross claims the hospital is not living up to it's end of the contract..now in the courts...so what else is new here...in the meantime patients suffer..BD A he said-she said between two health-care heavyweights -- one the state's largest insurer...

Published Sat, Sep 29 2007 1:10 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Medically Related, Insurance

Hospitals Due to Close Are Given Money - New York

State of New York to help hospitals with closing expenses and paying off debts and additional money for those who will be picking up the slack from the closures and reduction of services..BD The 23 hospitals and seven nursing homes in New York State that...

Published Sat, Sep 29 2007 12:56 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Medically Related

Bush says Congress is "Irresponsible" relative to the Child Health Plan

Hmmmm...do we call this "blame shifting"? Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush said a plan by Congress to expand a children's health insurance program is ``irresponsible'' and chided lawmakers for failing to pass spending laws to fund government...

Published Sat, Sep 29 2007 12:52 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Other Items of Interest

Medicare Mess Hits UnitedHealth -price increase for Part D coverage on the way

According to the article, the growth years are over...as the price goes up for Part D coverage, participants will be looking to other carriers to continue...with Medicare suggesting the same for participants...perhaps with the price increase this is another...

Published Sat, Sep 29 2007 12:49 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Medically Related, Insurance

FDA approves Realize Adjustable gastric Band for Morbid Obesity

Web page appears to be work in progress for further information...one more solution for overcoming obesity...BD CINCINNATI, OH – September 28, 2007 – Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. announced today the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved for marketing...

Published Sat, Sep 29 2007 11:08 AM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Medically Related, Technology

Medicare Hotline Needs Help

Outsourcing was perhaps not the best answer...BD WASHINGTON (AP) Customer satisfaction with a toll-free help line for Medicare beneficiaries appears to be dropping based on interviews conducted earlier this year by the inspector general for the Department...

Published Fri, Sep 28 2007 5:27 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Medically Related, Insurance

Premiums for Medicare drug plans jumping 8.7%

Many seniors and the disabled enrolled in the Medicare drug program are likely to pay more next year, with the average premium for all stand-alone drug plans rising 8.7% to $40 a month, according to data released late Thursday by the Centers for Medicare...

Published Fri, Sep 28 2007 5:24 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Insurance

Gap job applicants' data stolen

Usually we only have one of these every week...this week there are two. I guess encryption is still mystifying many...BD SAN FRANCISCO - A thief stole a laptop computer containing unencrypted personal information of 800,000 people who applied for jobs...

Published Fri, Sep 28 2007 4:35 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Technology, Other Items of Interest

Woman left in CT scanner for hours

The tech did call her and apologize...wasn't the first time a doctor said this had occurred..BD TUCSON, Ariz. - A cancer patient says she was left alone in a CT scanner for hours after a technician apparently forget about her, and she finally crawled...

Published Fri, Sep 28 2007 1:55 PM by The Medical Quack

Filed under: Medically Related, Other Items of Interest

September 2007 - The Medical Quack .... by Barbara Duck

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FDA tackles illegal hydrocodone products

Lab-on-a-chip" breakthrough for on-site diagnostics

Court rules Medicare plans can be sued for nonpayment ...

Medical Society Turns the Tables and Asks Doctors to Rate Health Insurers

Single-payer healthcare the best idea : Opinion

Blue launches wellness consulting

Hospital, insurer at odds -- as of Monday patients will need to file their own claims with Blue Cross in Lake County, IL

Hospitals Due to Close Are Given Money - New York

Bush says Congress is "Irresponsible" relative to the Child Health Plan

Medicare Mess Hits UnitedHealth -price increase for Part D coverage on the way

FDA approves Realize Adjustable gastric Band for Morbid Obesity

Medicare Hotline Needs Help

Premiums for Medicare drug plans jumping 8.7%

Gap job applicants' data stolen

Woman left in CT scanner for hours