Category: Law

Pick for Medicare post faces questions on contracts

Trump pick to run Medicare is under fire over claims she advised states on health policy while being employed by company which makes medical devices President Donald Trump’s pick to oversee Medicare and Medicaid faces questions over claims she ‘played both sides’ in health policy negotiations in an arrangement branded ‘definitely improper’ by a former White House lawyer. Seema Verma made millions of dollars through consulting arrangements with at least nine states, and advised Vice President Mike Pence when he was Indiana’s governor.

Pick for Medicare post faces questions

President Donald Trump’s pick to oversee Medicare and Medicaid advised Vice President Mike Pence on health care issues while he was Indiana’s governor, a post she maintained amid a web of business arrangements – including one that ethics experts say conflicted with her public duties. A review by The Associated Press found Seema Verma and her small Indianapolis-based firm made millions through consulting agreements with at least nine states while also working under contract for Hewlett Packard.

Paul Ryan faces major test in selling his plan to replace Obamacare

House Speaker Paul Ryan , R-Wis., spent Tuesday on a door-to-door tour of the Capitol in hopes of salvaging his plan to repeal and largely replace the Affordable Care Act by spring. The day-long blitz comes as Republicans in Congress have made virtually no visible progress in recent weeks on overhauling the health-care system, according to interviews with several senior GOP aides.

Few smokers seek CT scans to check for lung cancer

Few smokers seek CT scans to check for lung cancer Screening rates have barely budged in recent years Check out this story on thecalifornian.com: http://bit.ly/2lgSjYA In 2013, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommended annual low-dose CT scans for many current or former smokers between the ages of 55 and 80. Under the health law, health plans have to cover preventive services recommended by the task force without charging consumers for them. Lung cancer screening rates have barely budged in recent years, according to a new study, even though under the health law many people don’t have to pay anything out-of-pocket for them because the test is recommended by a panel of prevention experts.

Excellent advice for the path forward

You may have missed the insert in the newspaper Feb. 5 and thrown it out with the ads. I almost tossed it myself, but fortunately took a second look at “Crossroads for America: Challenges and opportunities in renewing our republic.”

Medovex Corp. Completes Financing

On February 9, 2017, Medovex Corporation entered into a unit purchase agreement with selected accredited investors. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, the Company sold an aggregate of 2,905,770 shares and 1,452,885 warrants for gross proceeds of $3,022,000.

Aetna, Humana call off $34 billion deal

Aetna and Humana called off a $34 billion proposal to combine the two major health insurers after a federal judge, citing antitrust concerns, shot down the deal. The announcement Tuesday comes several days after another federal judge rejected a tie-up between two other massive insurers.

Health insurers say they need insurance protection from big claims

In Minnesota’s individual market, health insurers can lose big money if they wind up with a disproportionate share of sick patients who rack up massive bills. Of the roughly 336,000 Minnesotans who were covered by individual plans at some point during 2015, slightly less than 2a …percent – or 5,300 people – generated roughly 40 percent of all medical bills, according to the state’s trade group for insurers.

Trump transition team limits EPA at environmental forum

The Environmental Protection Agency halved the number of staffers attending an annual Anchorage forum on issues like climate change in response to a request from President Donald Trump’s transition team. Trump transition official Doug Ericksen told Alaska’s Energy Desk in an email that the EPA was directed to limit staff at the conference to save money on travel.

EDITORIAL: FDA rules will shutter many vape shops, including in Las Vegas

For decades, the federal government, health care advocates and doctors have warned of the hazards of smoking cigarettes, and rightly so. Yet just as more and more smokers are finding a way to kick carcinogen-laden cancer sticks, D.C. bureaucrats are coming to the rescue of the tobacco industry by over-regulating e-cigarettes.As Caroline Kitchens reported last week for RealClear Health, unless something changes soon, the doomsday clock will strike midnight on the e-cigarette industry.

New drug offers hope for patients with bladder cancer

A bladder cancer drug discovered and developed at The University of Kansas Cancer Center is set to become its first cancer drug to go from bench to bedside. KU Cancer Center’s nationally recognized proof-of-concept center and product development arm, the Institute for Advancing Medical Innovation , translates laboratory and bedside discoveries into new drugs, diagnostic tests and medical devices with the goal of advancing promising medical innovations to patients.

George Whitaker III: Finding new hope against throat cancer

Since 2010, when his throat cancer was first diagnosed, George Whitaker III has had more than 60 radiation treatments, enough to change his morning routine for good. Since 2010, when his throat cancer was first diagnosed, George Whitaker III has had more than 60 radiation treatments, enough to change his morning routine for good.

NHC Announces Common Dividend

)– National HealthCare Corporation (NYSE MKT: NHC), the nation’s oldest publicly traded long-term health care company, announced today that it will pay a quarterly dividend of 45 cents per common share to shareholders of record on March 31, 2017 and …

Bad behavior all around

… repeal or block masses of regulations, and then defeated Democratic amendments to keep those that protect children’s health from air pollution and lead in water, safety of miners, nuclear power plant safety, insurance coverage for persons with …

Ovid Therapeutics and NeuroPointDX Announce Collaboration to Identify …

Ovid Therapeutics, a privately held biopharmaceutical company committed to developing medicines that transform the lives of people with rare neurological disorders, and NeuroPointDX, a privately held biotech company based in Madison, Wisconsin and Cambridge, Massachusetts, today announced that they have entered into a collaboration to identify novel biomarkers of Angelman syndrome by analyzing metabolomic profile data as part of Ovid’s ongoing randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2 clinical trial .

Sanders-Cruz debate is a ratings hit, but their views aren’t winning the Hill

Sen. Bernie Sanders , left, and Sen. Ted Cruz CNN scored a surprise hit last night with a broadcast from a parallel universe – a debate about “the future of Obamacare,” starring presidential primary season runners-up Sens. Bernie Sanders and Ted Cruz . According to AdWeek, the nearly two-hour special attracted 2.46 million viewers, and 932,000 from the coveted demographic of viewers ages 25 to 54. Those were the kind of numbers enjoyed by Fox News, which typically laps CNN for viewers – and they came not for a tabloid special but for a debate about health insurance.

Supernus Announces Issuance of Eighth U.S. Patent Protecting Trokendi XR

Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing products for the treatment of central nervous system diseases, today announced the issuance on January 31, 2017 of an eighth patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office covering Trokendi XR, its novel once-daily extended-release topiramate product. The patent provides protection for the product with expiration that is no earlier than 2027.