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The latest stories from AHA Today.
Unplanned hospital readmissions following elective hip and knee replacements fell 20% and 23%, respectively, between 2009 and 2013 among adults aged 50-84 enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans provided by a large U.S. insurance carrier, according to a new study by the AARP Public Policy…
A group of consumer advocates, employers and unions yesterday launched the Coalition to Protect Patient Choice to educate policymakers and the public on the importance of health insurance competition. The Coalition called on federal and state antitrust and regulatory authorities to challenge the…
American adults who are uninsured or on Medicaid smoke at rates more than double those for adults with private health insurance or Medicare, according to a new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 28% of uninsured adults and 29% of Medicaid recipients were current…
A replay is now available of AHA’s Nov. 12 Town Hall webcast on how hospitals can help consumers explore and understand their coverage options during the 2016 open enrollment period for the Health Insurance Marketplaces. The webcast highlights specific resources and strategies for…
Health care prices grew 1% year-over-year in September, matching the multi-decade low hit in August 2013, according to the latest Economic Indicators from Altarum Institute's Center for Sustainable Health Spending. The 12-month moving average dropped to 1.2% growth, tying the all-time low for…
More than 543,000 people selected a health plan through the federally-facilitated Health Insurance Marketplace during the first week of open enrollment, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced today. Two-thirds of the plan selections were by 2015 enrollees who were actively…
A commentary in this week’s New England Journal of Medicine looks at preliminary first-year results from the Maryland All-Payer Model, launched last year by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and state to modernize Maryland’s unique all-payer rate-setting system for…
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Department of Homeland Security this week modified port-of-entry screening for travelers from Sierra Leone, which the World Health Organization declared free of Ebola transmission on Nov. 7.
The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response will purchase two antitoxin drugs for inhalational anthrax to add to the Strategic National Stockpile.
More than 75% of U.S. hospitals had adopted at least a basic electronic health record system by the end of 2014, up from 59% in 2013, according to a study reported online today by Health Affairs. About 40% of hospitals were able to meet all 16 core objectives for Stage 2 meaningful use, up…