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There are great differences among states in the quality of health care children receive along with their access to care, family insurance premiums, equity, and the potential to lead long, healthy, and productive lives.
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The battle between Congress and the Bush administration over SCHIP expansion is less about the technical aspects of the proposal and more about a fundamental difference on the role of government in organizing and overseeing the health care marketplace.
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Policies, laws, regulations, and health care reform proposals in five statesCalifornia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Washingtonare moving those states toward universal health coverage and also are addressing other innovative strategies such as improving health care provider diversity, distribution, and cultural competence.
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North Dakota faces health care challenges common to many rural areas of the United States, but the state is facing them with an innovative, cooperative approach that has implications for other rural and even urban areas, a recent Commonwealth Fund report emphasizes.
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Despite being pressured, The Joint Commission (TJC) has not dictated in the revised "Universal Protocol for Preventing Wrong Site, Wrong Procedure, Wrong Person Surgery" that surgeons must be the ones who mark the surgical site.
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed a 3% payment increase for hospital-based outpatient programs for calendar year (CY) 2009, while ambulatory surgery specialties will see payment changes ranging from -6% for procedures on the digestive system to 19% for procedures of the musculoskeletal system.
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In every element of the revised 2009 "Universal Protocol for Preventing Wrong Site, Wrong Procedure, Wrong Person Surgery," including verification of procedure, marking of site, and taking time out, The Joint Commission (TJC) has "gotten a bit more specific about who does what and when," says Peter Angood, MD, vice president and chief patient safety officer for TJC.
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Let's have a show of hands of those who have real concerns about the economy and the overall health of business today. (Cue to author who is waving both hands in the air).
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A 4% annual increase for the life of the facility is not a typical offer from a payer negotiating a contract with an outpatient surgery facility, but that is exactly what was offered to, and quickly accepted by, one facility.
