Health and wellness

[IMGCAP(1)] NEW YORK | Mon Jan 23, 2012 9:42am EST (Reuters) - When your health insurance provider denies an experimental treatment or a high-cost drug, how much are you willing to pay for the care you believe you need? Barby Ingle, a former cheerleading and dance coach at Washington University who now lives in a Phoenix suburb, has been forced to face this question. …

The fourth annual study identifying the top U.S. health systems based was released yesterday by Thomson Reuters, which culled data from more than 300 organizations and singled out 15 hospital systems that achieved superior clinical outcomes based on a composite score of eight measures of quality, patient perception of care and efficiency.

The Obama administration said last week that 28 states have taken steps to establish insurance exchanges under the 2010 health care law, despite the legal and political uncertainties threatening the overhaul.

I recently read an article about a company wellness program that consisted primarily of a company health fair. At the health fair, an employee who thought he was otherwise healthy took a Prostate-Specific Antigen test and discovered he had elevated PSA levels. He was encouraged to follow up with his doctor, who discovered he had prostate cancer. He was ultimately cured and his doctor said he probably would have died had it not been for…

Thursday morning, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius addressed a ballroom in Washington, D.C. of more than 200 people invested in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

The number of kids and adults in the United States who are obese has held steady over the last few years, two reports out Tuesday suggest.

If the health care law is implemented without the individual mandate insurance premiums would rise by as much as 25%, according to a new report by the Urban Institute Health Policy.

A majority of human resource executives at U.S. hospitals and health care systems expect health care reform to hasten the transformation of the industry’s traditional business model, according to a new survey by Towers Watson. The survey also found that workforce issues, including shortages of primary care physicians, the need for a wider array of staff skills and new leadership models, will rise in importance as the industry grapples with this transformation.

The majority (56%) of employers say they are likely to continue to offer employer-sponsored health insurance after the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act largely goes into effect in 2014, according to a new survey conducted by GfK Custom Research North America.

When it comes to health care, small business owners aren't making any fast moves. Faced with higher premiums again in the year ahead, many business owners have found themselves in a holding pattern. They're concerned about the rising costs and the possible impact of health reform, but unsure about making any changes until they have more clarity or options.

U.S. health care spending experienced historically low rates of growth in 2009 and 2010, according to the annual report of national health expenditures published Monday.

The Obama administration defended its health care overhaul law before the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday, rejecting arguments by critics who warned that if the government can require people to have health insurance, it might next make them eat broccoli.

Cancer death rates are continuing to fall, dropping by 1.8% per year in men and 1.6% per year in women between 2004 and 2008, according to the American Cancer Society's annual report on cancer statistics released last Wednesday.

Chief Justice John Roberts expressed confidence on Saturday in the decisions by his Supreme Court colleagues on when to recuse themselves, an issue that has emerged in the legal battle over President Barack Obama's health care overhaul law.

Obese older adults may be more likely than their thinner peers to suffer a potentially disabling fall — though the most severely overweight may be somewhat protected from injury, according to a U.S. study.

About one out of every four parents with small children responds to interventions to help them quit smoking, which is slightly better than the one in five parents who would quit without any special help, according to a new study.

Arranging and financing long-term care is an issue everyone will face yet no one wants to talk about. However, following the Health Department's move to table the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act, planning for long-term care is becoming part of the national conversation - and that presents opportunities and challenges for employers.

In the harsh realities of today's economy, employees are expected to do more with less. While controlling workloads may be beyond an HR/benefit manager's control, there are tools for helping employees cope with the increased stress that may result. However, experts disagree about which tactics to alleviate stress are most successful. Stress management programs, stress resilience programs and even performance programs all aim to turn negative employee stress into positive motivation, but each model features conflicting philosophies and tools.

In the current broker/client business model local relationships are clearly preferred. However, that does not take into account the new health care landscape.

Oral arguments on President Barack Obama's sweeping U.S. health care overhaul will last 5-1/2 hours spread over three days from March 26-28, the Supreme Court said on Monday.