http://www.wral.com RALEIGH, N.C. — State medical regulators have voted to cut back on the amount of information they post on a Web site about malpractice settlements of North Carolina doctors. The News & Observer of Raleigh reported Wednesday that the North Carolina Medical Board decided to only post settlements that total more than $25,000 on […]

By Beth Cooney http://www.greenwichtime.com When they tell their pregnant patients someone else will have to deliver their babies, it is not unusual for the doctors of Brookside Obstetrics and Gynecology Associates in Greenwich to get a special request. “They’ll say, ‘How about just one more?’ ” said Dr. Gaetane Francis. “Or ‘Can you make an […]

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com Private auditors over about three years have recovered almost $700 million in Medicare overpayments to hospitals and other health care providers in six states as part of a recovery audit contractor program, the Wall Street Journal reports. Under the program, CMS pays auditors a portion of the amount of improper Medicare payments that they […]

By Jane M. Von Bergen http://www.philly.com They didn’t use a medical analogy, but they could have. If Highmark Inc. and Independence Blue Cross are allowed to merge, will their best practices be “catching,” leading to cost savings and better service, as their executives predict? Or will they infect each other with their worst tendencies? That […]

By Amanda Gardner http://www.washingtonpost.com

By CHET BROKAW http://www.chicagotribune.com RAPID CITY, S.D. – Health care costs could be cut substantially if Americans stopped smoking, stopped overeating and got in shape, a national expert told lawmakers from 11 Midwestern states on Tuesday. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that if Americans adopted such a healthy lifestyle, 80 percent […]

By GETAHN WARD http://www.tennessean.com Vanderbilt University said it has launched a new, one-year master’s degree program in health care management to teach doctors, nurses and hospital administrators how to apply business skills to solving health care problems. “Clinicians frequently find themselves with management responsibilities, however, their clinical training provided them no experience or education in […]

http://www.tennessean.com BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee is taking another shot at easing doctors’ concerns about a tool to allow its members to compare quality and costs of care. Starting Tuesday, doctors have 45 days to review their profiles and update information on their medical claims, which underpins the rating system. The state’s largest health insurer, based […]

By Michael Abramowitz and Paul Kane http://www.washingtonpost.com President Bush sought to block a bill yesterday aimed at forestalling an 11 percent cut in payments to doctors taking care of Medicare patients, but Congress quickly overrode his veto. The House voted 383 to 41 to override the veto, while the Senate voted 70 to 26, in […]