By Lofton, Lynn http://www.redorbit.com Nurse practitioners are stepping in to help meet primary healthcare needs in Mississippi, and their number is growing. They are especially helpful in medically underserved rural areas. State law requires nurse practitioners to work under the supervision of a licensed physician, but they do not have to be on site with […]

BY HILLARY S. MEEKS http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com

http://www.marketwatch.com

By GETAHN WARD http://www.wbir.com Margie Derryberry has been a patient of Dr. John Chauvin for 15 years. But that’s about to change because Derryberry can’t afford to pay a new $1,500 annual fee that Chauvin plans to charge patients on top of the cost of their insurance. The fee is part of Chauvin’s bid to […]

http://www.washingtontimes.com COMMENTARY: In April, a tiny step was taken that may have costly consequences for American health care. The Council for the Advancement of Comprehensive Care (CACC) and the National Board of Medical Examiners announced that, beginning this autumn, they will offer a voluntary exam for nurse practitioners (NPs) to gain certification as a DNP […]

By Judith Gordon http://www.philly.com We almost had a catastrophe in our health care system. A mandated 10 percent reduction in Medicare reimbursements was averted Tuesday when Congress overrode President Bush’s veto of a bill that would protect doctors from the cut. But the reduction was instigated by a flawed calculation designed to reduce Medicare spending […]

By REED ABELSON http://www.nytimes.com American medical care may be the most expensive in the world, but that does not mean it is worth every penny. A study to be released Thursday highlights the stark contrast between what the United States spends on its health system and the quality of care it delivers, especially when compared […]

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS http://seattlepi.nwsource.com SEATTLE — The Seattle-based Providence healthcare company has agreed to pay a $100,000 fine and improve its patient information security to settle privacy complaints from 2005 and 2006. Federal officials say the home and community health care company failed to properly secure backup tapes, disks and laptops with electronic patient information […]

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 […]