Buried among the healthcare reform legislation are dozens of lesser-known provisions—from work breaks for breastfeeding moms to a requirement that chain restaurants disclose how many calories are in the fries, USA Today reports. Many of the ideas have failed to gain traction in the past but supporters hope to better their chances this year by hitching them to health reform. "This is the kitchen sink train leaving the station," Neil Trautwein of the National Retail Federation told USA Today. "Every idea, good, bad or otherwise, that has ever been out there has to find its way in."
Martin Memorial Health Systems' proposed 80-bed hospital moved one step closer to reality Dec. 1 when Florida officials granted final approval for the nonprofit to build a hospital in western Port St. Lucie. But Lawnwood Regional Medical Center & Heart Institute and St. Lucie Medical Center, the two HCA Inc.-owned hospitals that have fought against Martin Memorial's efforts to provide medical care in St. Lucie County, still could appeal the decision of the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration. Both hospitals' legal teams are reviewing the order, officials said.
A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that 65% of primary-care docs work in practices that are too small to draw meaningful conclusions about the quality of care they provide. Researchers looked at commonly cited quality measures such as blood-sugar control in diabetics and mammogram screening for women. Their cutoff was the ability to reliably discern when a doctors in a practice varied by 10% from the national average. They found that "only the largest primary care physician practices, which are also the most uncommon, can be expected to have sufficient caseloads to measure significant differences in performance."
Seeking to resolve two contentious issues blocking healthcare reform in the Senate, lawmakers began consideration of an amendment to restrict abortion coverage, while Democrats closed in on alternatives to the public-insurance option, the Washington Post reports. The abortion provision would bar individuals who receive federal insurance subsidies from purchasing private policies that cover elective abortions. A group of 10 liberal and moderate Democrats said they were considering alternatives to a federally sponsored health insurance plan that could expand Medicaid and Medicare and create new national private plans overseen by the government.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has widened its investigation into radiation overdoses that patients have received from a type of brain scan, announcing that it was looking into possible overdoses at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in California and a hospital in Alabama. Providence St. Joseph is now the third hospital in Los Angeles County under investigation for problems with CT brain perfusion scans. Unlike the other cases, which involved scanners made by General Electric, the scanner at Providence St. Joseph was made by Toshiba.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida Inc. expects to end coverage at Manatee Memorial Hospital and Lakewood Ranch Medical Center at the start of next year. The hospitals, under the umbrella of the Manatee Hospitals and Health System Inc., informed Blue Cross that they would terminate contracts effective Jan. 1. Negotiations are continuing, Blue Cross said in a release. The health insurer said it has not been able to come to an agreement that is consistent with its goal of providing affordable healthcare choices for its members.