A former Farmington Hills, MI, dentist OK'd to resume his practice despite a 2002 conviction for sexually assaulting a patient is the target of legislation to bar license reinstatement for healthcare professionals convicted of sex crimes. State Rep. Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge, who is one of the ban's sponsors, told the Detroit Free Press giving a convicted sexual predator renewed access to patients and potential victims is "outrageous ... horrendous. It shouldn't be allowed to happen."
A deal that could clear the way for West Columbia, SC-based Lexington Medical Center to perform heart surgeries and Providence Hospital to expand was announced by the two hospitals. As part of the deal, Columbia-based Providence agreed to give up one of its four open-heart surgery units to Lexington Medical. In return, Lexington Medical will pay Providence $15 million and drop a lawsuit it filed to block expansion at the Providence's Northeast campus.
One in four Americans said in a survey that someone in the family put off needed healthcare in the past year because of cost, including 16% who postponed surgery or a doctor's visit for chronic illness. In all, 53% of Americans in the Kaiser Family Foundation poll said they or a family member living with them cut back on healthcare in one or more ways to save money in the past 12 months.
The feud between Premera Blue Cross and Seattle-based Proliance Surgeons erupted last summer when Proliance walked out of Premera's network of providers in August. The two had disagreed on payment rates, and six months later the issue is still festering. Proliance is running radio ads slamming Premera, and Premera is responding by saying the surgeons had wanted too much money.
A new program aims to tackle the growing problem of diabetes in minority communities throughout Texas, and in Dallas, it will focus on getting community healthcare workers more intensely involved with patients. The $1.7 million plan will also feature cross-cultural education programs for doctors and an electronic diabetes registry to better manage cases.
Harvard professor Thomas J. Lynch, MD, has been named director of the Yale Cancer Center and physician-in-chief of the new Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale-New Haven (CT) Hospital, which will open in October. Lynch is currently professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and chief of hematology/oncology at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center. His appointment is effective April 1. Lynch says he is excited about the plans of the medical school and hospital to invest in new programs and infrastructure to improve the health and longevity of patients with cancer.