Read a little. Learn a lot. • Tightly-written news, views and stuff • Follow us on TwitterBe a Facebook FanTumble us!

16 Feb 2012 12:28

tags

Politics, U.S.: Obama’s health care plan benefited tens of millions in 2011

  • 54 million people benefited from the Affordable Care Act in 2011 source
  • » Approximately one-sixth of Americans received one or more additional preventive care services in 2011, as a direct result of the Affordable Care Act, according to a newly released report from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. Over 20 million adult women received an additional service, as well as 14 million children, and just under 20 million adult men. Of the 50 states, Wyoming had the fewest patients (102,000) receive a new service while California took the cake with more than 6 million patients, over 2 million more than 2nd place Texas, receiving at least one new preventive service last year.

13 Dec 2011 21:28

tags

Politics: Democratic senators call out Obama’s HHS Secretary on birth control

  • We ask that you share with us your specific rationale and the scientific data you relied on for the decision to overrule the FDA recommendation [to increase access to Plan B].
  • Fourteen Democratic Senators • In a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, who last week overruled an FDA recommendation that Plan B, the emergency contraception, be available without prescription to minors. In the words of Greg Sargent, who reported the story, “it isn’t every day that 14 Senators aggressively call out their own party’s Health and Human Services Secretary.” Then again, a lot of Senate Democrats are up for re-election next year, so there is an element of realpolitik at play.  source

25 Jan 2011 13:02

tags

U.S.: U.S. government recovers record Medicare fraud dollars in 2010

  • $4 billion worth of Medicare fraud recovered by the government source
  • » Who do we thank? The Affordable Care Act (which you may know under its other name, somebody hissing “Obamacare”). The health care reform law institutes harsher penalties for Medicare billing fraud, and those penalties came to bear in 2010 as the Justice Department filed charges against almost 300 defendants, yielding this record-setting recoup of fraudulent claims.