Chiropractic Breakthrough

A key government health panel has decided that healthy men should no longer receive a P.S.A. blood test to screen for prostate cancer because the test does not save lives over all and often leads to more tests and treatments that needlessly cause pain, impotence and incontinence in many.

The Obama administration forged ahead with healthcare reforms last week, announcing a November 16 deadline for state governments to submit proposals showing how they intend to operate health insurance exchanges in 2014.

Ob-gyns are among the most frequently sued medical specialists. According to a survey, 90% of board-certified members of The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists have been sued. Rather than reflecting rampant negligence and maltreatment of patients, these numbers reflect that even the best care cannot guarantee a perfect birth outcome.

Republican governors and GOP-dominated state legislatures were united in opposing President Obama’s health care law, but now that it’s in place, they are far more divided over how far to go in complying with it, especially with the U.S. Supreme Court poised to rule on the law’s constitutionality.

Healthcare or a Hyundai? The average cost of healthcare for a family of four this year has increased nearly 7% to $20,728 annually, according to a new study by benefits consultant Milliman, or similar to the cost of a mid-size sedan.

This week, In a swipe at President Obama’s signature health care legislation, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey vetoed an online marketplace that the Legislature created to help residents and small businesses buy health insurance.

The House Approved $310 Billion in cuts, but passage in the Senate is very unlikely. Of the savings, $23.5 billion came from Medicaid and children’s health care; $4.2 billion from hospitals that serve the poor and uninsured; and $33.7 billion from supplemental nutrition assistance. In all, about a quarter of the cuts would come directly from programs that benefit the poor.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: House Republicans want to stave off $55 billion in automatic cuts to the Pentagon budget by paring back key provisions of the health law and cutting Medicaid and other safety net programs, restarting an emotional debate about the nation’s spending priorities.

The Senate is embroiled in a partisan struggle over how to pay for an extension of the current interest rate for student loans. Democrats propose increasing the Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes on high-earning stockholders of some privately owned corporations. Republicans would like to take funds from the health law’s prevention fund.

According to a new study, cut the growth in rates of obesity by just 15 a year over the next two decades, and you’ll slice health care costs by $85 billion. Keep obesity rates at their current levels – which is well below a 335 increase being projected — and you’ll save nearly $550 billion during the same time frame.