HHS Inspector General faults drug companies for aggressively—and illegally—marketing these products to doctors for treatment of dementia and other off-label uses.
Professional groups like the Heart Rhythm Society write guidelines on treatments and the use of medical devices, but researchers say their acceptance of sponsorships and grants from drug and device makers poses a conflict of interest that many patients never consider.
The Army is facing a “critical” shortage of neurologists, partly because of recent policy changes designed to improve diagnosis and treatment of mild traumatic brain injuries, according to a new military medical memorandum.
With so much money paid to physicians — typically in exchange for public speaking events or professional education seminars for other doctors — medical ethics experts say doctors essentially push drugs or medical devices developed by the drug makers from which they are accepting cash.
Dialysis patients die or are hospitalized every year as a result of catastrophic hemorrhages.
Louisiana GOP Sen. David Vitter has pushed the EPA to slow its process of updating a 20-year-old health assessment of formaldehyde.
Last year, 47% of people between age 19 and 34 went without insurance at some point: 1-in-3 is uninsured now.
Sarah Goodwin, 25, has chronic fatigue syndrome and relies on Medicaid for coverage.
The reforms being proposed could put some upward pressure on premiums . . .
Fairfield offers insurance to 10 of its 12 employees, at a company cost of $550 per employee each month.
At least 25 of those key players are back; this time as lobbyists trying to persuade their former colleagues to protect a lucrative deal for drug companies.
LocalHealthGuide is a health news and information web service for Seattle and the Puget Sound Region. We are independent and unaffiliated with any hospital, medical association or insurer. If you have questions or if your group has an upcoming event that you would like us to cover, please let us know by going to our "Contact Us" page and dropping us a note. -- Michael McCarthy, Editor
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Seattle Times Health News
Experts divided over recommendation to screen children for cholesterol
Some clinicians say universal screening is an important tool to help identify children who are genetically predisposed to high cholesterol and to pinpoint others who could benefit from treatment. Others express concerns that screening may do more harm than good.
People in state high-risk insurance plans often feel left behind
The federal health law set up new plans that are cheaper and more comprehensive than the older ones run by states but consumers need to go without insurance for six months to qualify.
Peeking in on your doctor’s notes
Although federal law guarantees patients the right to examine and get copies of their medical records, providers haven’t always made it easy to do so. But the movement to give patients direct access to their health information has picked up steam, and policymakers have encouraged it as a way to empower patients to help manage their health and their medical care.
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