Health and Human Services

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Sebelius Calls for HealthCare.gov Investigation

She thinks HHS needs to improve how it handles contracts

(Newser) - Many in Washington are calling for an investigation into HealthCare.gov's disastrous debut—and now, that includes the woman who was in charge of it. In a blog post today, Kathleen Sebelius announced that she has asked Health and Human Services' inspector general to look into the website's...

HealthCare.gov Probably Won't Be Ready by Deadline

Insurers seek direct way to sign up customers

(Newser) - The Obama administration has pledged to get HealthCare.gov running smoothly by Nov. 30, but an insider tells the Washington Post that's looking like a pipe dream. For one thing, it can only deal with half the traffic it's supposed to handle—it runs into problems when 20,...

Republicans Turn Up Heat on Sebelius (Sort of)

President stands by health secretary despite (some) pressure from GOP

(Newser) - Ten Republican senators sent a letter to President Obama yesterday demanding that he fire Kathleen Sebelius over ObamaCare's online debut, but Obama wasted no time in reaffirming his support for the embattled Health and Human Services secretary. "If a similar rollout from any other national company or private-sector...

There's No 'iPod Presidency' in Old-Guard DC

Old organizations like HHS don't tend to be 'nimble': Megan McArdle

(Newser) - We should have known the health care website wouldn't be sleek and speedy—even if we were hoping for a tech-savvy "iPod presidency." After all, the website is the product of a Health and Human Services department that's been around for a while, and a longstanding...

6 ObamaCare Questions for Sebelius as She Hits Hot Seat

She testifies before Congress today

(Newser) - Kathleen Sebelius is testifying before Congress this morning in eagerly anticipated remarks about problem-plagued HealthCare.gov, but you may not hear anything new. Politico reports that her eight pages of prepared testimony are, almost verbatim, the same as the testimony offered to Congress yesterday by head of the Centers for...

ObamaCare Penalty Delayed —but Not Due to Website

WH says it's just eliminating confusion

(Newser) - Good news for procrastinators: Americans will now have an extra month and a half to get health insurance before facing a penalty under ObamaCare, meaning they won't face a fine if they sign up for a plan by March 31. The six-week delay (a change of tune for the...

Judge on Morning-After Pill: No One Needs Prescription

Directs FDA to sell over-the-counter, even to teens

(Newser) - The FDA must make the morning-after pill available over-the-counter to women of all ages, a federal judge has ruled. It's currently stocked behind the counter, and those under 17 need a prescription. The federal government has debated with itself over the morning-after pill in the past, with the FDA...

Anti-Fraud Record: Per Dollar Spent, $8 Recovered

HSS boasts recovering $4.2B last year in health-care fraud effort

(Newser) - And the health-care fraud records just keep coming : The government last year recovered a record $4.2 billion that was stolen or illegally obtained from federal health-care programs, reports USA Today . That brings the since-2010 equation to this: $7.90 has been recouped via fines and legal judgments for each...

Romney's New Target: Obama's Welfare Waivers

Ad attacks state waivers plan

(Newser) - Mitt Romney is opening up a new front in the war for the White House. A new ad accuses President Obama of overhauling Bill Clinton's welfare reform, resulting in a program that doesn't require recipients to work. "Under Obama's plan, you wouldn't have to work...

Medicare Fraud Task Force Makes Biggest Bust Ever

107 charged in scheme, whose fake claims allegedly totaled $452M

(Newser) - The Justice Department's special Medicare fraud strike team made its biggest bust ever yesterday, charging 107 doctors, nurses, and other alleged fraudsters in a "nationwide takedown" affecting seven cities. All told, they're accused of bilking the government out of $452 million, the Los Angeles Times reports. Among...

Feds: No Morning-After Pill for Young Teens Without Rx

Health chief overrules FDA, forbids over-the-counter sales to girls

(Newser) - The federal government is split on the "morning after pill," with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today overruling the FDA's decision to make Plan B available to even young teenagers without a prescription. The drug's maker requested the change in February, and though FDA...

Nursing Homes Overmedicating Seniors With Dementia: Health Department Report
Nursing Homes, Big Pharma Overmedicating Seniors
federal report
May 10, 2011 4:38 PM CDT

Nursing Homes, Big Pharma Overmedicating Seniors

Residents with dementia get antipsychotics, boosting death risk: US report

(Newser) - Nursing homes are treating dementia sufferers with powerful antipsychotics despite FDA advice to the contrary, according to a Health and Human Services report spotted by Pro Publica . The FDA began requiring antipsychotics to carry warning labels in 2005 stating the increased death risk they pose for dementia patients. But 88%...

States Want OK to Cut Medicaid—Without Penalty

Governors battle Washington over measure in health reform law

(Newser) - America's 29 states led by Republican governors are asking Washington to give them the green light to cut thousands from Medicaid—without being penalized. The health care reform law says that states that reduce eligibility for the program will lose federal funding, and these cash-strapped states (along with, quietly, some...

Obama Scraps 'Conscience' Rule for Health Workers

But those who object to abortions can still opt out

(Newser) - The Obama administration today undid an eleventh-hour rule enacted by George W. Bush that gave health workers the option to refuse to perform a litany of procedures they objected to on moral, religious, or cultural grounds. Declaring the so-called "conscience" rule "unclear and potentially overbroad in scope,"...

Dear America, Eat Less. Sincerely, Feds

New federal guidelines urge limits on salt, saturated fat

(Newser) - Not only are the feds picking on how many Twinkies vs. how many carrots you eat, but the New York Times reports that now they're picking on how much you eat, period. The newest federal nutrition guidelines, revised every five years, predictably admonish Americans to eat more fruits and vegetables...

Health Reform Saves Medicare $8B by 2011: White House

Overhaul could save $575B over the next decade

(Newser) - The new health overhaul law is starting to produce savings for Medicare and will eventually add more than a decade of solvency to the program's trust fund, the Obama administration said in an upbeat report released today. Medicare will save about $8 billion by the end of next year, and...

US May Allow Gay Men to Donate Blood Again

1985 ban out of date, advocates argue

(Newser) - A quarter-century after the US started barring gay men from donating blood, Department of Health and Human Services experts are deciding whether to lift the lifetime ban, HealthDay News reports. The policy was instituted in 1985, as public consciousness of HIV/AIDS grew. "There was good reason for it, based...

Obama's Signature Changes Some Rules Now

States can't alter guidelines on Medicaid, kids' insurance

(Newser) - It will take years for the entirety of the health care reform to be enacted, but some provisions went into effect the moment President Obama signed it into law today. One of the most wide-ranging prevents states from cutting Medicaid and children’s health insurance coverage—or tightening rules to...

Before Ink Dries, 14 States Sue Over Health Law

13 Republican AGs, 1 Dem charge health care reform is unconstitutional

(Newser) - The threatened lawsuits over the health care reform law started arriving at courthouses today shortly after President Obama signed the measure. Thirteen attorneys general headed by Bill McCollum of Florida—who is also a candidate for governor— sued the Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services departments and their secretaries....

White House Lashes Insurers Jacking Up Prices
 White House Lashes 
 Insurers Jacking Up Prices 
HEALTH CARE REFORM?
Feb 18, 2010 9:32 AM CST

White House Lashes Insurers Jacking Up Prices

Steep premium increases target individuals who buy policies

(Newser) - The White House has begun to call out health insurance companies attempting to drastically raise premiums for Americans who buy policies individually. HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will hold a press conference today on the premium hikes, including the 39% increase in California she lambasted last week. A new report also...

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