Health and Human Services news stories on Newser

Medicare Fraud Task Force Makes Biggest Bust Ever

Kevin Spak — Thu, 03 May 2012 07:23:26 CDT

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 the scams: billing...

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

Evann Gastaldo — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 13:17:44 CST

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 Administrator Margaret Hamburg said...

Nursing Homes, Big Pharma Overmedicating Seniors

Matt Cantor — Tue, 10 May 2011 16:38:13 CDT

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

Matt Cantor — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 09:46:19 CST

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

Nick McMaster — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 15:59:44 CST

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," the administration trimmed...

Dear America, Eat Less. Sincerely, Feds

Nick McMaster — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 17:30:55 CST

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

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 15:38:04 CDT

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

Nick McMaster — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 16:20:00 CDT

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 on...

Obama's Signature Changes Some Rules Now

Harry Kimball — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 15:54:41 CDT

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 restrict...