U.S. health insurance companies that want to increase premiums by 10 percent or more next year would face tougher government scrutiny under new rules proposed on Tuesday.
The rules, called for under the sweeping healthcare law passed in March, would require insurers with price increases of 10 percent or more in 2011 to submit data justifying the higher rates for states or, in some cases, the federal government to assess.
Health insurers face new rules over price hikes
The "Calcium Lie" Every Woman Should Know About
If you've been led to believe that the key to preventing osteoporosis is increasing your calcium intake and starting on a regimen of pharmaceutical drugs, you're not alone.
I'm here to lead you past all of the confusing and conflicting information about osteoporosis and down a safer, more effective road to preventing bone loss and osteoporosis.
Hospital hired models in lab coats and heels 'to attract men'
An American hospital group spent millions of dollars hiring models in lab coats, short skirts and high heels to recruit men for DNA tests and quietly overcharge them for the privilege.
The models, who were in their 20s, allegedly told the men the tests would barely cost anything, before billing them an average of $4,300 (£2,770) each via their health insurance – about 40 times more than the typical cost.
Probable carcinogen hexavalent chromium found in drinking water of 31 U.S. cities
An environmental group that analyzed the drinking water in 35 cities across the United States, including Bethesda and Washington, found that most contained hexavalent chromium, a probable carcinogen that was made famous by the film "Erin Brockovich."
The study, which will be released Monday by the Environmental Working Group, is the first nationwide analysis of hexavalent chromium in drinking water to be made public.
Proximity to freeways increases autism risk, study finds
Children born to mothers who live close to freeways have twice the risk of autism, researchers reported Thursday. The study, its authors say, adds to evidence suggesting that certain environmental exposures could play a role in causing the disorder in some children.
"This study isn't saying exposure to air pollution or exposure to traffic causes autism," said Heather Volk, lead author of the paper and a researcher at the Saban Research Institute of Children's Hospital Los Angeles. "But it could be one of the factors that are contributing to its increase."
More middle income families going without health insurance
As more Americans lose health coverage because of unemployment, the latest snapshot of the uninsured reveals a grim picture: It's not just the poor and unemployed who now go without health insurance.
About a third of California's uninsured had family incomes of more than $50,000 a year in 2009, according to the California HealthCare Foundation. Indeed, the percentage of uninsured among families earning between $50,000 and $75,000 annually has nearly doubled over the past decade.
FDA, EMA move against Avastin for breast cancer
The fight over breast-cancer treatment with Roche's Avastin has come to a head: U.S. officials decided to revoke the drug's indication for breast cancer, and European Medicines Agency moved to restrict it for use with only one type of chemotherapy.
The decisions stand to cut more than $1 billion off Avastin's $6 billion in annual revenues, and they're sure to draw fire from folks who've been advocating for the drug.
More Articles...
Page 127 of 234