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Seniors enrolled in popular private health insurance plans through Medicare will pay a little less on average next year, the Obama administration said Tuesday.
The average monthly premium in so-called Medicare Advantage plans will dip to $35.69 in 2011, a 45-cent reduction from $36.14 this year, Medicare officials said.
A new study showing the cost of malpractice at more than $55 billion a year to the U.S. health care system has Illinois medical-care providers once again calling for tort reform.
A comprehensive analysis by researchers at Harvard University figures the annual overall cost of medical liability to be $55.6 billion, or 2.4 percent of total health care spending, according to an article published in the September issue of the journal Health Affairs. Get the full story »
More than 1,000 Illinois residents have submitted applications for a new federally funded health insurance program for people with medical problems. Enrollment opened Friday. Illinois Department of Insurance Director Michael McRaith calls it an “enthusiastic response.”
Enrollees will pay monthly premiums ranging from about $110 to $650. There’s also a $2,000 annual deductible and 80 percent-20 percent coinsurance. Get the full story »
The incoming new top executive at the University of Chicago Medical Center wants to keep the prestigious South Side teaching hospital’s competitive edge in an era of health reform and threats from medical-care providers outside the area looking to expand here such as the Cleveland Clinic and Mayo Clinic.
Dr. Kenneth Polonsky, 59, the top doctor in the Department of Medicine at Washington University’s School of Medicine in St. Louis and a former U. of C. research physician was named Dean of the division of Biological Sciences and the Pritzker School of Medicine and Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs. He replaces Dr. James Madara, who resigned last year. Get the full story »
Swedish Covenant Hospital on Chicago’s Northwest Side said it has opened a comprehensive back care center executives hope will position its growing campus for the future demands of health reform.
Known as the Chicago Back Institute, the hospital said it has invested $2.5 million in the project, including upgrades of existing neurological surgery equipment and purchasing new minimally invasive devices. Get the full story »
Walgreen Co, the biggest U.S. drugstore chain, posted a quarterly profit that missed analysts’ view, sending shares down 2.1 percent in pre-market trading. Net income fell to $463 million, or 47 cents a share, in Walgreen’s third quarter ended May 31, from $522 million, or 53 cents a share, a year earlier. Get the full story »
By Wailin Wong | Abbott Laboratories shareholders voted down two proposals seeking
greater participation in corporate governance issues at the North
Chicago company’s annual meeting.
A “say on pay” proposal, which would have allowed shareholders to hold a
yearly advisory vote about senior executive compensation, was defeated
after garnering 41 percent approval, according to a preliminary tally. A
second proposal that would have given shareholders owning more than 10
percent of common stock the ability to convene a special meeting was
also defeated after reaching just 38 percent approval.
By Noam N. Levey |
Four days before his planned health summit with
congressional leaders, President Barack Obama on Monday unveiled his
proposal to overhaul the nation’s health care system, building on the
gargantuan legislation developed by Senate Democrats last year.
The proposal, which the White House has posted on its website,
includes all the major provisions backed by congressional Democrats,
including a major expansion in coverage, broad new insurance regulations
and initiatives to make the health care system more efficient.
