Site Map - Healthcare

10/29/2007 - Florida, which has a lot of experience with hurricanes, has found a way to improve the coordination of healthcare services in such events.

10/29/2007 - Several bills that would give employers more latitude in disputes with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have been merged into one measure(H.R. 739) This bill has been passed by the House of Representatives and is currently pending in the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.The legislation would allow employees more time to contest safety violations. Currently, employers have 15 days to contest safety violations. The bill would allow employees to exceed that 15-day time limit if the failure to contest results is from “mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect.”H.R. 739 would also allow employers with 100 or fewer employees and a net worth of $7 million or less to collect attorney’s fees if they prevail in a dispute with OSHA.

10/16/2007 - Researchers say M.R.S.A., a virulent drug-resistant bacterium found in hospitals and nursing homes, could account for more deaths than HIV/AIDS.

10/15/2007 - What businesses can do to prepare for the business continuity and security implications of a flu pandemic before it hits. (Online Exclusive)

10/04/2007 - Are the systems that public health agencies have in place to receive and handle reports of suspicious diseases adequate? In an effort to answer that question, the RAND Corporation polled 19 of the 2,800 public health agencies around the United States. The study found inconsistencies in reporting methods that showed a need for national standards. The study also found that staff training needed to be enhanced.

09/28/2007 - Should a disaster such as a flu pandemic hit the United States, many companies will deploy their work forces remotely so that business can continue without jeopardizing the health and welfare of workers

09/28/2007 - Under the measure, the Secretary of Health and Human Services would have developed a strategic plan to coordinate information regarding the implementation of standards for transmitting, coding, and protecting consumer health information.

09/28/2007 - The bill would allow employees to exceed that 15-day time limit if the failure to contest results from “mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect.” H.R. 739 would also have allowed employers with 100 or fewer employees and a net worth of $7 million or less to collect attorney’s fees if they prevailed in a dispute with OSHA.

09/27/2007 - Privacy issues that arise when companies outsource services involving clients’ personal health information are examined in this GAO report.

09/26/2007 - A bill (S. 2825) introduced by Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-MN) would require that the government award grants to improve the health of those living on the U.S. border with Mexico.

09/25/2007 - A bill (H.R. 4157) that is designed to improve the coordination and protection of health information has been approved by the House Ways and Means Committee. It is not yet clear whether the measure will continue on to a full vote in the House of Representatives.

09/25/2007 - The fear is that the impostors are terrorists scouting hospitals for vulnerabilities, says Fred Roll, a healthcare security consultant and the president of the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety (IAHSS).

09/24/2007 - A bill (S. 2668) introduced by Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) would require that companies incorporate RFID tagging technology, tamper-indicating technologies, and security packaging into all prescription drugs. These technologies would be used only to authenticate the integrity of the drugs and would not be used to transmit any identifying information about healthcare practitioners, consumers, or advertisers. S. 2668 has no cosponsors and has been referred to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.