MASSDEVICE ON CALL — An Canadian study of the return on investment in heart research found that for every $1 spent on cardiovascular research, the nation sees a 21% income stream.

Heart research in Canada is mostly funded by the government and by nonprofit organizations in the Great White North.

Lead study investigator Dr Claire de Oliveira said the team’s findings show an "amazing return on investment," that suggests that Canada should "continue to invest in cardiovascular disease research," according to Heartwire.com.

 Employer insurance mandate delays could cost $12B

A report from the Congressional Budget Office said that the delay in implementing healthcare reform’s employer insurance mandate will cost the U.S. government $12 billion over the next decade. The report also said delays will mean 1 million fewer Americans will be insured through their jobs.
Read more

 Beth Israel ponies up $5.3M to settle false claims suit

Beth Israel Deaconess will dish out $5.3 million to settle accusations that it violated the False Claims Act. The teaching hospital was under fire for allegedly sending the federal government "improper" bills for Medicare patients who had been at the hospital for 24-hour observation. The Justice Dept. and the Health & Human Service Dept. claimed the wrongful billing went on from 2004 to 2008.
Read more

 Senate bill would make open Medicare database to the public

Medicare’s electronic claims database is currently out of reach for the average citizen, but a new bill introduced to the Senate would create a free, searchable forum for public use. The bill’s authors, Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), wrote an emphatic editorial for Politico that argued this measure would help trim the $2.7 trillion in healthcare spending because "markets work best when information is transparent for buyers and suppliers."
Read more

 ‘Doc fix’ bill moves to the House

The controversial ‘Doc Fix’ bill that would replace Medicare’s sustainable growth rate formula moved forward in the House this week. A 51-0 vote in favor of the new reimbursement formula puts the bill up for a pending vote in the House of Representatives.

While many medical groups are in favor of the new doctor payment formula, they fear the bill won’t be signed into law before the end of the year, when doctors take a 25% payment hit as part of the current sustainable growth rate.
Read more