HHS

Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) recently responded to Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt’s blog post about a draft HHS rule that would jeopardize women’s access to quality, affordable basic health care.

"Secretary Leavitt's vague comments on the draft HHS rule do nothing to reassure Americans that the administration is not considering redefining abortion to include common forms of contraception, thereby jeopardizing women's access to basic health care,” said PPFA President Cecile Richards. “The administration needs to stop playing word games with women's health, and state clearly they will reject any regulations that will undermine women's access to basic health care."    » read more »

July 17, 2008 -- The proportion of U.S. adults who self report they are obese increased nearly 2 percent between 2005 and 2007, according to a report in today′s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). An estimated 25.6 percent of U.S. adults reported being obese in 2007 compared to 23.9 percent in 2005, an increase of 1.7 percent. The report also finds that none of the 50 states or the District of Columbia has achieved the Healthy People 2010 goal to reduce obesity prevalence to 15 percent or less.    » read more »

Thursday, July 17, 2008 -- The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has entered into a Resolution Agreement with Seattle-based Providence Health & Services (Providence) to settle potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules. In the agreement, Providence agrees to pay $100,000 and implement a detailed Corrective Action Plan to ensure that it will appropriately safeguard identifiable electronic patient information against theft or loss.    » read more »

April 9, 2008 -- Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, in a brief filed today, urged the federal court to strike down an illegal rule change by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that could severely restrict access to a highly successful state-federal children's health insurance program.

Blumenthal filed the amici curiae brief jointly with the Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, in coordination with Department of Social Services (DSS) Commissioner Michael Starkowski.    » read more »

CMS Web Site Features Updated and More Robust Information to Help Consumers with Their Health Care Choices

Friday, March 28, 2008 -- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), today posted new survey information at the Hospital Compare consumer Web site offering consumers more insight about the hospitals in their communities.    » read more »

Use of EHRs Can Improve the Quality of Health Care and Reduce Errors

Wednesday, February 20, 2008 -- HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt today called on community leaders across the country to apply for a new demonstration project that provides Medicare incentive payments to physicians for the use of certified electronic health records (EHRs) to improve patient care.

The project, which will be open to small- and medium-sized primary care physician practices, is expected to reduce medical errors and improve the quality of care for an estimated 3.6 million Americans.    » read more »

February 14, 2008 -- Health information technology (IT) offers promise for improving patient safety and reducing inefficiencies. Given its role in providing health care in the United States, the federal government has been urged to take a leadership role to improve the quality and effectiveness of health care, including the adoption of IT.    » read more »