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U.S. may speed approval of "breakthrough" drugs (0 Comments)

Experimental drugs that show a big effect early in development for treating serious or life-threatening diseases would get a faster and cheaper path to U.S. approval, under a proposal likely to become law this year.

U.S. drug regulators would be able to label such treatments "breakthrough" therapies, and work with companies to speed up clinical trials, for example by testing the drugs for a shorter time or enrolling fewer patients.

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Hospital pay incentives fail to help patients: study (2 Comments)

A program to pay hospitals bonuses for hitting key performance measures, or dock them if they miss, failed to improve the health outcomes of patients, according to a large, long-term study.

The study could lead to a re-examination of financial incentives in healthcare, as policymakers seek ways to reward results rather than paying doctors and other providers for each service they provide, such as a diagnostic test.

Such an incentive program for hospitals is a key provision of the U.S. healthcare overhaul law that is being challenged this week before the Supreme Court.

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Supreme Court divided over Obama healthcare law (2 Comments)

By Joan Biskupic and James Vicini

The U.S. Supreme Court appeared closely divided along ideological lines during tense arguments over President Barack Obama's healthcare law on Tuesday, with conservative justices vigorously questioning the Obama administration's lawyer on whether Congress had the power to require people to buy medical insurance.

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Finding health insurance on your own (2 Comments)

By Scott J. Wilson

If you're self-employed, unemployed or work for a company that doesn't offer medical coverage, you may have to find your own insurance. Some tips to get you started:

•U.S. Uninsured Help Line: This service by the nonprofit Foundation for Health Coverage Education helps people determine their insurance options. Be prepared to answer questions about how many family members need coverage, household income and preexisting medical conditions. Call (800) 234-1317 or go to coverageforall.org.

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Group asks FDA to treat superbugs like rare diseases (1 Comment)

A research group is proposing a new tool in the fight against drug-resistant bacteria: turn infections into a rare disease.

The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) offered a plan on Thursday that would allow the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to review certain kinds of antibiotics like it reviews "orphan" drugs for rare diseases, making it easier for companies to gain approval.

Misuse of medications and other factors have fueled the evolution of multi-drug resistant bacteria, or "superbugs", for which there are few treatment options.

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