OVERNIGHT HEALTH: Census figures on uninsured spark firestorm

Total eclipse of the heart (attack): HHS and a coalition of private groups announced new initiatives Tuesday that they hope will prevent 1 million heart attacks. The campaign, called “Million Hearts,” includes a $200 million investment from HHS as well as diverse contributions from advocacy groups and healthcare industries. Details are here.

Farm drugs: The Government Accountability Office said federal agencies have made only “limited progress” in addressing antibiotic use in food animals; urges better data collection, modified sampling sizes and assessment of previous efforts and their gaps.

Wednesday’s agenda

America’s Health Insurance Plans continues its weeklong conference marathon. Wednesday, the program shifts from Medicare to Medicaid. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) officials will outline their priorities for the program, and state Medicaid directors will discuss their experiences.

Also on the Medicaid front, Families USA is set to release new national and state-by-state data about the program. The group compared a handful of state Medicaid programs — including, notably, Texas, whose Medicaid program is pretty much the extent of Gov. Rick Perry’s healthcare record.

Members of the Health Leadership Council — a coalition of various healthcare companies — are holding a conference call to hammer out recommendations for the supercommittee.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and several lawmakers will hold a Capitol Hill news conference to make the case for repealing healthcare reform’s employer mandate. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) will be there, joined by Reps. Charles Boustany (R-La.), Patrick Tiberi (R-Ohio) and John Barrow (D-Ga.).

The Senate Health committee will hold a hearing on securing the supply chain for prescription drugs. Food and Drug Administration deputy director Deborah Autor is slated to testify. Testimony and a webcast will be available here.

And the Congressional Children’s Caucus — led by Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) and Donald Manzullo (R-Ill.) — will hold a kickoff reception for congressional staff Wednesday evening.

State by state

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Delaware has agreed to pay a $325,000 penalty to the state for problems experienced by customers in getting cardiac imaging tests, The Associated Press reports.

In addition to the fine, BCBSD agreed to join a first-of-its kind partnership with the American College of Cardiology that could hold nationwide potential. The insurer will underwrite the cost for Delaware cardiologists to access peer-to-peer counseling and online education provided by the college.

Regulatory review

FDA revamps its cancer drug division.

CMS provides state Medicaid directors guidance on healthcare law incentives to get beneficiaries into home- and community-based settings.

Department of Justice lawyer Leon Rodriguez was appointed director of HHS’s Office for Civil Rights, which enforces civil rights and health privacy rights. 

Bill tracker

Dia-bee-tus: Actor and Liberty Medical pitchman Wilford Brimley joins lawmakers on Capitol Hill Wednesday to pitch a secure Medicare card. The Medicare Common Access Card Act is sponsored by Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) and Reps. Jim Gerlach (R-Pa.) and Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.).

Medical payment manager Emdeon urged the deficit supercommittee to embrace the Medicare and Medicaid FAST Act (S. 1251), which seeks to improve data-sharing in federal programs to better identify fraud and prevent overpayments.

Fraud fight

CMS should use surety bonds to recover durable medical supply overpayments, the HHS Office of Inspector General said.

Maxim Healthcare Services, one of the nation’s leading home healthcare providers, agreed to pay $150 million to settle charges of falsely billing Medicaid and the Veterans Affairs program.

Reading list

The most readable — and funniest — explanation of the new ICD-10 medical coding system we’ve seen so far, courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.

The handful of presidential debate attendees who cheered letting uninsured people die didn’t do the Tea Party’s image much good, writes Talking Points Memo.

What you might have missed on Healthwatch

Romney defends Massachusetts healthcare law at Tea Party debate

IBM’s Watson supercomputer to give medical diagnoses

Sens. Sanders and Paul clash over poverty and health

News bites: Regulators double down on food safety

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Julian Pecquet: jpecquet@digital-staging.thehill.com / 202-628-8527

Sam Baker: sbaker@digital-staging.thehill.com / 202-628-8351

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