OVERNIGHT HEALTH: Obama announces new effort against HIV

by Sam Baker and Elise Viebeck - 07/15/13 10:50 PM ET

“We have wasted 4 1/2 years trying to educate this president about the tragedy that is AIDS in the world. The war against AIDS has not been won. Keep your promise, Mr. President. Play a real leadership role here and abroad. Your legacy depends on it.”

{mosads}Healthwatch has more on the executive order.

Judge blocks ND abortion law: A federal judge on Monday permanently blocked North Dakota from enforcing a controversial anti-abortion law. The law banned the use of drugs to induce medical abortions if the drug was not approved for that purpose, and required any doctor who performed a medical abortion to sign a contract with another doctor to treat any side effects. It also required patients to be in the same room as the prescribing physician any time they take an abortion-inducing drug. The court said the law is unconstitutional, citing Supreme Court decisions that say abortion is legal in all 50 states.

Lawmakers hit doctors for over-referral: Doctors are referring patients for unnecessary tests, a group of lawmakers said Monday. A bipartisan group of House and Senate lawmakers said doctors are over-referring patients for anatomic pathology tests and procedures, costing Medicare nearly $70 million.

“A doctor’s first concern should be their patients’ health — not their own personal wealth,” Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) said in a statement.

The Government Accountability Office report that sparked the lawmakers’ criticism is available here.

On schedule: The Health and Human Services (HHS) Department says the implementation of ObamaCare is “on schedule” despite a recent decision to delay the employer mandate. Federal health officials released a Web video Monday titled “HHS is on schedule.” The video notes several recent moves to enact the law, including a rebranded HealthCare.gov focused on the insurance marketplaces that will launch Oct. 1.

Healthwatch has more.

NBD: The one-year delay in ObamaCare’s employer mandate won’t have much effect on the law’s costs or the number of people it covers, according to a new study from The Urban Institute. In fact, according to the institute, slightly fewer people would use the exchanges if the Affordable Care Act were implemented without the employer mandate. Read the Healthwatch story.

Tuesday’s schedule

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will deliver remarks at the annual NAACP Convention in Orlando.

The House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Health will look at ways to re-regulate compounding pharmacies.

HIMSS will unveil a new initiative, the Health IT Value Suite, at a press conference at the National Press Club.

State by state

Texas abortion clinics need million-dollar fixes to stay open

Alabama covered entirely by insurance exchange

W. Va. gov again quizzes feds on health overhaul

Lobbying registrations

Christopher Moyer / The Cameron Companies

Meyers and Associates / Coalition of State Medical Societies

Taylor, Sylla & Agin / Fight to Live