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  April 29, 2013, 2:42 pm

Pediatricians to push for gun control on Capitol Hill

By Elise Viebeck

Gun violence will be back on the agenda Tuesday as members of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) climb Capitol Hill to push for more robust gun control measures.

About 110 pediatricians from 40 states will meet with congressional staff during the fly-in, according to the AAP.

The group will advocate for stronger background checks, an assault weapons ban, and federal research on gun violence prevention. 

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  April 29, 2013, 1:25 pm

Schumer touts bill to restrict painkillers

By Sam Baker

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Monday promoted his proposal to put stricter limits on several widely prescribed painkillers.

Schumer wants to reclassify hydrocodone, a drug used in painkillers such as Vicodin.

Schumer's bill, and a similar proposal in the House, would reclassify hydrocodone as a Schedule II drug, requiring a doctor's signature for new prescriptions and prohibiting automatic refills.

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  April 29, 2013, 12:30 pm

Administration proposes increasing hospital Medicare payments

By Julian Hattem

The Obama administration wants to increase the amount it pays hospitals under Medicare.

In a 1,424-page proposal, set to be published in the Federal Register on May 10, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is proposing to increase the operating rates for long-term and short-term acute care at inpatient hospitals that treat patients covered by the government healthcare program, and is laying out some new features of the Affordable Care Act.

The CMS proposes increasing payments for acute care, which include short stays for non-chronic conditions like severe injuries or brief illnesses, by 0.8 percent, or about $27 million.

The agency also wants to increase payment rates for long-term care by 1.1 percent in 2014, estimated to come out to $62 million.

The agency's proposed increases account for offsets and reductions in spending, and would take effect starting in October.

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  April 29, 2013, 11:24 am

Former boxer Mike Tyson hopes ObamaCare saves his family money

By Justin Sink

"I had more money when Bush and Reagan was president," said the ex-boxer, who owes millions in back taxes.

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  April 29, 2013, 9:00 am

News bites: Sick of cuts

By Elise Viebeck

Austerity is hurting our health, say researchers

Our feel-good war on breast cancer

Obama administration mulls rule to give home health aides better wages

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  April 28, 2013, 6:00 am

Cancer clinics: Our cuts from sequester needed earlier remedy than FAA’s

By Sam Baker

Cancer clinics say the cuts they are facing are far more serious — and should have been a higher priority.

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  April 26, 2013, 5:53 pm

Senators push expanded oversight of compound pharmacies

By Megan R. Wilson

A bipartisan group of senators wants to give federal regulators greater oversight of compound pharmacies following bacterial contaminations nationwide that have killed at least 50 people and sickened hundreds more.

Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) released a draft bill on Friday to make the blurry regulatory lines surrounding the pharmacies more clear.

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  April 26, 2013, 4:11 pm

Senate Dems introduce tobacco tax measure

By Julian Hattem

The bill would tax all tobacco products at the same rate and hike taxes by 93 percent.

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  April 26, 2013, 3:57 pm

GOP bill hits alleged ObamaCare exemption talks

By Elise Viebeck

Republicans introduced a bill Friday in response to allegations that top congressional officials are seeking to exempt Capitol Hill from ObamaCare's health insurance exchanges.

The measure from Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) would require that all federal employees — including the president, vice president and Cabinet members — purchase coverage through the marketplaces.

"If the ObamaCare exchanges are good enough for the hardworking Americans and small businesses the law claims to help, then they should be good enough for the president, vice president, Congress, and federal employees," Camp spokeswoman Sarah Swinehart said in a statement. 

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  April 26, 2013, 3:23 pm

Cancer group pitches higher cigarette tax as cost-saver

By Elise Viebeck

A prominent anti-cancer group backed President Obama's proposal to nearly double the federal cigarette tax, arguing the move would save billions in long-term healthcare costs by discouraging smoking.

The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) estimated Friday that embracing a $1.95-per-pack tax on cigarettes would save the United States more than $63 billion in the long term and prevent hundreds of thousands of premature deaths.

"[Obama's] proposal comes at a time when there is much conversation about how to reduce healthcare costs," said CEO John R. Seffrin in a statement. 

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