Featuring hospital and health care headlines from the media and Web.

Iowa News

Mount Vernon nurse joins team headed for Haiti
When the earthquake hit Haiti on Jan. 12, Monica Keleher knew she wanted to help. Keleher will be joining the group led by Dr. Chris Buresh of Iowa City during a trip to Haiti March 20-29. Fourteen people will be a part of the group. Keleher is a nurse with a background in nephrology and neonatal care at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. (Mount Vernon Sun)

U.S. News

Democrats move toward grouping health reform with student-aid bill
Democratic leaders said Thursday that they were increasingly inclined to release a final health-care bill that could accomplish two of President Obama’s top domestic priorities: guaranteeing coverage to 30 million uninsured Americans and vastly expanding federal aid for college students. (Washington Post)

GOP’s new tactic: alarm rivals
With a final vote drawing near on President Barack Obama’s health-care overhaul, Republicans’ latest strategy can be neatly summarized: try to scare the daylights out of House Democrats. For months Republicans have been telling the public that the Democrats’ plan is a government takeover of health care. Now they are ramping up their warnings to Democratic lawmakers themselves, saying a “yes” vote puts their political careers at risk. (Wall Street Journal)

As costs soar, Mass. foresees change in health insurance rules
State regulators said yesterday that they will probably change the complex formula they use to determine how many Massachusetts residents face a tax penalty for not having health insurance, because spiraling costs are making coverage unaffordable for too many people. (Boston Globe)

Rash of reports says too many Americans get too many medical tests despite risks
Is it doctors practicing defensive medicine? Or are patients so accustomed to a culture of medical technology that they insist on extensive tests and treatments? A combination of both is at work, but now new evidence and guidelines are recommending a step back and more thorough doctor-patient conversations about risks and benefits. (Chicago Tribune)

Christian groups find way around high health costs
As policymakers in Washington, D.C., debate overhauling health care, several evangelical Christian groups have found a way of getting around the high cost of health insurance. Instead of paying premiums, they simply agree to pay each other’s medical bills. The groups are not regulated because unlike insurance there’s no guarantee an individual’s bills will be paid. That’s something members take on faith. (National Public Radio)

Nursing covering more health care
Each year, Wendy Fletcher says, she and two partners see more than 5,000 patients at their practice in Morehead, Ky. They are not doctors, but rather registered nurse practitioners who say they are able to increase access to health care and make it more affordable. “None of us are trying to play doctor,” she said. (USA Today)

RNs, hospitals debate staffing legislation
Hospitals and nurses are debating the merits of two proposed state laws that would establish new nurse staffing rules to ensure proper care for patients. Florida Hospital’s Rich Morrison said the proposed ratios are too rigid and would drive up costs. The regional vice president said Florida Hospital uses national benchmarks as a starting point for nurse staffing, then adjusts up or down based on how sick a patient is. (Orlando Business Journal)

Republican leaders in Tennessee say they’re open to hospital ‘fee’ but not a ‘tax’
Republican legislative leaders say they are open to approving a new hospital tax proposed by the Tennessee Hospital Association to offset massive TennCare cuts — but only if it is not called a tax and Democrats back it too. The 31/2 percent tax — or “coverage fee” as THA calls it — would be levied on net patient revenue but would not, the association says, be passed on to patients. (Memphis Commercial Appeal)