The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation have released a preliminary analysis of the Senate healthcare reform legislation, Chairmans Mark for the Americas Healthy Future Act of 2009, estimating the bill would reduce federal budget deficits by $81 billion over the 20102019 period.

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) released its Consumer Preferences Draft Requirements Document for health IT, co-drafted by the Department of Health and Human Services, for public feedback this week.

The Certification Commission for Health IT (CCHIT) has opened applications for a new certification program.

Starting in November, Americas Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) will sponsor regional and statewide initiatives to assess how best to offer Ohio physicians access to multiple health insurers through a common Web portal.

Breast MRI appears to be a useful adjunctive tool when findings at conventional imaging were equivocal, according to a study in this months American Journal of Roentgenology.

The Harvard Clinical Research Institute (HCRI) has reported that the first patients have been enrolled in the DAPT [dual-antiplatelet therapy] Study, marking the official initiation of the four-year clinical trial to investigate the duration of dual-antiplatelet therapy following drug-eluting stent (DES) implantations.

U.S. e-prescribing network Surescripts has reported that more than 140,000 (23 percent) of all office-based physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants in the United States are now e-prescribing.

Fonar has reported a profit of $1.1 million for the 2009 fiscal year ending June 30, a striking improvement over its fiscal 2008 performance in which the company posted a net loss of $13.5 million.