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Wall Street Journal Examines Patients' Confusion Over Coverage Of Preventive Exams
As employers increasingly offer no-cost preventive care as a means of controlling health costs, some people under such plans are being charged for services not deemed preventive by the insurer, the Wall Street Journal reports. According to Watson Wyatt Worldwide, 72% of large employers in 2009 cover 100% of preventive care -- such as physicals, colonoscopies or mammograms -- for employees, an increase from 55% of large companies in 2008. The Journal reports that the charges often result from billing errors or from a physician"s office being unaware of an insurer"s procedures. Charges that are the result of billing errors often can be reversed. However, others -- such as a test or treatment not being defined by the insurer as preventive -- force some patients to "wage a protracted battle" to get the charges reversed, according to the Journal. When unexpected charges appear on patients" bills, physicians and employers often receive complaints but they have little control over how insurers classify treatments. The Journal reports that patients can prevent being charged for preventive services by checking with their insurer before seeking care; asking for specific, covered screenings and treatments at physicians" offices; reviewing explanation of benefits forms supplied by insurers; asking supervisors at insurers to review disputed claims; and seeking help from employees in company human re departments (Wilde Mathews, Wall Street Journal, 5/21).
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Enormous Increase In NHS Spending On Management Consultants, UK
The amount of money PCTs (primary care trusts) are spending on management consultants has risen enormously, according to Pulse. In comparison to two years ago, the amount PCTs spend during the last financial year on external consultancy fees has risen threefold, according to figures compiled from 62 trusts.
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FDA Designates Fast Track Status For Apaziquone (EOquin(R)) For Bladder Cancer
Spectrum Pharmaceuticals (NasdaqGM: SPPI) and Allergan, Inc. (NYSE:AGN) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track Designation for the investigation of apaziquone (EOquin®) for the treatment of non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, a form of bladder cancer localized in the surface layers of the bladder that has not spread to the deeper muscle layer. Approximately 70% of all newly diagnosed patients with bladder cancer have non-muscle invasive bladder cancer.1 More than one million patients in the United States and Europe are estimated to be affected by the disease.2
Medical Devices

XCounter Announces Positive Results Following Independent Clinical Evaluation Of XC Mammo -3T Prototype

XCounter AB (publ) (AIM:XCT), a technology leader in the development of tomosynthesis-based 3D medical imaging, announced positive initial results from the first clinical evaluation of its innovative breast screening device XC Mammo - 3T. The device is the world"s first dedicated 3D digital mammography system for the detection of breast cancer, the most common form of cancer found in women. Conducted in April 2009, the independent study by the mammography departments of Danderyd University Hospital and the Karolinska University Hospital evaluated the clinical benefits of using the new tomosynthesis-based 3D imaging compared with traditional 2D digital mammography. The study was based on 150 patients, each selected on the basis they required additional scanning due to suspicious lesions found during initial scans. The results indicate that the XC Mammo - 3T, offers the same sensitivity from one tomosynthesis image compared to two images from 2D digital mammography, despite the fact that the patient selection was based on the 2D images by expert radiologists that currently have limited training in reading tomosynthesis images. Dr. Gunilla Svane, associate professor of radiology at Karolinska University Hospital highlighted the XC Mammo - 3T prototype demonstrated a number of benefits over traditional 2D imaging: "One of the major limitations of 2D images is that it is difficult to discern individual features in dense breasts which mean that we may get false negative findings. The tomosynthesis technique makes each structure stand out in a way which makes it easier to detect tumours. In the 3D images the extent of the feature is also more obvious, particularly for spiculated masses. Micro-calcifications are as clearly visible in the XC Mammo -3T images as they are in 2D. In addition, it is easier to see the extension and the growth pattern of the calcifications in the three dimensional representation than in the 2D images where one is limited to two views." Dr. Edward Azavedo, associate professor of radiology at Karolinska University Hospital continued: "The ability of the XC Mammo -3T images to detect malignancy is just as high as the 2D images. However, the possibility to single out masked lesions in dense breasts also means that we will probably be able to detect more abnormalities and cancers in this category without additional examinations, such as ultrasound. The patient response has been very positive and the patients have stated that the 3D examination was much more comfortable than the regular 2D exam where amongst other things the compression force on the breast in general is higher". Mikael Strindlund, CEO of XCounter said: "The positive results of our first prototype installation in a clinical environment is a major achievement for XCounter. I am particularly encouraged to hear that, unlike other imaging systems, XC Mammo - 3T can confidently detect micro-calcifications, helping to identify abnormalities earlier in their development." The findings from the independent clinical evaluation will be developed into a comprehensive clinical report during 2009. For further information regarding the patient study and patient images see http://www.xcounter.se/clinical_images XCounter AB


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