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		<title>SMA Informatics</title>
		<link>http://www.smainformatics.com</link>
		<description>Delivering superior decision support tools and medical care data resources for healthcare business decision making by our clients.</description>
		<language>en-us</language>
		<copyright>Copyright 1999-2010, SMA Informatics.</copyright>
		<managingEditor>wbrennan@smainformatics.com</managingEditor>
		<webMaster>webmaster@smainformatics.com</webMaster>

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		<url>http://www.smainformatics.com/SMADS/images/sma.png</url>
		<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
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		<description>Delivering superior decision support tools and medical care data resources for healthcare business decision making by our clients.</description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 9/08/2010 - Healthcare Spending Declines for First Time in 60 years]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Non-adjusted spending on hospitals, physicians and pharmaceuticals increased at just a 2.7 percent annual rate during the first half of 2010, according to an examination of data conducted by <i>USA Today</i>. That&#039;s the lowest rate of medical inflation since the federal government began tracking such data in 1959.<a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 9/08/2010 - New OIG Report: &quot;Review of Less-Than-Effective Drugs in the Medicare Part D Program&quot;]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[A new OIG report, &quot;Review of Less-Than-Effective Drugs in the Medicare Part D Program,&quot; examines Medicare Part D coverage of drugs the FDA approved before 1962 but subsequently found to be less than effective, and which should not be covered by Part D.<a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 9/07/2010 - Policy Implications of the Use of Retail Clinics]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Retail clinics, located within larger retail stores, treat a limited number of acute conditions and offer a small set of preventive services.<a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 9/07/2010 - Study says Affordable Care Act will strengthen employer-based health insurance]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[While many are still debating whether the Affordable Care Act will strengthen or break down the employer-based health system, a new study by the Rand Corporation finds the ACA will strengthen it.<a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 9/07/2010 - Report on Health IT in Maryland Hospitals by MHCC]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[The Maryland Health Care Commission (MHCC) developed the Hospital Health Information Technology Survey (survey) to assess the adoption and extent of utilization of health information technology (health IT) among the acute care hospitals in Maryland. The MHCC developed the survey with the assistance of the hospital Chief Information Officers (CIOs).<a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 9/07/2010 - More Americans Taking Rx Drugs]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[<ul style="margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: 0;"><li>Note that almost 40% of patients ages 60 and older used five or more prescription drugs.</li><li>Explain that while this observation is likely related to the prevalence of chronic conditions in this age group such as hyperlipidemia and hypertension, it also increases the possibility of adverse effects related to drug interactions.</li></ul><a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 8/31/2010 - Quality of Care Facts and Figures]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[Despite heightened attention paid to patient safety issues in recent years, the quality of health care across the country is improving slowly. Although incremental gains have been made, the United States overall, and California in particular, are still grappling with questions of quality.<a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 8/31/2010 - The Growing Phenomenon of Retail Clinics]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[<b>A study of 982 retail clinics nationwide, as of August 2008, found:</b><a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 8/27/2010 - Federal Government Releases New Guidelines for Horizontal Mergers]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[The Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice have released revised horizontal merger guidelines — the first time the guidelines have been revised in 18 years, according to a report by the <a href="http://www.hfma.org/templates/blogpost.aspx?id=22555" target="_blank">Healthcare Financial Management Association</a>.<a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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			<title><![CDATA[Press Release - 8/27/2010 - Sebelius Notifies Governors Extra Medicaid Funds Come at Request Only]]></title>
			<link>http://www.smainformatics.com/</link>
			<description><![CDATA[In a letter to the nation’s governors last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius notified states that if they want a share of the <a href="http://www.ltlmagazine.com/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=9B6FFC446FF7486981EA3C0C3CCE4943&amp;nm=ArtIcles%2FNews&amp;type=news&amp;mod=News&amp;mid=9A02E3B96F2A415ABC72CB5F516B4C10&amp;tier=3&amp;nid=4ABDECC28D7745EC9101802574320324" target="_blank">recently approved</a> $16 billion in enhanced Medicaid funds, they’ll have to ask.<a href="http://www.smainformatics.com/" title="Read More..." alt="Read More...">...</a>]]></description>
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