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Daily Rounds: Medicare Drops 'End-of-Life' Talks; Defibrillator Overuse; Walking Faster, Living Longer?

A Reversal on End-of-Life Planning Under Medicare - NYTimes.com "The November regulation was issued by Dr. Donald M. Berwick, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and a longtime advocate for better end-of-life care. White House officials who work on health care apparently did not focus on the part of the rule that dealt with advance care planning. The decision to drop the reference to end-of-life care upset some officials at the Department of Health and Human Services, who said the administration ought to promote discussions of such care." (nytimes.com)

Study: Many defibrillator implants went to marginal candidates - CNN.com (CNN) — "More than 20% of patients who received an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator — a high-tech device that produces electrical impulses to regulate heartbeats and prevent life-threatening arrhythmias — in recent years were not good candidates to receive the device, a new study suggests." (CNN)

For older people, walking faster may be linked to living longer, a study finds - latimes.com "Walking requires energy, movement control, and support and places demands on multiple organ systems, including the heart, lungs, circulatory, nervous, and musculoskeletal systems," the authors wrote. "Slowing gait may reflect both damaged systems and a high energy cost of walking." (Los Angeles Times)

New Medical School Model: Adopt A Family To Treat : NPR Besides producing more doctors, many of the new medical schools are also trying to reshape medical education. Florida International University's College of Medicine in Miami is one of these new schools. Its approach to rethinking medical school is a community-based medical curriculum. (npr.org)

Health Care Returns to Top of Lawmakers' Agenda - WSJ.com "Already, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has begun an effort to push Congress to repeal the law's requirement that larger employers provide insurance or pay a penalty." (Wall Street Journal)

This program aired on January 5, 2011. The audio for this program is not available.

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