The number of Britons looking for health treatment abroad dropped by over 40% in the last six months, according to RevaHealth.com, the search engine that lets people find and compare clinics anywhere. The news comes despite the fact that patients can still make huge savings on treatments like cosmetic dental and plastic surgery procedures abroad.

As the job market declines, the population of uninsured Americans swells. And paying for health insurance, along with everything else, weighs heavily on a multitude of minds these days. When it comes to options, COBRA may be the buzzword, but a little-known alternative called short-term medical insurance (STM) may offer a more palatable solution.

Social media influenced nearly 40% of recent hospital or urgent care center patients, with 25 to 34 year olds reporting the most influence (53.2%), according to the Spring 2009 Ad-ology Media Influence on Consumer Choice survey.

In an unprecedented effort to improve health care quality for millions of Californians with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) the California Language Assistance Program (SB 853), the first law of its kind in the country, requires that all health insurers provide interpreters and translated materials at no charge to help patients better navigate the health care system and effectively communicate with their doctors and other health care providers in their own native languages.

In an effort to ensure and protect patient access to approved medical treatments, a petition in support of a Health Insurer Code of Conduct was launched by the Alliance for Patient Access (AfPA). The petition calls for the adoption of a Code of Conduct, currently being drafted by the American Medical Association, which will address the restrictive practices of the managed care industry that undermine the integrity of doctor-patient relationships.

More and more foods are being touted as functional foods. But what are functional foods and which ones are the most beneficial? On April 1, 2009, the American Dietetic Association (ADA) released a position statement on functional foods that said fortified, enriched or enhanced foods can benefit a person’s health when consumed as part of a varied diet. In an effort to further educate the public on such foods, the New York State Dietetic Association (NYSDA) surveyed its leadership and asked them to choose the top functional foods based on health benefits and value.

Healthgrades has named a number of hospitals that represent an elite group that save lives, save money and prevent errors at a higher rate than other U.S. hospitals.

Several organizations supporting Greater Philadelphia’s life sciences sector which comprises Delaware, southern NJ and Philadelphia – are collaborating to sponsor a new research study of the region’s biosciences cluster. The study is being performed by The Milken Institute and the study’s findings will be presented at the 2009 BIO International Convention in Atlanta (on May 19, 2009 at 10:00 a.m.).

A new report from the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation found that the overall distribution of spending on health insurance by employers, individuals, and government remained essentially the same between 2005, one year before passage of Massachusetts health reform, and 2007, one year after lawmakers passed the Massachusetts health care reform law. A critical component of the Massachusetts 2006 health reform statute was that the responsibility of paying for expanded access to health insurance be shared among the three groups.

According to a survey of U.S. and Canadian consumers commissioned by NCR, patients are growing increasingly frustrated with long waits at doctors’ offices and hospitals and are looking to self-service technology as a way to help expedite these interactions.