Month: March 2012

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 1 in 88 children in the U.S. has been identified as having an autism spectrum disorder that hinders their ability to socially interact and communicate, an increase of 23% since the last report two years ago, according to a study released Thursday of 14 sites, including southeastern Wisconsin. In the 10 southeastern Wisconsin counties that contributed data, the prevalence was estimated at 1 in 128 children. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 3/30)

Urologists who teach at medical schools in the Midwest are paid $100,000 a year less than their counterparts in the western United States. In contrast, dermatologists in the Midwest can make $40,000 a year more than their counterparts in the West. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 3/29)

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) pledged to add 250,000 private sector jobs in the state by the end of his four-year term, and as Democrats try to recall him and throw him out of office, a central part of his message to voters has been that he has made progress in that area. But with new employment figures showing sluggish growth, Walker is placing the blame on an unlikely culprit: federal health care reform. (HUFFINGTON POST, 3/29)

The Badger State is home to a thriving, billion-dollar medical imaging industry that reverberates throughout the state's economy, providing jobs at companies large and small. And that enterprise is only going to grow and spawn more technologies, thanks largely to a well-established collaboration between UW-Madison scientists and Waukesha-based GE Healthcare, officials from both institutions said Tuesday at a Wisconsin Innovation Network luncheon. (WISBUSINESS.COM, 3/28)

Aurora Health Care said Tuesday it has opened the outpatient cancer center at Aurora Medical Center Grafton. The 30,000-square-foot center, projected last year to cost $11 million, excluding equipment, will offer chemo and radiation therapy. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 3/28)

It was 1983 when seven independent pharmacies in Madison joined forces to create a group to get better pricing on pharmaceuticals, gauze, sunglasses, greeting cards, candy bars and anything else found in a pharmacy. Today, Independent Pharmacy Group, founded by Mike Flint, who would go on to purchase Mallatt Pharmacy in Madison, now has 4,000 members in all 50 states and is the largest group purchasing organization for independent pharmacies in the country. (WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL, 3/27)

Even before the arguments have been heard, Wisconsin’s Attorney General said Monday morning that he thought the Supreme Court’s justices probably have already made up their minds about the constitutionality of President Barack Obama’s landmark health care reform law. “I’m a firm believer that it’s probably been decided already,” J.B. Van Hollen, one of those seeking to overturn the law, said on “Fox & Friends.” (POLITICO, 3/27)

One of the most popular provisions of federal health care reform hinges on the most unpopular provision. One requires health insurers to cover people with pre-existing health problems. The other requires almost everyone to buy health insurance or pay a fine. (JOURNAL SENTINEL, 3/26)

Sitting in his still sparsely decorated Capitol Hill office, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson acknowledged he most likely would not be there if Democrats had not pushed through their health care reform bill two years ago. When President Barack Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law on March 23, 2010, Johnson said that was his call to action. (GANNETT, 3/26)