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Now researchers in the U.K. are using maps to study variations in the way health services are delivered. The approach, pioneered at Dartmouth in the U.S., shows that the care provided can be quite different even when doctors are paid salaries.

The annual enrollment period for privately run Medicare Advantage plans and prescription drug benefits starts Saturday, rather than in mid-November as in past years. The deadline for enrollment has also been pushed up — to Dec. 7 from Dec. 31.

Hospitals seeking to connect with immigrants wary of the heath care system are turning to a trusted institution for help. By partnering with churches, the hospitals are finding ways to get preventive care and screening to people who otherwise might forgo the help.

Consumers aren't the only ones paying attention to the quality ratings of private Medicare coverage. Health plans stand to make big bucks by scoring higher in Medicare's rating system.

Sooner or later most people who are trying to make a medical decision have to decipher statistics that describe how successful a particular treatment is likely to be. It's not as hard a task as you might think.

As Medicare moves to link hospital payments to the costs and quality of care, hospitals that serve large minority populations could get hurt. That's one implication of an analysis that looks at the cost and quality of care given at individual hospitals across the nation.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the No. 3 Republican in the House, has made it clear that he wants President Obama's health overhaul law repealed. But conservative lawmakers in his hometown of Bakersfield, Calif., and elsewhere in the state are expanding insurance coverage for low-income adults.

Newt Gingrich invoked Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, former head of the National Cancer Institute, in criticizing proposed changes in prostate cancer screening. A close watcher of von Eschenbach at NCI questioned whether he is the right person to lean on.

USDA's proposed limits on starchy vegetables like the potato in school lunch have spurred the potato lobby, school food service directors, and members of Congress into action. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine is stressing the spud's potassium and dietary fiber.

The plans offered by health insurance companies are an alternative to traditional, government fee-for-service Medicare. Nearly 12 million seniors are in the plans, about one-quarter of all Medicare beneficiaries.