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1. Hospital Debt Collector Barred from Minnesota. A Chicago-based debt collection company has agreed to pay $2.5 million in fines and stop doing business in Minnesota for 2 years following an investigation into alleged strong-arm collection tactics used on hospital patients.
2. Newer Pertussis Vaccines May Not Work Over Time. The protection provided by acellular pertussis vaccines (DTaP) as a first dose may fall short of that provided by first-dose whole-cell pertussis vaccines (DTwP), which were phased out in the 1990s because of higher rates of adverse events.
3. More $$ Spent on Late-Stage Cancer Scans. Use of diagnostic imaging in late-stage cancer increased while orders for imaging in early-stage disease declined over a 5-year period.
