Republican budget has big Medicare, Medicaid changes; IOM report calls for EMRs to have more info on gay patients;

> The Republican Congressional delegation is expected to release a budget on Tuesday that would drastically alter the Medicare and Medicaid programs, reports the Los Angeles Times. Among the changes: shifting more Medicare enrollees into private plans and offering bloc grants to states for their Medicaid enrollees. Article

> Healthcare employment continued to increase in March, up by 37,000 jobs. Healthcare added an average of 24,000 jobs per month over the last 12 months, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics reported April 1. Press release

> On the heels of an Institute of Medicine report that called for more federal research and data on health issues unique to gays and lesbians, the Obama Administration on Friday announced several key health recommendations, including collecting health data through a federally-funded survey. Information