Lifestyle

With your 1099 or W-2 in hand, you can start on your 2009 federal tax return, which means it's time to look at some changes in the tax law.

The interest rate on subsidized Stafford loans, which is fixed for the life of the loan, is currently 5.6% for the 2009-2010 academic year, down from 6% for the previous year.

The latest Wall Street header means that those who decide to put money into stocks will now be able to do it a lot cheaper, as two heavy hitters have recently announced cuts.

If you own shares in an S&P 500 Index fund, your expense ratio should be the same as those of any other fund that tracks the 500 Index, right? Wrong.

How would you handle negative comments left anonymously on an online physician-grading website?

Physicians who have long fancied the idea of writing a book are often overwhelmed by their goal. After, "Where do I start?" and "How do I make time for this?" their next big question is, "How do I organize my book?"

Any asset protection plan that will truly stand up if challenged must have economic substance. Taken a step further, superior asset protection planning would involve tools that are primarily used by people for non-asset protection purposes.

With the quick progression of EMRs and RCMs, healthcare databases have become large, complex networks of electronic information. Ensuring data reaches its destination in a timely and accurate manner can be critical for the well-being of patients.

If you are a Golfer In Recovery, you will recognize this genre from the golf magazines and, less helpfully, your friends on the tee just after you've sliced one into the woods.

If there can be one financial lesson drawn from 2009, it is to maintain a well-diversified portfolio with different asset classes with low correlations to one another. This ensures you are not dependent on any single asset class to achieve your investment goals.

Worried Toyota owners may find themselves targeted by rival car dealers who are offering rebates if they trade in their Toyotas. Both GM and Ford are offering $1,000 rebates on all their 2009 and 2010 models to Toyota owners.

You're brown-bagging your lunch, but it doesn't seem like you have much extra cash in your wallet. While it's fine to pinch pennies, say personal finance consultants, to save big bucks, you have to think bigger.

According to an IRS bulletin, cash donations made to Haitian relief between January 11 and March 1 can be deducted from your 2009 return.

A dozen roses can easily set you back as much as $100 this year, and if you haven't already ordered flowers for your sweetheart, you can expect to pay a premium on top of that.

Practices often have compliance plans in place that do not include strong audit practices, which is greatly self-defeating.

Physicians who are bearing the entire practice burden are a recipe for disaster, but they can lighten that load by hiring a physician extender.

Calling all depressed or angry physicians who are unhappy with your working lives or frustrated at how your professional world is slowing eroding.

In the past, the IRS has also allowed taxpayers to split tax refunds between as many as three different accounts. This year, you'll be able to convert that refund into inflation-adjusted savings bonds, known as I Bonds.

According to a new global report series by iData Research, the US market for gastrointestinal endoscopic devices is estimated to grow at double-digit rates, reaching over $1.8 billion by 2016.

FDA says request, which represents a 23 percent increase over fiscal year 2010 budget would help the agency transform food safety system, invest in medical product safety, regulatory science.

Only Novartis, Pharmacopeia, and Cytos Biotechnology have novel agents in mid- to late-stage development for hypertension, according to new findings from decision resources.

Recent interest rates on 10-year municipal bonds, combined with their built-in tax advantages, make for a very attractive investment. But underneath the averages were some disturbing default statistics, say bond gurus.

Increasingly, physicians are using price discounts to expand their service offerings to meet the needs of underserved markets, benefiting both their practice and patients in need.

Every one of us has had that "Aha!" moment when we read some pithy phrase that resonates. So pure, so right and, invevitably, "Why didn't I think of that first?"

Spring training gets under way in just a couple of weeks, and a trip to either Florida or Arizona, where the major league teams have their training camps, can make an enjoyable and affordable spring vacation venue.

Are you surprised when I tell you that most physicians with practices and businesses suck at marketing? Me neither. Is it because we weren't taught about its importance? Or that we feel it's tacky and beneath us? Or that it just plain scares the heck out of us?

In return for your instant rebate (which is really a loan), you'll pay a tax preparation fee, loan origination fee, and a fee for setting up a temporary bank account. Doesn't make much sense, does it?

Doctors are afraid of healthcare reform hurting their practices so badly that many feel they may be forced to quit medicine.