News
A new study released in Health Affairs this month puts the brakes on the runaway physician shortage bandwagon by claiming that shortages could be eliminated by using electronic communication and teams to manage patient panels.
The Federal Communications Commission is providing $400 million in annual funds to enable thousands of new providers across the country to cut costs and improve care through the use of telehealth networks.
During December, CMS estimated that it paid 10,000 Medicare eligible physicians $175 million and 4,200 Medicaid physicians $80 million in EHR incentives. In December, 850 hospitals under the combined programs received $1 billion. Total payments since the program's inception have reached $10.3 billion.
A new healthcare commission announced last week will focus on developing state-level policies aimed at reducing the cost of care while improving quality.
A recent economic impact analysis of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)-member medical schools and teaching hospitals showed that combined they added $587 billion to the nation's economy and supported close to 3.5 million jobs directly or indirectly in 2011.
The National Quality Forum (NQF) has endorsed 14 infectious disease quality measures designed to help providers evaluate patients, manage treatments and improve patient care.
Jonathan Bush, CEO of cloud-based EMR provider athenahealth, talks about his company's growth strategy, how he plans to keep up with competitors and what keeps him up at night.
Insurers, lobbyists and state regulators are weighing in on the federal government's proposed rules for market regulations and rate reviews under the Affordable Care Act, with some worried about the potential for price shocks and market distortions associated with new age rating rules and limitations on geographic price variation.
An analysis by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services show that for the third consecutive year, healthcare spending grew in 2011 by 3.9 percent or a total of $2.7 trillion, the lowest growth rate recorded since CMS began tracking healthcare spending in 1960.
The insurance and technology firm SeeChange Health landed $15 million in capital funding from two investment firms, the Psilos Group and Maverick Capital, who say they sense a shift in the employer-provided insurance market towards more focus on wellbeing and early intervention.