05/22/2013
Mount Sinai Medical Center CEO Steve Sonenreich says that he plans to publish online the prices that the hospital charges commercial insurers for diagnoses and care. Other health systems also should disclose such data, Sonenreich says. Miami Herald, Bloomberg Businessweek.
05/21/2013
New Federal Communications Commission rules will require wireless carriers and text messaging providers to send bounce-back texts to users who try to text 911 where text-to-911 services are unavailable. FierceMobileHealthcare, Telecompaper.
05/20/2013
During a House committee presentation last week, IBM representatives showcased the health care knowledge of its supercomputer Watson. Lawmakers at the event expressed support for Watson and health care innovation. Washington Post's "Innovations."
05/15/2013
A study by communications agency Ideahaus that was published in the Journal of Communication in Healthcare finds that health care communications professionals prefer using YouTube over Twitter and other social media websites. Healthcare IT News.
05/14/2013
Mana Health will receive $15,000 as the first place winner of a New York eHealth Collaborative challenge. The contest asked software developers to build an online portal that would allow New York residents to access and share their health records. Health Imaging, NYeC release.
05/13/2013
A new online tool created by ProPublica allows the public for the first time to search, sort and compare information on physicians and other health care providers who prescribe medication under Medicare Part D. The tool -- called Prescriber Checkup -- accompanies ProPublica's analysis of CMS data on Medicare Part D prescribing patterns. ProPublica/Washington Post, ProPublica.
05/10/2013
The Office of Management and Budget has issued a new policy requiring federal agencies to make data more accessible and searchable. The Obama administration also released an online resource to aid research on links between climate change and health. FierceHealthIT et al.
05/09/2013
CVS Caremark and five health insurers will begin to require their business associates to assess their information security by participating in an independent security-assessment program developed by the Health Information Trust Alliance. Modern Healthcare, HITRUST release.
05/08/2013
For the first time, CMS has made available an online data source showing hospital charges for certain common medical procedures. Federal officials also announced $87 million in grants to help local governments make health care pricing data available online. New York Times et al.
05/03/2013
CMS said it intends to remove data on eight hospital-acquired conditions from its Hospital Compare website in part because some of the measures are redundant. The agency is expected to identify a new list of hospital-acquired conditions to report on the site. Bloomberg.
05/02/2013
A Vanguard Communications report examining negative online doctor reviews finds that the most common complaints relate to bedside manner and customer service. Only 21.5% of the negative reviews criticized a doctor's medical skills. Becker's Hospital Review, eWeek.
05/01/2013
A report from Buck Consultants and WorldatWork finds that 52% of surveyed employers are weighing the use of mobile or online games to boost their employees' health care engagement over the next three years. Crain's Business Insurance/Modern Healthcare, Becker's Hospital Review.
04/25/2013
To enhance its Hospital Compare website, CMS has added new spreadsheets that provide information on several quality measures and allow consumers to customize how data are sorted. The interactive tables are among several recent upgrades to CMS' website. HealthLeaders Media.
04/22/2013
Companies and advocacy organizations are developing mobile applications and online tools to help caregivers manage care for individuals with certain conditions. Such tools can help caregivers track medications and learn more about a particular disease. AP/Sacramento Bee.
04/22/2013
In a perspective piece for the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, Jingquan Li of Texas A&M University writes that health-related social networking websites should have privacy frameworks in place to let users monitor and control how their personal health data are shared. FierceHealthIT.