A new information-sharing company called Data Commons is expected to ease the electronic exchange of physician profile information after it launches its product this fall. To make this data exchange possible, Data Commons is using the Healthcare Professional Profile of MedBiquitous, a nonprofit standards development organization (SDO) started by Johns Hopkins in 2001. Among the founding members of Data Commons are the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFP), the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP), the Association of American Colleges (AAMC), the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG), the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB), and the National Board of Medical Examiners.
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama - Weekend employees in the Huntsville Hospital system are facing a 50 cent per hour reduction in pay. The savings may be up to $500,000 annually, according to Jeff Samz, chief operating officer at Huntsville Hospital. Samz confirmed to The Huntsville Times/al.com today that the changes will affect 348 employees. The changes will go into effect Oct. 13 and will affect only employees at Huntsville Hospital facilities in Madison County. Samz said Huntsville Hospital has a program for employees who work every weekend to receive a higher rate of pay. The pay scale for working a shift outside of the weekend will not be affected.
For Medicare, this has been a summer of good and bad news. On one hand, the program’s costs continue to rise remarkably slowly. So far this fiscal year, they have gone up by only 2.7 percent in nominal terms, the Congressional Budget Office reports. On the other hand, opposition to the Independent Payment Advisory Board -- created as part of the Affordable Care Act -- continues to mount. And opponents continue to mischaracterize the whole point of the board. What they seem not to understand is that the board is needed mostly so that that Medicare can continue to encourage slower growth in costs. Redesigning the payment system is a fundamentally different approach to containing costs.
(Reuters) - U.S. hospital chain Community Health Systems Inc (CYH.N) said it reached a deal to buy smaller Health Management Associates Inc (HMA.N) for $3.9 billion, but quickly faced opposition from major HMA investor Glenview Capital Management over the price. Community Health said it aims to expand its geographic reach to better capitalize on an overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system under President Barack Obama's reform law. Community Health said it was prepared to do so despite a widening federal investigation into HMA's practices for admitting patients. Shortly after the deal was announced on Tuesday, HMA disclosed that it had received additional government subpoenas in the case and named a new chief executive.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's decision to delay implementation of part of his healthcare reform law will cost $12 billion and leave a million fewer Americans with employer-sponsored health insurance in 2014, congressional researchers said Tuesday. The report by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office is the first authoritative estimate of the human and fiscal cost from the administration's unexpected one-year delay announced July 2 of the employer mandate - a requirement for larger businesses to provide health coverage for their workers or pay a penalty. The analysts said the delay will add to the cost of "Obamacare's" insurance-coverage provisions over the next 10 years.
Congressional Republicans are debating whether to pass budget legislation that would cut off Obamacare funding. That could lead to a government shutdown, unless President Obama decided to sign off on a bill cutting off money for his signature legislative accomplishment (spoiler alert: This is unlikely!). So, let's make the relatively bulletproof assumption that the White House isn't on board with defunding Obamacare. The shutdown happens. And Obamacare implementation … well, it continues. That's according to a new Congressional Research Service report, requested by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and flagged by Post Politics' Rachel Weiner.