News From Around the Web
> DirectTrust has launched a Partnership for Patients Program to make it easier for patients and healthcare consumers to securely share their health information with providers via secure email. Unlike ordinary email, DirectTrust protects the information through encryption and identity assurance. The program aims to attract 1 million people to the program. Announcement
> Clinicians at Vancouver Island-based Nanaimo Regional General Hospital are refusing to use their new Cerner electronic health record system just nine weeks after its launch and after a year of testing, according to an article at province.com. The doctors claim the system is flawed and makes mistakes, and could adversely impact patient safety. Article
Health Finance News
> Freestanding emergency rooms are touted as an alternative to more expensive forms of care, such as the sunken costs of a full hospital. However, they may also drive up total healthcare costs as well. Article
> A recent Internal Revenue Service ruling threatens to hamstring the Obama administration's high hopes for the accountable care organization (ACO) model, according The New York Times. In the ruling, the IRS denied a tax exemption for an ACO that coordinates commercially-insured patients' care. Article
Health IT News
> Computer programs can now help physicians better predict illness in patients, but that doesn't mean doctors want technology to do their jobs for them, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. One such physician, John Beasley, M.D., a family doctor in Verona, Wisconsin, tells the publication that he often ignores the diagnosis calculator that pops up on his screen. Article
And Finally ... I hope they donate their winnings to their former boss. Article