News From Around the Web
> Older adults with hearing loss were more likely to have been hospitalized in the past year and have more hospitalizations than those with normal hearing, according to a new article in The Journal of the American Medical Association. Hearing loss also was significantly associated with poor self-reported physical and mental health. Announcement
> U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin is stepping down from the post she held for four years, The Birmingham News reported. Article
> The 10-year-old Pennsylvania girl who took on transplant rules received a double-lung transplant from an adult donor after a federal judge intervened last week, reported Reuters. Article
Health Insurance News
> Non-healthcare companies like Wal-Mart and Proctor & Gamble have a very different--and successful--way of looking at consumers, their preferences and desires as well as how they create brand loyalty, Joan Kennedy, Cigna's vice president of consumer health engagement, told FierceHealthPayer. Article
> Premera Blue Cross believes it has found a way to transition from the fee-for-service payment model toward the newer value-based system--a global outcomes contracting program. Article
And Finally… Yes, we have no bananas. Article