News From Around the Web
> A Purple Insights poll shows about one in four older Americans, or about 25 million people, experienced or know someone that experienced excessive or unwanted medical treatment. Poll (.pdf)
> In a 420-5 vote, the House of Representatives approved a $16.3 billion compromise bill to fix the long waits and delays of care within Department of Veterans Affairs, which the Senate is expected to approve by the end of the week, CBS News reported. Article
> Legislation that would extend the enforcement moratorium on the outpatient therapy direct supervision policy for critical access hospitals and rural prospective payment system hospitals with less than 100 beds through 2014 is one step closer to law, after the House Energy & Commerce Committee voted in favor of it Wednesday. Legislation
Health Payer News
> As the health insurance and pharma industries clash over the cost of hepatitis C drugs, a new report finds the high-priced meds will drive up Medicare Part D spending by about $2.9 billion to $5.8 billion next year. Article
> The median length of time Medicare patients spent in hospice care in 2012 was only 19 days, according to a report from the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. Yet for patients with serious illnesses to receive extra care, they must agree to forgo receiving treatment for their disease. Article
And finally… Car ax-cident. Article