News From Around the Web
> Defects in the Siemens MicroScan panels have lead to a huge U.S. recall of the product, according to an announcement by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. According to the FDA, the panels "are reporting false susceptible and false intermediate results for imipenem and meropenem antimicrobial susceptibility testing when using the MicroScan WalkAway System." The defect, FDA says, could lead to treatment with an inappropriate antibiotic, or delays to appropriate therapy. Announcement
> The National Institutes of Health will award $25 million to four research projects that plan to study the value of DNA analysis in newborns, the organization announced Sept. 4. "Genomic sequencing has potential to diagnose a vast array of disorders and conditions at the very start of life," Alan Guttmacher, director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, said in a statement. "But the ability to decipher an individual's genetic code rapidly also brings with it a host of clinical and ethical issues, which is why it is important that this program explores the trio of technical, clinical, and ethical aspects of genomics research in the newborn period." Announcement
Health Payer News
> In a big marketing coup, Maryland officials announced Tuesday they are partnering with the Baltimore Ravens to help promote the state's health insurance exchange. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services has tried to join forces with the National Football League to help educate the public about the online marketplaces but was unable to secure a deal. Article
> Employers, both big and small, are increasingly moving toward using health insurance exchanges to provide their workers' health benefits. The companies offer their employees a fixed amount of money so they can shop for and select a plan available from an online marketplace, reported the Wall Street Journal. Article
EMR News
> Epic and Cerner combined captured more than three-fourths of new large hospital (200-bed plus) electronic health record system contracts in 2012, according to a recently published report from Orem, Utah-based research firm KLAS. According to the report's authors, the HITECH Act "drastically" changed the acute-care EHR market, with mainstays like GE Healthcare and QuadraMed pretty much out of the picture. Allscripts, Meditech and Siemens were being "squeezed out," with each losing more hospitals in 2012 than they gained. Article
And Finally... What's next, fried salad? Article