News From Around the Web
> The RFID in Healthcare Consortium has announced the winners for its first-ever Intelligent Hospital awards, recognizing users of advanced wireless technologies for efficiency and greater patient care, Healthcare IT News reports. The winners--which include the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Integrated Service Network 11 for improving regulatory compliance--have been invited to participate in the Intelligent Hospital Awards Ceremony, which will be held at the HIMSS13 conference and exhibition in New Orleans in March. Article
> Healthcare software and cloud solutions company Recondo Technology, which serves 450 U.S. hospitals, has received a $20 million investment from Bregal Sagemount to accelerate its healthcare sector growth. Recondo increased revenue by 94 percent last year, according to VentureBeat. Article
> In London, entrepreneurs participated in an event called "Dragon's Den" to help bring health technology innovators out from "under the radar," in early January, according to The Guardian. The host, Healthbox, founded by a U.S. venture capital firm, aims to "bring early-stage health technology innovations to a wider audience by building a network of innovators, investors, private and public providers, health professionals, business experts and government representatives." Article
Health Insurance News
> The Supreme Court sided with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services when the high court on Tuesday refused to allow extensions for Medicare reimbursement appeals beyond the usual 180 days or three years for good cause. The blow essentially hits the wallets of 18 hospitals, which filed suit against HHS for what they say are Medicare underpayments worth millions of dollars. Article
> Hospital complaints that were once public are no longer accessible in Virginia. Ordered by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Virginia Department of Health pulled the records after the Associated Press in October found inconsistencies in a report about a case at Inova Fairfax Hospital, the AP reported. Article
Health Provider News
> Now that Michigan lawmakers have reintroduced legislation to convert Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan into a nonprofit mutual insurance company, the state's insurer of last resort is raising concerns about the bill's timeline. Article
> Insurance regulators are no longer monitoring UnitedHealth's claims payment practices after they concluded the nation's largest insurer met all requirements under a settlement agreement. Article
And Finally... Like goats in Australia should know, "Don't bite off more than you can chew." Article