Mercom Capital CEO on health IT funding; Mammography call back rates higher in hospitals than medical offices

News From Around the Web

Healthcare Informatics spoke with Mercom Capital Group CEO Raj Prabhu about why healthcare IT has so much venture capital funding lately and what innovators can take away from the report that healthcare companies raised $623 million in VC funding in the second quarter of 2013. "We're seeing more money into mobile health, telehealth, some of it's going towards social media. They are looking at technologies that interact with consumers. At the same time, it's coincided with the release of the government data that's spurred these technologies," Prabu said. Interview

Health Payer News

> Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey is transforming healthcare delivery models and lowering costs through its patient-centered medical home program, which it announced Wednesday already has begun reducing hospitalizations and increasing preventive care, among other benefits. Comparing how care was provided to the 70,000 PCMH members with non-PCMH members, New Jersey's largest insurer said the program provided "impressive improvements in care and reduced costs," according to an announcement. Article

> WellPoint's revenue could jump by $20 billion come 2016 as a result of the healthcare reform law, particularly Medicaid expansion and health insurance exchanges, according to the insurer's second-quarter earnings report released last week. Growth opportunities created by the reform law are "more compelling than we have seen in several years," WellPoint CEO Joseph Swedish told analysts, according to the Associated Press. The insurer projected that expanding Medicaid and selling plans on exchanges could help increase its revenue from $70 billion to $90 billion. Article

Medical Imaging News

> Mammography call back rates could be higher in hospitals than at community medical offices, according to a new study published online in Radiology. According to the study's authors, the variations in call back rates can be attributed to differences among patients. They also suggest that there may be a limit to the use of call back rates as a quality measure when assessing mammography. Article

And Finally... So, you didn't ask for delivery? Article