News From Around the Web
> Michigan Health Connect, a statewide health information exchange, has announced it will deliver diagnostic-quality images to its member provider organizations, Healthcare Informatics reports. "The product, eHealth Connect Image Exchange, allows members to view and collaborate in real-time on X-rays, CT and MR scans, ultrasound studies and ECGs," the article states. Article
> Improvements in the quality of healthcare cost transparency websites and applications could help U.S. residents feel better about low-cost healthcare services, according to a new study by Catalyst for Payment Reform. Report
EMR News
> Adding an autism module to an electronic health record's clinical decision support system can improve screening rates for autism spectrum disorders and identify problems at a younger age, according to a new study in the journal Infants and Young Children. Researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine and the Regenstrief Institute used an open-source Child Health Improvement through Computer Automation system (CHICA) to personalize and automate the autism screening process. Article
Health Finance News
> Three rural hospitals have closed in Georgia this year due to ongoing financial woes, and more than a dozen others may shut their doors soon, Georgia Public Broadcasting reported. Hometown Health, a trade group representing 70 rural hospitals in the Peach State, made that dire prediction because many of its members have been operating in the red and have had heavy loads of uncompensated care. Article
> The Office of Inspector General has recommended that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services develop a measure to determine the rate nursing home residents are being admitted to hospitals due to a deterioration of their medical condition. According to OIG, about one-quarter of Medicare recipients were transferred into hospitals from Medicare-eligible nursing homes in fiscal 2011, costing the program at least $14 billion. Article
And Finally… Forget to vote early and often. Article