News From Around the Web
> National Coordinator for Health IT Farzad Mostashari, in a letter to the editor published in the New York Times this week, touts the importance of continued innovation in healthcare. His letter was in response to Thomas Friedman's May 26 column, "Obamacare's Other Surprise." Letter
> The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recently reviewed the role of clearinghouses in the ICD-10 transition process. In a news announcement, CMS said that clearinghouses can identify problems that lead to claims being rejected, and also can provide guidance about fixing rejected claims. Announcement
Provider News
> As the immigration debate wages on, there may be another reason to take a hard look at the often-debated policy--immigrant workers are bolstering Medicare's finances by contributing billions more than immigrant retirees actually use in medical services, researchers found in Health Affairs. Article
> A new analysis from CMS showed progress on reducing hospital readmission rates. CMS found all-cause, 30-day readmissions for Medicare patients dropped to 18.4 percent in 2012 from 19 percent during the previous five years. That means hospitals saw about 70,000 fewer readmissions during last year. Article
Health Insurance News
> Even though the health reform law was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court and is moving steadily along in terms of implementation, some staunch opponents still are working on repealing the legislation. Instead of lobbying Congress or suing through the court system to reach a full repeal of the law, however, opponents are taking steps to block the health insurance exchanges, which are key provisions to the whole law, from success. Article
And Finally... Freedom: So close, yet so far away. Article