News From Around the Web
> New Orleans-based Ochsner Health System has successfully integrated its electronic health record with Apple's HealthKit, it announced this week. Robert Bober, director of cardiac molecular imaging at Ochsner Medical Center, called the situation "ideal for patients with chronic diseases such as heart failure, hypertension and diabetes." Announcement
> Researchers believe that the National Institutes of Health's data analytics policies increase information sharing, according to a poll published recently in the journal PLOS One, Health IT Analytics has reported. Article
> Medical equipment supply company Becton Dickinson & Co. will acquire CareFusion for $12 billion in cash and stock, Reuters has reported. Article
> GE has appointed John Flannery as the president and CEO of GE Healthcare. He was previously the senior vice president of business development at the company. The move comes after the healthcare division shrank a bit during the first half. Article
> A pilot program to remotely monitor blood pressure and weight for congestive heart failure patients is being expanded. The program shows how patients and healthcare providers can work together via technology to reduce hospital readmission. The program is through health plan Cigna-Healthspring in partnership with Intel-GE Care Innovations, a 50-50 joint venture started in 2010 between and GE Healthcare designed to connect healthcare for chronic disease management to the home. Article
Health Insurance News
> Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., the nation's largest private employer, announced yesterday that it will stop offering health insurance coverage in January to about 30,000 part-time employees who work fewer than 30 hours a week. Article
Provider News
> Hospital leaders discussed their individual organizations' strategies for integrating post-acute providers such as skilled nursing facilities into the care continuum as part of a panel discussion Tuesday at U.S. News & World Report's Hospital of Tomorrow conference. Article
And Finally... Breaking Bad: U.K. Article