News From Around the Web
> The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT is putting out a call for new Health IT Policy and Standards Committee members. According to an announcement, the committees are "seeking applications from the spectrum of stakeholders interested in the implementation of health IT and health IT policy." Announcement
> Athenahealth's annual revenue is up 41 percent from last year, the company announced this week. Total revenue for the full year 2013 was $595 million, compared to 2012 revenue of $422.3 million, an increase of 41 percent. Announcement
Health Finance News
> Medicaid providers in Alaska state a faulty claims processing system has put them on shaky financial ground as they await payments held up for months, reported the Alaska Dispatch. Article
> Growth in healthcare spending by state and local governments doubled the overall growth of healthcare spending nationwide in 2012, illustrating the pressures such entities are under to meet obligations in that arena. Altogether, healthcare spending nationwide increased about 4 percent in 2012, but rose 8 percent among state and local governments that same year. Article
Health Insurance News
> Insurers, feeling the financial pinch of reform implementation, are dropping specialty and community hospitals from provider networks and driving customers to providers that accept lower rates in exchange for higher patient volumes, Bloomberg reported. The move is an unexpected consequence of reform, the article noted, which has payers scrambling to keep a lid on premiums while faced with new taxes, added benefits and restrictions on age-based premium variation ushered in by the Affordable Care Act. Article
And Finally... No more Batman and ... Bee Sting? Um, say it ain't so? Article