News From Around the Web
> An upcoming regulatory framework to address patient safety issues around health IT, including medical devices and electronic health records, needs to place an emphasis on cybersecurity concerns, says federal adviser Julian Goldman, M.D., speaking to HealthcareInfoSecurity. Before the government shutdown, the Office of the National Coordinator of Health IT, the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Communications Commission were working on co-developing the risk-based regulatory framework for health IT, due in January. Article
> New research out of the University of Chicago is "laying the groundwork" for touch-sensitive prosthetic limbs that could convey real-time sensory information to amputees via a direct interface with the brain. The research, published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, marks an important step toward new technology that could increase the dexterity and clinical viability of robotic prosthetic limbs. "To restore sensory motor function of an arm, you not only have to replace the motor signals that the brain sends to the arm to move it around, but you also have to replace the sensory signals that the arm sends back to the brain," senior study author Sliman Bensmaia, Ph.D, an assistant professor in the department of organismal biology and anatomy at UC, said in an announcement. "We think the key is to invoke what we know about how the brain of the intact organism processes sensory information, and then try to reproduce these patterns of neural activity through stimulation of the brain." Announcement
Provider News
> As the government shutdown enters its third week, three Republican senators have said that attempting to tie funding the government to repealing healthcare reform was a misstep. Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said his party overreached, telling Fox News' Chris Wallace that repealing legislation that was "central to the president's agenda" was "not...achievable." Meanwhile, Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.) on ABC's "This Week" said the repeal effort was "unrealistic" and that Republicans in Congress "never had the leverage through the shutdown." Article
> Health insurance exchanges could negatively affect nonprofit hospitals next year, Moody's Investors Services said in a new report. Commercially insured patients will likely start obtaining health coverage through exchange plans, which could have lower provider reimbursement rates. Other risks facing nonprofit hospitals include uncertain contracts between exchange plans and hospitals and a growth in bad debt, Moody's said in a statement. Article
Mobile Health News
> One fast-growing telehealth service is embracing mobile devices as a platform for consumers to access healthcare. Boston-based doctor-on-demand provider American Well has announced that consumers can now connect with a physician using their iPad, iPhone or Android smartphones and tablets. Doctors accessed via the app provide users with live video consults 24 hours a day, seven days a week in 44 states and the District of Columbia. Article
And Finally... If this partisan tomfoolery keeps up, this guy's beard might actually become more than stubble. Article