News From Around the Web
> Victims of the Utah healthcare data breach that ultimately impacted close to 800,000 people will receive a second year of free credit monitoring, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. State legislators recently decided to spend $1 million to extend the protection. Additionally, the Utah Department of Health received $300,000 to hire new IT staffers that will be charged with enforcing new data security protocols. Article
> The Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange recently announced plans to publish a new WEDI Report in December to help guide the future of health information exchange. WEDI published an initial report on the subject in 1993 that focused on how to transition to electronic data interchange standards for the sake of cost efficiency. Announcement
Provider News
> Poor communication between inpatient and outpatient healthcare providers doesn't necessarily cause more readmissions, according to a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine. The researchers looked at self-reported communication patterns by discharging healthcare providers on inpatient medical services from September 2010 to December 2011 at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Of 6,635 hospitalizations analyzed, successful direct communication occurred in 2,438 hospitalizations (36.7 percent). Article
> The surety-bond limit for providers of durable medical goods should be increased beyond $50,000, senior members of two Senate committees said in a joint statement in which they noted insufficient bonds mean the government will be unable to recover $42 million in Medicare overpayments since 2009. Article
Medical Imaging News
> A New York radiology practice faces a $2.1 judgment after a jury determined that it failed to properly communicate the findings of a spinal lesion on a CT scan, leading to the permanent loss of sensation in the patient's legs. The jury dismissed claims against three other defendants in the case. Article
And Finally… Missed appointments can cost a fortune sometimes. Article