Cigna, Samsung announce updated Coach by Cigna app; Kansas lawmakers may trade earned income tax for Medicaid expansion;

News From Around the Web

> Samsung and Cigna announced an update to the Coach by Cigna app for Samsung's newest mobile phones and tablets. The app puts health, diet and fitness goals in the context of a user's personality type and aptitude, the companies said. Coach by Cigna also complements Samsung's S Health app. Statement

> Kansas has yet to expand Medicaid, but Democrats and moderate Republicans say they would be willing to eliminate the state's earned income tax credit in exchange for Medicaid expansion, KCUR reported. The discussion comes amid lawmakers' need to come up with $400 million to balance the state budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. Article

> After a brief conference before an Allegheny County judge, Highmark and various Pittsburgh-area community hospitals will sort out how much the insurer owes the hospitals, Pittsburgh Business Times reported. The court ruled that Highmark violated its contracts with the hospitals after cutting Medicare Advantage reimbursements 2 percent as a result of the federal government's sequestration cuts in 2013. Article

Health Finance News

> The average annual health cost for a family of four in the United States has now reached $24,671, according to the latest Milliman Medical Index. That's a 6.3 percent increase over the past year, and the annual cost for a typical family has nearly tripled since 2001. Article

Health IT News

> The global market for telemedicine technologies is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 18.4 percent from the $17.8 billion spent on hardware, software and services through 2020. Article

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