News From Around the Web
> Because of "unprecedented" demand from consumers who wanted to enroll in Affordable Care Act coverage effective Jan. 1 before the Dec. 15 deadline, the federal government will extend its deadline to 11:59 p.m. Dec. 17, Healthcare.gov CEO Kevin Counihan said in a statement emailed to FierceHealthPayer. "Our goal is to provide access to affordable coverage, and the additional 48 hours will give consumers an opportunity to come back and complete their enrollment for January 1 coverage." Counihan said.
> Carmen Casagranda, who recently became the first chief information officer at Cigna New Zealand, spoke to the publication CIO about how she has used the role to help the insurer transition to a direct-to-consumer model. Article
> The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Manatt Health Solutions have released a nationally comprehensive, public dataset that contains information on all plans offered in the health insurance marketplaces in 2015 and 2016. Website
Healthcare News
> A contentious debate is unfolding within the healthcare industry over whether hospitals should allow patients to record their surgical procedures, STAT reports. Article
Practice Management News
> It's not just a small number of rogue doctors prescribing a majority of the opioids in this country. Contrary to previously held research, most opioids are prescribed by family doctors and general practitioners, according to a research letter published in JAMA Internal Medicine. Article
And finally… The long arms of the law. Article