White House dismisses Republican navigator concerns; ACO tablet program cuts patient readmission rates;

News From Around the Web

> Anthem Blue Cross has reached a new multi-year agreement with Sutter Health, allowing the California healthcare system to remain part of the Anthem network, Sutter announced yesterday. Announcement

> The White House on Monday dismissed the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee's navigator concerns as "one more data point in the Republican obsession with sabotaging ObamaCare," The Hill's Healthwatch reported. Article

> About 10,231 San Diego County residents bought policies from Covered California in October and November, for 9 percent of the 109,296 enrollments statewide, according to U-T San Diego. Of the 8,726 subsidized enrollees, 30 percent chose Health Net, 22 percent Blue Shield, 22 percent Kaiser Permanente, 17 percent Anthem Blue Cross, 9 percent Sharp Health Plan and less than 1 percent chose Molina Health Care. Article

Health IT News

> Applying big-data analytics strategies to clinical operations and care delivery, the University of California Irvine Medical Center is focusing on reducing readmissions, speeding up research and tracking patient statistics in real time. Article

> Hackensack (N.J.) Alliance gave its patients their own 4G tablets to better coordinate and manage their care--an investment that the ACO organization says is paying off. Article

And Finally... "Uptalk" no longer just for Valley girls. Article