Laura Joszt, MA

The federal government intends to modernize the US health information technology (IT) infrastructure so patients, providers, and communities can achieve health and wellness goals.

Despite the reported slowdown in healthcare spending, consumers are unlikely to have noticed such a change because of the sharp increase in deductibles.

Meaningful use stage 3 is not scheduled to start until 2017, but 41 medical societies are calling to delay the start of stage 3, especially given recent changes to Medicare.

The implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has reduced the number of uninsured Americans and created significant gains in health coverage among racial and ethnic minorities. However, the ability of Obamacare to reduce racial and ethnic disparities has been limited.

Researchers are proposing a new model to integrate clinical and community services for the purpose of preventing and controlling obesity, as well as related chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes.

Multispecialty medical groups and integrated delivery systems expect fee-for-service payments to decline 24% in the next 2 years, according to results of a survey from the American Medical Group Association.

While employers will continue to shift healthcare costs to employees, a new report found that the underlying cost growth, which employers would expect if they did not make changes such as raising deductibles or switching carriers, will slow in 2016.

Women bear greater costs related to Alzheimer's disease (AD) compared with men for 2 reasons: they are at greater risk of developing the AD and cost Medicare and Medicaid more, and they are more likely to provide informal, unpaid care to family members with AD.

Robert Califf, MD, current deputy commissioner for medical products and tobacco at the FDA, has been nominated to lead the FDA and take over as commissioner. Margaret Hamburg, MD, stepped down from the position in February after nearly 6 years at the helm.

The American public's perennially low opinion of the pharmaceutical industry has gotten even lower, and it seems unlikely that public opinion will gain much ground over the next year.

People with insurance have significantly higher probabilities of being diagnosed for diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, and hypertension than people without insurance.

Democratic president hopeful Bernie Sanders took aim at the pharmaceutical industry with a new bill that would provide the government with negotiating power, allow the import of lower-cost drugs from Canada, and requires reporting of information that affects drug pricing.

Avoidable risk factors to health are taking a growing toll on global health, according to an analysis of 79 risks in 188 countries. The results were published in The Lancet.

Treatment for high blood pressure should be more aggressive with a target lower than commonly recommended by guidelines, according to a study from the National Institutes of Health.

House Republicans won a minor victory in a new lawsuit against the Obama administration for the legality of spending money from the Treasury for health insurers under the Affordable Care Act. Arguments will be heard this fall.

A draft report on the value-based price benchmark for the newly approved PCSK9 inhibitors for lowering bad cholesterol found that Repatha and Praluent should cost approximately 85% less than their list prices.

Despite concerns, consumer-driven health plans do not cause vulnerable populations to avoid care, but there are still opportunities for them to use their plans more wisely, according to a Cigna study.

CMS has released a new plan to address health equity in Medicare, which includes 6 priority areas aimed at reducing health disparities over the next 4 years.

Analyses from the American Medical Association determined the potential Aetna-Humana and Anthem-Cigna mergers will diminish competition in at least 23 states and more than 100 metropolitan areas.

An analysis of Medicare Advantage (MA) plan market shares finds little competition in counties across the nation, according to a report published by The Commonwealth Fund.

Price transparency in healthcare has become more important as consumers increasingly engage in healthcare decision making and are asked to pay more for their care.

CMS will test whether providing Medicare Advantage plans with the ability to integrate value-based insurance design increases enrollee satisfaction, improves enrollee clinical outcomes, reduces overall plan expenditures, and results in lower plan bids, thus saving money for Medicare and beneficiaries.

HHS is seeking new protections for vulnerable populations to protect them from discrimination and ensure they have equal access to healthcare and health coverage.

Patients age 65 years and older who are hospitalized for the flu can benefit from the use of early antiviral treatment, according to a new report from the CDC. The early use of flu antiviral medications reduces hospital length of stay and risk of needing extended care after discharge.

CMS is making available grant funding for 100 organizations to provide enrollment assistance during the third open enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act.

Although Repatha and Praluent, the first of a new class of cholesterol-lowering drugs, come with a hefty price in the United States, they will cost 50% to 60% less in Europe.

In 1 month, the US healthcare system will transition to International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, whether or not physicians are ready to implement the new coding system.

A large majority of healthcare organizations have been compromised by a cyberattack during the last 2 years and only half believe they are adequately prepared for preventing these attacks.

Research from The Commonwealth Fund found little indication that risk segmentation is causing adverse effects in the insurance market either in coverage sold on the exchanges and coverage sold off the exchanges.

In the second quarter of 2015 the healthcare spending growth rate was 5.9%, a decline from 6.6% in the first quarter of the year, but the health spending growth rate is still 2 percentage points higher than rates experienced between 2009 and 2013.