Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Tech Companies, Hospitals And Labs Blocking Electronic Exchange Of Medical Records
Since President Obama took office, the federal government has poured more than $29 billion into health information technology and told doctors and hospitals to use electronic medical records or face financial penalties. But some tech companies, hospitals and laboratories are intentionally blocking the electronic exchange of health information because they fear that they will lose business if they share information on patients with competing providers, administration officials said. In addition, officials said, some sellers of health information technology try to 鈥渓ock in鈥 customers by making it difficult for them to switch to competing vendors. (Pear, 5/26)
The cost of data breaches is rising for companies around the world as sophisticated thieves target valuable financial and medical records, according to a study released on Wednesday. The total average cost of a data breach is now $3.8 million, up from $3.5 million a year ago, according to a study by data security research organization Ponemon Institute, paid for by International Business Machines Corp. (5/27)
Six new proton-beam centers are set to start delivering state-of-the-art radiation to cancer patients around the country by year鈥檚 end. ... The projects, long in the works, will enter an uncertain market. Proton-beam therapy, a highly precise form of radiation, has been dogged by a lack of evidence that it is better than traditional radiation despite costing significantly more. Many insurers including UnitedHealth Group Inc. and Aetna Inc. have stopped covering it for prostate cancer, once seen as a main source of patients. One center closed last year and several others have racked up millions of dollars in losses. (Beck, 5/26)
[Amy] Reynolds is one of thousands of registered nurses who travel the country helping hospitals and other health care facilities in need of experienced, temporary staff. With an invigorated national economy and millions of people gaining health coverage under the Affordable Care Act, demand for nurses such as Reynolds is at a 20-year high, say industry analysts. That鈥檚 meant Reynolds has her pick of hospitals and cities when it鈥檚 time for her next assignment. And it鈥檚 driven up stock prices of the largest publicly traded travel-nurses companies, including San Diego-based AMN Healthcare Services and Cross Country Healthcare of Boca Raton, Fla. (Galewitz, 5/27)
