
Here's The Latest in Health Care:
• A hepatitis A outbreak has been linked to strawberries at a smoothie chain across seven states and has sickened 89 people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The infected, frozen strawberries were imported from Egypt. Tropical Smoothie Cafe has since switched to another supplier and apologized, in a statement, to the infected persons. Read More
• According to experts, preventing medical errors begins with a shift from a production-based model to an integrated model, focusing on ways to treat the whole patient and promote shared decision-making. In the current industry model, providers are incentivized to churn through patients to make money but are now encouraged to do more and understand that a change to patient-centered, whole-person care is necessary. Read More
•With the Quality Payment Program under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act set to start on January 1, 2017, CMS chief, Andy Slavitt, outlines four options for clinicians to comply and avoid a negative payment adjustment in 2019. The four options will also be described in detail in the final rule slated for release this November. Read More
• This year, pediatricians recommend giving the flu vaccination in the form of a shot rather than via nasal spray. That's because the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices found that the nasal spray vaccination, FluMist, was only 3 percent effective in children aged 2 through 17 during last year's flu season, while injected flu vaccinations protected about two-thirds of children in the same age group. Read More
Each Friday, Signor Goat reports the latest from the week in health care. Check back next Friday for your dose of our little medical corner of health care news.