Christopher Capozziello for The New York Times

Here's The Latest in Health Care:

•  For over a decade, hospitals across the U.S. have been merging at a rapid pace. Hospitals argue that consolidation benefits patients because of cheaper prices from coordinated services. However, in a recent analysis, mergers have been shown to actually cause an increase in prices on average hospital stays.  Read More

•  The Department of Health and Human Services is looking to remove regulatory barriers to sharing health information and recently passed the HIPAA request for information (RFI) on to the Office of Management and Budget. This is a big step in HIPAA reform as electronic data-sharing is becoming more the norm in health care.  Read More

•  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has received at least 252 cases of acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM. This polio-like disease has affected a number of children between the ages of 2 and 8. The illness starts with a fever and, in some cases, progresses to paralysis.  Read More

•  In March, Uber launched a HIPAA-compliant health platform that allows providers to schedule rides for patients.  Now, Uber is seeking supporters within the industry to help expand its reach and help address access gaps for patients with limited transportation means and no cell phone.  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. Brought to you by pMD, innovators in charge capture, secure messaging, clinical communication, MIPS registry, and care navigation software.

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