Morning Headlines 12/29/16
Readmission Rates After Passage of the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program: A Pre–Post Analysis
A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine measuring readmission rates before and after ACA’s Medicare Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program went into effect, finds a reduction of 60 to 90 readmissions per 10,000 discharges.
Abbott gets FTC approval for $25 billion St. Jude deal
Abbott Laboratories wins FTC approval to acquire medical device manufacturer St. Jude for $25 billion, under the condition that the two companies divest their cardiac device business units.
Value-based insurance coming to millions of people in Tricare
The recently-signed Defense Spending Bill includes a mandate to test value-based reimbursement initiatives stemming from the DoD’s Tricare insurance program.
Trump Picks Thomas Bossert as Top Counterterrorism Adviser
President-elect Donald Trump names cybersecurity expert Tom Bossert as his homeland security advisor.

Re: Dr. Craig Joseph's piece on "physical robots, not chatbots, may hold the key to effective emotional and behavioral support…