Morning Headlines 12/9/15

Public health gets least money, but does most

Karen DeSalvo, MD and acting assistant secretary of health discusses the need for increased public health funding, noting that 97 percent of funds are spent on care delivery, while 80 percent of people’s health needs are influenced by what happens outside of the doctor’s office.

Debunking common myths about healthcare consumerism

A review of McKinsey studies focused on healthcare consumerism finds that patient satisfaction is most influenced by nurse empathy and keeping patients informed about their treatments.

Hospitals Face Budget Woes With Switch To Electronic Records

Brigham and Women’s Hospital falls $53 million short of its projected 2015 surplus, blaming in part its Epic implementation, which was expected to cost $47 million but ultimately ran $27 million over budget due to lower patient volumes and coding issues.

Startups ZocDoc, Oscar to Help Obama Advertise Obamacare

ZocDoc and Oscar Health have both been contracted to begin running Healthcare.gov ads in hopes of bolstering sign ups as the final weeks of open enrollment wind down.