In an effort to more directly engage patients in the medical product regulatory process, the FDA launched the FDA Patient Network website on April 23.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a proposed rule that would update FY 2014 Medicare payment policies and rates for inpatient stays at general acute care and long-term care hospitals (LTCHs). Released on April 26, the proposed rule is designed to reduce the growth in healthcare costs while improving the quality of patient care, according to the agency.

Instead of layering on additional regulations for exchanges, the American Hospital Association (AHA) urged the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Commissioner for Health IT (ONC) to focus on facilitating the implementation of payment and delivery programs already underway in Stage 1 and Stage 2 of Meaningful Use EHR incentive programs.

Another study indicates a disturbing lack of preparation for the transition to ICD-10, Marilyn Tavenner’s bid to be confirmed as head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services hits a roadblock and telemedicine is making great strides across the country. Those are a few things to know about health IT this week.

Sanofi has selected five finalists for its 2013 Data Design Diabetes Innovation Challenge, which will reward $100,000 to the team that develops the greatest innovative, data-driven design to improve diabetes health outcomes in the United States, according to its website. The winning team will receive the prize money at the Health Datapalooza IV in Washington, D.C. on June 4.

The Healthcare Transformation Group (HTG) announced on April 25 the formation of a research and development (R&D) team to advance the adoption of GS1® Standards and accelerate HTG’s work to implement a Unique Device Identification (UDI) system.

Harnessing data for better health outcomes is the next big push for health IT. Population health and analytics are critical components of accountable care and healthcare reform with the potential to truly improve quality of care while helping providers fend off federal penalties for underperformance.

Which activities Facebook users like could help predict, track and map obesity rates of where they reside, according to a research study published April 24 in PLOS ONE.