States would be able to waive requirements for insurers to cover the Affordable Care Act (ACA)’s “essential health benefits” (EHBs) under Republican plans to replace the law. The benefits most likely to be waived, however, make up small shares of premiums compared to other costs, according to an analysis from Urban Institute fellows Linda Blumberg, PhD, and John Holahan, PhD.

Researchers from Stanford University have utilized smartphones to track activity levels in 700,000 people from 111 countries to possibly identify a correlation between number of steps, environment and obesity rates.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) aimed to limit the growth of physician-owned hospitals by barring existing facilities from expanding and forcing any new ones to survive without Medicare or Medicaid reimbursement. With the law’s fate now in the hands of a Republican-controlled Congress and White House, advocates for these hospitals hope those restrictions will disappear.

Fitness trackers, smartphone applications and electronic health records (EHRs) are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to healthcare technology. With a vast array of technologies being offered, many may have overlooked the importance of an everyday tool: Facebook.

Minimizing readmissions is a hefty charge—one that involves myriad variables before, during and after patient discharge. New research examines a standardized, in-hospital discharge program, known as Project ReEngineered Discharge (RED), developed by Brian Jack, MD, chief of family medicine at the Boston University Medical Center.

MAHWAH, N.J., June 29, 2017 – Stryker’s Foot and Ankle business unit today announced the upcoming launch of its new Hoffmann LRF Hexapod hardware and online application, featuring an advanced measurement tool that uses a mathematical algorithm to calculate solutions to correct the deformity. Hoffmann LRF Hexapod is being demonstrated during the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) annual meeting from July 12-14 in Seattle.

The transition to value-based care has led to consolidation and increased physician employment, but smaller practices may find a different option in pursuing alignments with other organizations which don’t involve giving up their independent status.

3D printing has made a name for itself in the production of blood vessels, cartilage and a number of medical devices. Now, a team from the Georgia Institute of Technology and Piedmont Heart Institute are looking to test 3D-printed transcatheter aortic valve replacements (TAVR) for leakage before implantation.