Got five minutes? WBUR in Boston has created an animated cartoon to explain the concept of Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). It's very basic, and the jokes are awful, but at least it has a properly cynical attitude ("I'm having a nasty flashback. It sounds like what I remember the 1990s when my HMO wouldn't pay for my treatments") and explains capitation and pay for performance in a way that even we understood.

The Obama administration unveiled the finalized format for which health insurers to display their policies on Feb. 9, HHS states in a news release. With a Nutrition Label-esque simplicity the new template is supposed to make it easier for patients to understand the terms of their health plans and pick ones that are best suited.

CMS hasn’t forgotten about its promise to update the Provider Enrollment Chain Ownership System (PECOS) website with a user-friendly “fast-track” feature (PBN 9/26/11). Now, instead of the late-January go-live date initially promised, the feature will launch April 1, says David Zetter, a consultant with Zetter Healthcare Management Consultants in Mechanicsburg, Pa. who has been working with CMS on the PECOS changes.

You’ve likely noticed a sharp increase in the amount of patients on high deductible health plans (HDHPs) in the last few years, as the percentage of covered workers on an HDHP nearly doubled from 9% in 2009 to 17% in 2011, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation survey. 

With Congress’ deadline to extend the two-month fee fix only 23 days away, some members are pushing for a permanent repeal of the volatile sustainable growth rate (SGR) and pay for it with war funds, the American Hospital Association reports in its Feb. 1 newsletter.

Remember: You were shielded from a 27.4% pay cut after Congress passed a bill Dec. 22 to keep the SGR cut at bay and extend payroll tax breaks and unemployment benefits through February (PBN 1/2/12).