News from other sources...

Safety, quality and clinical practice

Is alcohol good for you? An industry-backed study seeks answers | The New York Times

Five alcoholic beverage manufacturers are fronting the bill for a new NIH clinical trial that seeks the answer to a vexingly unanswered question: Is one drink a day good for you?

In the U.S., infant mortality gap costs the lives of about 4,000 black babies each year | Los Angeles Times

The infant mortality rate has been falling recently, and though it's fallen more for black infants than white infants, that decrease hasn't made up for the gap in care between the two groups.

Information technology

Insider theft compromises data of rehab center residents | Health Data Management

A former employee of White Blossom Care Center, a post-acute rehab facility, may have gained unauthorized access to about 800 residents' protected health information.

Pharmaceuticals

Allergan inks $13M settlement in whistleblower marketing suit | Fierce Pharma

The suit alleged Allergan violated the False Claims Act by paying doctors to attend meetings and dinners, among other infractions.

Medical devices

Drug and device makers paid doctors $8.18 billion in 2016, CMS data show | Healthcare IT News

Doctors and hospitals received $8.18 billion in payments in 2016 from drug makers and medical device manufacturers, according to CMS Open Payments Data, which the agency aims to use to reveal the financial connections among doctors, teaching hospitals, and manufacturers.

In other news

Therapy animals are everywhere. Proof that they help is not. | The Washington Post

Llamas are in hospitals, pigs are in airports, and dogs are everywhere. But these emotional-support animals may not actually be doing what their names claims they do.