Fewer businesses take advantage of health tax credits

The Treasury Department says the number of small businesses taking a new tax credit set up in the 2010 health law is smaller than expected. Also, a report to be issued Thursday says the FDA should not be in charge of health information technology.

The Hill: Report: Fewer Than Expected Claiming Small Business Health Credit
Fewer taxpayers have taken advantage of a tax credit for small businesses included in the health care overhaul than expected, a new audit has found, even though the IRS implemented the new tax break fairly seamlessly. The Treasury Department's inspector general for tax administration found that, by May, roughly 228,000 taxpayers had claimed the small-business credit to the tune of more than $278 million (Becker, 11/7).

iWatch News: Panel Recommends New Agency To Regulate Safety Of Health Information Technology
Health information technology has been touted as crucial to better health care, but a new report says an entirely new regulatory agency is needed to oversee this largely unregulated sector, which can also injure or kill patients if it's not operating properly. In pushing for a new oversight body, the respected Institute of Medicine, an independent research and advisory organization, is explicitly advising that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) not be tasked with the job -; a recommendation that is bound to be controversial. The eagerly anticipated report, titled "Health IT and Patient Safety: Building Safer Systems for Better Care," will be publicly released Thursday (Leonard, 11/7).