President Obama signed legislation (HR 8) to avert the fiscal cliff, postponing mandated spending cuts under sequestration from taking effect, the Wall Street Journal reports. The measure was approved by Congress, with the House voting 257-167 and the Senate voting 89-8 in favor of the bill.

About 53 percent of consumers are unaware of health care costs and typically accept any care that is suggested, while 10 percent are "price sensitive" and take costs into account when making health care decisions, according to a study reported by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions.

All 50 states met the Health and Human Services (HHS) December 14 deadline to declare whether they will set up their own health insurance exchange under the Affordable Care Act. Thirty-two states have declined to operate their own exchange.

Health and Human Services (HHS) granted conditional approval to six states' plans to operate their own health insurance exchange, the New York Times reports.

The AASM is working with the American Medical Association (AMA) and contacting Congress regarding the SGR and sequestration issue. AASM is concerned that if these cuts are implemented, many sleep providers will be unable to continue to treat Medicare patients. The consequence of enacting these extreme cuts will cause a substantial and severe access to care crisis for Medicare patients.

Nearly 10 percent of U.S. residents, or about 31 million individuals, are receiving health care through an accountable care organization, according to a study released Monday by consulting firm Oliver Wyman. The study found that roughly 2.4 million Medicare beneficiaries are receiving care through ACOs that are participating in CMS' "Medicare Shared Savings Program," while 15 million non-Medicare patients obtain care through those ACOs, Healthcare Finance News reports.

Many companies that are reliant on low-wage workers are reassessing their business models in light of the Affordable Care Act's mandate that they provide all full-time employees with affordable health insurance by 2014, or pay a penalty.

Hospital and physician groups are meeting with congressional staffers to discuss averting a scheduled reduction to Medicare physician reimbursement rates, which could be included in a larger deficit-reduction deal.

Republican leaders released a counter offer to President Obama's deficit-reduction proposal that would raise $800 billion in new tax revenue and calls for $600 billion in automatic tax increases and reductions to federal health care programs in 2013, the Washington Post reports.

Millions of low-income residents who might qualify for new insurance coverage options in 2014 under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are unaware of the upcoming benefits. In a focus group conducted by Enroll America, a not-for-profit organization, none of the 31 participants were aware of subsidies for individuals with incomes below 400 percent of the federal poverty level or Medicaid for the lowest-income U.S. residents. However, most of the participants were aware of the requirement to purchase coverage under the ACA.