HCR Update from Mark Sanna: The N.F.L. said that the number of concussions in the league had declined 13% this season thanks to improved medical diagnoses, stiffer penalties for striking with a helmet and fewer practices. In the preseason and the regular season, players sustained 228 concussions, down from 261 in 2012, when concussions rose 4% compared with the previous year. Helmet-to-helmet contact caused almost half the concussions this season, down from 53% in 2012.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: For many obese adults, the die was cast by the time they were 5 years old. A major new study to be published today in The New England Journal of Medicine of more than 7,000 children has found that a third of children who were overweight in kindergarten were obese by eighth grade. And almost every child who was very obese remained that way.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: A survey of physician practices in 15 metropolitan areas across the country found that the average wait time for a new patient to see a physician in five medical specialties was 18.5 days.  The longest waits were in Boston, where patients wait an average of 72 days to see a dermatologist and 66 days to see a family doctor. The shortest were in Dallas, where the average wait time is 10.2 days for all specialties, and just 5 days to see a family doctor.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: A federal analysis of 30 antibiotics used in animal feed found that the majority of them were likely to be contributing to the growing problem of bacterial infections that are resistant to treatment in people, according to documents released Monday by a health advocacy group. Scientists from the F.D.A. studied 30 penicillin and tetracycline additives in animal feed. They found that 18 of them posed a high risk of exposing humans to antibiotic-resistant bacteria through food.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: The federal government has released slightly higher poverty level guidelines for 2014, but they won’t alter the income thresholds that are being used to determine what kind of financial assistance is available to buy insurance under the health law. Under the new guidelines, Medicaid coverage will be available to individuals earning up to $16,105 and families earning up to $32,913 in states that have decided to expand Medicaid under the provisions of the federal health law. Premium subsidies in the new online marketplaces will be available to individuals earning up to $46,680 and families of four earning up to $95,400.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: The Obama administration is cracking down on doctors who repeatedly overcharge Medicare patients and for the first time in more than 30 years the government may disclose how much is paid to individual doctors treating Medicare patients. Marilyn B. Tavenner, the administrator of CMS, said that abusive providers would face civil fines and could be expelled from Medicare and other federal health programs.

HCR Update form Mark Sanna: This month, the Justice Department said it had joined eight separate whistle-blower lawsuits against Health Management Associates, a for-profit hospital chain in six states. The lawsuits describe a wide-ranging strategy that is said to have relied on a mix of sophisticated software systems, financial incentives and threats in an attempt to inflate the company’s payments from Medicare and Medicaid by admitting patients like an infant whose temperature was a normal 98.7 degrees for a “fever".

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: The Department of Health and Human Services moves to break up a big backlog of Medicare claims appeals, with beneficiary hearings taking precedent. Medicare beneficiaries who have been waiting months and even years for a hearing on their appeals for coverage may soon get a break as their cases take top priority in an effort to remedy a massive backlog.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: Early signals suggest the majority of the 2.2 million people who sought to enroll in private insurance through new marketplaces through Dec. 28 were previously covered elsewhere, raising questions about how swiftly this part of the health overhaul will be able to make a significant dent in the number of uninsured. Insurers, brokers and consultants estimate at least two-thirds of those consumers previously bought their own coverage or were enrolled in employer-backed plans.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: The Obama administration is delaying enforcement of another provision of the new health care law, one that prohibits employers from providing better health benefits to top executives than to other employees. Tax officials said they would not enforce the provision this year because they had yet to issue regulations for employers to follow.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: A new report from the surgeon general finds that smoking causes even more physical and financial damage than previously estimated, killing 480,000 Americans a year from diseases that include diabetes, colorectal cancer and liver cancer. The report, released today, represents the first time the surgeon general has concluded that smoking is "causally linked" to these diseases.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: The US Food and Drug Administration is asking healthcare professionals to stop prescribing combination prescription pain relievers that contain more than 325 mg of acetaminophen per tablet, capsule, or other dosage unit, citing the risk for liver damage. The FDA said, "There are no available data to show that taking more than 325 mg of acetaminophen per dosage unit provides additional benefit that outweighs the added risks for liver injury. Further, limiting the amount of acetaminophen per dosage unit will reduce the risk of severe liver injury from inadvertent acetaminophen overdose, which can lead to liver failure, liver transplant, and death."

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: For the first time in history, more than half the members of the House and Senate are now millionaires, according to a new analysis of financial disclosure reports filed last year. The median net worth for lawmakers in the House and Senate was $1,008,767 — up 4.4%, according to the analysis, conducted by the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics, which examines the influence of money on politics in Washington.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: Two of the largest U.S. health insurers are giving Obamacare customers more time to pay their initial premiums as the industry tries to coax millions of people to take the final step in cementing coverage for 2014. WellPoint Inc. (WLP), the second-biggest U.S. health insurer, said it’s allowing consumers until Jan. 15 to pay, five extra days than planned. Health Care Service Corp., which runs Blue Cross plans in Texas, Illinois and three other states, extended its deadline to Jan. 30, saying it wanted to avoid confusion.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: A new study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that an inexperienced driver who reaches for a cell phone increases the risk for a crash by more than 700%. Among teenagers, eating almost tripled the risk for a crash, and texting or looking at an object on the side of the road quadrupled it. Dialing a phone was the most dangerous activity of all, resulting in eight times the risk for a crash or near-crash.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: New Year's Day marked the halfway point to sign up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act for coverage this year. And after a dismal start, things seem to be going a lot better on the healthcare.gov website. Federal officials say more than 1 million people enrolled in coverage by the Christmas Eve deadline for coverage that began January 1. People have until March 31 to purchase a plan, or enroll in Medicaid if you're eligible. If you're uninsured after that, you may be subject to a tax penalty in 2015.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: New Year's Day marked the halfway point to sign up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act for coverage this year. And after a dismal start, things seem to be going a lot better on the healthcare.gov website. Federal officials say more than 1 million people enrolled in coverage by the Christmas Eve deadline for coverage that began January 1. People have until March 31 to purchase a plan, or enroll in Medicaid if you're eligible. If you're uninsured after that, you may be subject to a tax penalty in 2015.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: The Obama administration urged the Supreme Court on Friday to reject a lawsuit filed by the Little Sisters of the Poor, an order of Roman Catholic nuns challenging requirements for many employers to provide health insurance coverage for birth control or face penalties under the new health care law.

HCR Update from Mark Sanna: A popular surgical procedure worked no better than fake operations in helping people with one type of common knee problem, suggesting that thousands of people may be undergoing unnecessary surgery, a new study in The New England Journal of Medicine reports. The unusual study involved people with a torn meniscus, crescent-shaped cartilage that helps cushion and stabilize knees. Arthroscopic surgery on the meniscus is the most common orthopedic procedure in the United States, performed, the study said, about 700,000 times a year at an estimated cost of $4 billion.