Editors’ Top 5, Week of February 13

New Federal Rules Will Require Home Health Agencies To Do Much More For Patients
Home health agencies will be required to become more responsive to patients and their caregivers under the first major overhaul of rules governing these organizations in almost 30 years. (Judith Graham/Kaiser Health News)

Creating Family Trees for Disease-Causing Microbes Could Help Control Outbreaks
By using the evolutionary bioinformatic approach known as phylogenetics, scientists can better identify disease-causing microbes and determine their geographic origin, spread, and route of transmission. (Keith Crandall/Stat News)

When You’ve Got Cold Or Flu, Don’t Infect Co-Workers
If you’re sick during this cold and flu season, your co-workers have this message for you: “Stay home,” according to a national survey. (Olivera Perkins/Cleavland.com)

Why Obese Seniors Are Less Likely to Use Hospice
A senior’s weight may directly impact whether they’ll receive hospice services at the end of life, how long they’ll remain in hospice and whether they’ll die at home, according to a study recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. (Mary Kate Nelson/Home Health Care News)

Laughing Until You Die
Humor may be antidote for pain of death for patients, survivors. (Bruce Horovitz/Kaiser Health News)