Editors’ Top Five Week of January 8, 2018

Tax on Medical Devices to Resume After 2-year Suspension
While much of corporate America will enjoy a tax cut in the new year, one industry is getting a tax increase it has fought hard, but so far unsuccessfully, to avoid. (Associated Press/CNBC)

An Attempt to Upend the Nursing Home Industry
The idea sounds, in one sense, simple: Create and market small, senior-friendly houses like this one and sell them for around $75,000, clustered like mushrooms in tight groups or tucked onto a homeowner’s existing property, so caregivers or children can occupy the larger house and help when needed. (Bob Tedeschi/Stat News)

CMS Clarifies Texting Rules Amid Rumors of mHealth Message Ban
Following a report that CMS had banned all forms of texting for health care providers, a letter issued by the agency reaffirms its position that secure mHealth messaging platforms can be used, but texting patient orders is still prohibited. (Eric Wicklund/mHealth Intelligence)

Trump Administration Relaxes Financial Penalties Against Nursing Homes
The Trump administration—reversing guidelines put in place under President Barack Obama—is scaling back the use of fines against nursing homes that harm residents or place them in grave risk of injury. (Jordan Rau/Kaiser Health News)

10 Health Care Predictions for 2018
Talk about a New Year’s hangover. Health care—17.9 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product and still growing—will dominate the news in 2018 as it has for much of the past decade. It’s not shaping up as a good news story. (Merrill Goozner/Modern Healthcare)