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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services plans to create online health insurance exchanges to help people find affordable coverage. Starting in 2014, people will be able to search a database of statewide plans, compare prices and submit questions. The government predicts the exchanges will encourage competition and drive down prices. In other news, Google has been using its street view cars to help Japan survey the destruction caused by the recent tsunami. The company also created a Person Finder application to locate missing persons and has amassed over 600,000 records. Japan hopes Google’s technology can help its reconstruction. And finally, a recent survey from the Pew Internet Project found that nearly a third of U.S. smartphone owners use them as their primary Internet connection. Rural broadband is still slow to develop and smartphone connections are filling the gap. Almost half of those with full-time employment now own smartphones.
About Shelly Palmer
Shelly Palmer is the Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and CEO of The Palmer Group, a consulting practice that helps Fortune 500 companies with AI strategy, implementation and governance, as well as technology, media and marketing. Named one of LinkedIn’s Top Voices in Technology, he is a bestselling author, covers tech and business for Fox 5’s Good Day New York, is a regular commentator on CNN, and writes the popular daily business blog Think About This. Follow @shellypalmer or visit shellypalmer.com.