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CAROLYNKASTER—THEASSOCIATEDPRESSFILE Health care tax forms 8962, 1095-A, and 8965, are seen in Washington. ByJosephPisani TheAssociatedPress APBusinessNews NEW YORK It was a very merry Christmas for fit- ness-tracking device maker Fitbit. The company's app was the most downloaded on Apple's app store Christ- mas Day, a sign that many people couldn't wait to set up their Fitbit trackers after unwrapping them. It also suggests that Fitbit track- ers were a hot seller dur- ing the holidays, despite in- creasing competition from Apple's smartwatch and other wearable devices. In- vestors were pleased, send- ing shares of the San Fran- cisco company higher Mon- day. The Fitbit app topped Ap- ple's app store in the U.S. on Christmas Day and the day after, according App Annie, which tracks app downloads and rankings. That's far better than last year when the Fitbit app ranked at No. 18 on Christ- mas Day and No. 15 the day after, according to research from Raymond James & As- sociates. In a note to cli- ents, Raymond James an- alyst Tavis McCourt called the numbers "impressive." Fitbit declined to com- ment Monday. Apple did not respond to a request for comment. While app downloads don't necessarily mean a tracker was sold, McCourt said it's a "good measure of relative sales success." Retailers confirmed Mon- day that Fitbit trackers were in high demand during the holiday shopping season. Macy's Inc. said the Fit- bit's products sold "very well" at the department store. Discount retailer Tar- get Corp. said the trackers were one of its top-selling electronics during the hol- iday season. And Amazon. com Inc. said the Fitbit Charge was one of its most popular items for custom- ers that used its same-day delivery service in Chicago, Dallas, New York and other major cities. App downloads could also lead to future sales. Us- ers who track their health information on the app are more likely to buy another Fitbit device when they want to upgrade, said Ross Rubin, the senior director of industry analysis at App Annie. Amanda Hetherington opened a Fitbit Flex on Christmas Eve, a gift from her son, and plans to buy more. Hetherington, who says she is working on getting back into shape, down- loaded the app on Christ- mas Day. Besides steps, she also plans to track what she eats and how much water she drinks with the app. She's already making changes: This weekend she parked further away from a restaurant to get in more steps. "I love it so much," said Hetherington, who lives near Columbia, South Car- olina, "I'll probably get one for my husband for Valen- tine's Day." Fitbit sells several differ- ent devices that track us- er's steps, calories or sleep patterns. They cost as lit- tle as $60 for a tracker that clips to clothing to about $250 for a watch. The company has already sold more than 13 million de- vices so far this year be- fore the holiday shopping season, surpassing the 10.9 million total devices it sold last year. But like a new gym mem- bership, there is still the question of how long peo- ple will remain dedicated to their fitness trackers once the novelty wears off. Research firm Endeavour Partners estimated earlier this year that about a third of trackers get abandoned after six months. On Monday, shares in Fitbit Inc. jumped 95 cents, or 3.3 percent, to $29.86. Still, they are down about 42 percent since reaching a high of $51.90 in August, a couple of months after the company's initial pub- lic offering in June. TECHNOLOGY Fi tb it l ik el y a ho t se ll er f or C hr is tm as RICHARD DREW — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE Fitbit CEO James Park shows off one of his devices as he poses for photos outside the New York Stock Exchange, before his company's IPO. By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar The Associated Press WASHINGTON The Trea- sury Department on Mon- day gave employers an ex- tension of critical reporting requirements, as it seeks to manage some of the most complicated parts of the federal health care law. Employers had previ- ously faced deadlines in February and March to re- port 2015 health insurance information to their em- ployees, and also to the IRS. If they need more time, employers can now have until March 31 to get in- formation to their workers and until June 30 in cer- tain cases to get details to the IRS. Treasury said it acted after many employers com- plained they might not be able to get the information processed in time. Compa- nies that rely on outside vendors were running into a bottleneck. "It's a limited extension to make the system work as smoothly as possible," said Treasury senior adviser Mark Iwry. The extension also applies to health in- surance companies facing similar reporting require- ments. The information is needed to enforce the health law's requirement that indi- viduals carry insurance, to administer its subsidies for premiums and to apply its requirement that larger em- ployers offer coverage. Em- ployers and insurers are fil- ing the annual reports for the first time, as required by the health law. PresidentBarackObama's health care overhaul joined health insurance and taxes, two of the most complicated areasforconsumersandem- ployers alike. The law's penalties for people who go without health insurance are ad- ministered through the in- come tax system, as are its subsidies to people who qualify for assistance with their premiums. Penalties for larger companies that fail to provide coverage are also assessed through taxes. The requirement for em- ployers with 50 or more workers to offer coverage or face fines has been de- layed twice. It takes effect Jan. 1 for companies with 50-99 employees. Com- panies with 100 or more workers faced the require- ment starting this year, af- ter an initial postponement of a year. Treasury officials said that Monday's announce- ment does not involve any more delays of the law's un- derlying requirements, and just provides additional time for companies to file paperwork. Online: Treasurystatement: http://tinyurl.com/gn8an7e IRS notice: http://tinyurl. com/h62tx4b INSURANCE INFORMATION Health law reporting extension issued for employers By Lindsey Tanner The Associated Press CHICAGO Asthma rates in U.S. children have quieted down after a decades-long increase, a government study found, and research- ers are trying to pinpoint reasons that would ex- plain the trend. A possible plateau in childhood obesity rates and declines in air pol- lution are among fac- tors that may have helped lower cases in kids, the 2001-13 study suggests. Overall, average asthma rates among kids aged 17 and younger increased slightly, then leveled off and declined by the study's end, when 8.3 percent of kids were affected. Rates varied among some re- gions, races and ages. The study was pub- lished online Monday in the journal Pediatrics. Nuancedtrends Childhood asthma rates doubled from 1980 to 1995, partly because of more awareness and di- agnosis. The new study shows slower increases after that, rising to 9.3 by 2010. Declines in the most recent years were in chil- dren younger than 5, Mexi- can kids, those in the Mid- west and those from fam- ilies that weren't poor. Rates plateaued among whites and those living in the Northeast and West, but increased in those aged 10 to 17, kids from poor families and those living in the South. Rates increased but then plateaued among blacks. The study is based on annual in-person govern- ment health surveys in which parents of more than 150,000 kids were asked if their children had been diagnosed with asthma. Data not included in the study show 2014 rates climbed slightly to 8.6 per- cent but it's not clear if that change was real, said lead author Dr. Lara Akinbami, a medical officer at the gov- ernment's National Center for Health Statistics. Competing forces Asthma's causes are un- certain but authorities be- lieve several factors play a role or trigger attacks, including air pollution, obesity, tobacco smoke, premature birth and re- spiratory infections in in- fancy. Competing changes in some of these factors complicate efforts to un- derstand asthma trends, Akinbami said. For example, while U.S. air quality has gen- erally improved from de- cades ago, children whose schools are built near con- gested expressways may not be benefiting. And while U.S. smoking rates have fallen, a warming cli- mate may prolong grow- ing seasons and kids' ex- posure to pollen. The quote Akinbami called the study overall good news since rates are down or mostly stable. "We're cautious be- cause we never know that the next year is going to show," she said. HEALTH St ud y: K id s' a st hm a ra te s qu ie t down a er earlier increase PLEASE RECYCLE THIS NEWSPAPER. 645AntelopeBlvd.Su#10 530-330-1096 We've Moved Reformer Pilates and Tabata Bootcamp to frontier village Limitedopeningsin Endsnoring Anestimated80million people in North America snore. Taking into account the snorer's spouse and children, as many as 160 million people are negatively affected by snoring. Snoring not only interrupts your sleep cycle, it can also be a symptom of a condition called sleep apnea. Fortunately, there are cost-effective oral appliances for snoring and sleep apnea that dentists can prescribe to their patients. 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