trouble with xlsread function and release 2013a

We have been using the xlsread function for years to pull data out of spreadsheets and create easier-to-process .mat files. We just updated to 2013a of Matlab, and xlsread no longer works. The function produces an error that reads: "No appropriate method, property, or field FileFormat for class Interface.Microsoft_Excel_14.0_Object_Library._Workbook." Excel opens up a visual basic window and has an error message that reads: "Compile error: The code in this project must be updated for use on 64bit systems. Please review and update Declare statements and then mark them with the PtrSave attribute."

This all worked on the same computer with the same operating system and a different matlab version. I would like to know if the basic functionality remains the same or if we need to change everything to pull these data out. The code we use looks like this: [num,txt,raw] = xlsread(filename,5,'Y4:AD15');

Thank you,

Brad