Finances: Page 12
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Walgreens to close 1,200 stores
The closures reverse Walgreens’ expansion ambitions from a few years ago, when the company attempted to merge with rival Rite Aid.
By Daphne Howland • Oct. 15, 2024 -
UnitedHealth lowers adjusted profit outlook as cyberattack costs rise
The insurer has recorded $2.5 billion in total impacts from the attack through the nine months ended Sept. 30, according to UnitedHealth’s third-quarter earnings.
By Emily Olsen • Oct. 15, 2024 -
Sponsored by Huron
Cost, care and digital transformation: What’s next for healthcare systems?
Healthcare executives shed light on the trends, challenges, and growth areas shaping the industry.
Oct. 14, 2024 -
Digital health deal count declines in Q3, but check sizes stabilize: Rock Health
Startups notched 110 deals in the third quarter, compared with 133 in the second quarter. But average deal size held steady, suggesting investors are making “fewer, more focused bets,” according to the consultancy firm.
By Emily Olsen • Oct. 8, 2024 -
Humana’s Medicare Advantage dilemma worsens amid precipitous drop in 2025 star ratings
Only 25% of Humana members will be in plans with four stars or above next year, down from 94% this year, the insurer disclosed last week. The downgrade could wipe out Humana’s profits in 2026.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Oct. 3, 2024 -
UHS forced to pay more damages related to child sexual abuse allegations at behavioral care facilities
The health system has been hit with a combined $895 million in damages this year related to alleged child abuse at some of its behavioral health subsidiaries.
By Susanna Vogel • Oct. 2, 2024 -
CVS to lay off 2,900 employees amid reports of strategic review
CVS is cutting 1% of its workforce as the healthcare behemoth pursues a massive cost-cutting plan — and considers a potential breakup of its businesses, according to reports.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Oct. 1, 2024 -
Sponsored by ZOLL Data Systems
How to stop the surge in self-pay write-offs by finding hidden coverage you can bill today
Providers who put AI-enhanced, real-time technology to work can improve their clean claims rate and pull payer dollars in more quickly.
Sept. 30, 2024 -
Ascension posts $1.1B net loss for 2024 after May cyberattack
The cyberattack had far reaching effects, forcing the health system to shut down pharmacies, divert ambulances, switch to manual record keeping and close critical systems.
By Susanna Vogel • Sept. 19, 2024 -
Health benefit costs to rise 5.8% per employee in 2025: survey
About half of employers said they would make cost-cutting changes to their plans next year, like increasing deductibles or other cost-sharing provisions, according to a report from consultancy Mercer.
By Emily Olsen • Sept. 17, 2024 -
Medicare Advantage bonuses poised to drop this year for first time since 2015, KFF says
Still, plans are expected to rake in $11.8 billion in bonuses, with half of that tranche going to just two insurers: UnitedHealthcare and Humana.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Sept. 13, 2024 -
Tracking Steward's decline
Steward loses money on Massachusetts hospital sales; CEO snubs Senate
Wednesday was a rocky day for bankrupt Steward Health Care as the system finalized unprofitable deals and CEO Ralph de la Torre landed in the spotlight once again for rebuffing a Senate subpoena.
By Susanna Vogel • Updated Sept. 5, 2024 -
Drug distributors agree to $300M settlement for role in opioid epidemic
The settlement adds to the billions of dollars that McKesson, Cencora and Cardinal have already agreed to pay in restitution for flooding the U.S. with highly addictive painkillers.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Sept. 4, 2024 -
Uninsured, less educated patients less likely to question medical bills: study
One in five survey respondents reported that their household had received a bill they disagreed with or couldn’t afford in the past year, but only 62% reached out to a billing office, according to a new study published in JAMA.
By Emily Olsen • Sept. 3, 2024 -
Walgreens sued by shareholder amid plummeting stock price
The company’s top directors — including CEO Tim Wentworth and CFO Manmohan Mahajan — allegedly breached their fiduciary duty by inflating Walgreens’ performance projections.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 30, 2024 -
Hospitals boost operating margins in July: report
Increased demand for services helped offset high expenses for hospitals, according to analytic solutions firm Strata.
By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 29, 2024 -
PBM executives threatened with fines and jail time for alleged perjury in House hearing
Testimony from the heads of Express Scripts, Optum Rx and Caremark in July defending pharmacy benefit managers’ business practices could be coming back to bite them.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 29, 2024 -
J&J plans unilateral reform to 340B drug discount program
A looming change to how Johnson & Johnson pays out discounts to 340B-eligible drugs has hospitals — and the government — crying foul.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Updated Aug. 27, 2024 -
Steward to close two Ohio hospitals, Pennsylvania facility at risk
The closures are a “tragic result of greed-driven hospital executives, backed by private equity, who prioritize their yachts and private jets over patient care,” said an Ohio nurse union leader.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 23, 2024 -
Large employers forecast 7.8% hike in health costs next year, thanks to rising pharmacy spend
The growing burden of pharmaceuticals is expected to be the primary driver of higher healthcare spending in 2025, mostly due to expensive GLP-1 drugs in demand for weight loss, according to the Business Group on Health.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Updated Aug. 21, 2024 -
The image by Renegomezphotography is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
Judge strikes down FTC noncompete ban nationwide
Obviating the ban has big implications for U.S. healthcare, an industry that frequently relies on noncompetes to lock medical workers into employment agreements with hospitals, insurers and other employers.
By Ryan Golden , Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 21, 2024 -
Humana pays $90M to settle whistleblower allegations of Medicare Part D fraud
The insurer, which did not admit wrongdoing, agreed to the deal on the eve of a jury trial.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 20, 2024 -
Healthcare bankruptcies slow after reaching five-year high in 2023: report
The decline doesn’t mean the sector’s financial challenges have gone away. Case volumes could increase later this year, according to healthcare restructuring advisory firm Gibbins Advisors.
By Emily Olsen • Aug. 19, 2024 -
Deep Dive
Medicaid overtakes Medicare Advantage as health insurers’ bogeyman in Q2
Despite challenges in Medicaid and MA, major insurers still posted large earnings in the second quarter — many helped by health services divisions.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 15, 2024 -
Kaiser’s operating margin rises to 3.1% in second quarter
The nonprofit healthcare giant's results represent a strong quarter and a solid end to the first half of the year, one analyst said.
By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 13, 2024