Government: Page 119


  • Drug lobby ramps up jabs at PBMs with pitch to curb rebates

    PhRMA wants PBMs to be compensated on a fee-for-service basis, rather than from a percentage cut of a drug's list price.

    By Ned Pagliarulo • July 19, 2018
  • GAO finds most 340B hospitals are rural, critical access

    While the amount of charity and uncompensated care was higher among general acute care hospitals, the report found critical access hospitals provided less uncompensated care than those not in the program.

    By Tony Abraham • July 19, 2018
  • Trendline

    Labor

    Hospitals are navigating persistent labor shortages with the need to cut costs — a source of contention that could leave patients caught in the middle.

    By Healthcare Dive staff
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    Hikma ramping up injectable opioid output for US hospitals

    The American Medical Association declared drug shortages to be a national public health emergency last month, and the stream of opioids available to providers has continued to dry up.

    By July 19, 2018
  • The FDA logo on a glass pane at the agency's campus in Silver Spring, Maryland.
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    Jacob Bell/Healthcare Dive
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    FDA seeks to make more drugs available over the counter

    Drugs that could change to over-the-counter products — with additional labeling and education of consumers — include cholesterol-lowering meds and the opioid-overdose reversal drug naloxone.

    By Barbara Boughton • July 19, 2018
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    ACA Medicaid pay boost didn't lure docs, JAMA study says

    Possible reasons for this lack of interest were delayed payments, a finite timeframe and documentation requirements to qualify.

    By Les Masterson • July 18, 2018
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    Nearly half of antibiotics inappropriate in urgent care, CDC study says

    Incorrect prescribing was prevalent in other outpatient settings as well, including emergency departments, medical offices and retail clinics.

    By July 18, 2018
  • Calls to revamp physician self-referral law grow louder

    Device makers, lab, imaging and hospital companies all back changes to the Stark law, arguing it impedes the move toward alternative payment and value-based care.

    By Susan Kelly • July 18, 2018
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    PEXELS
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    Sponsored by Southern Cross University

    The impact of mental health in the workplace

    With rates of reported mental health issues on the rise, are there enough initiatives in place to tackle the problem?

    July 17, 2018
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    Anthem sued by doc groups over ED policy

    American College of Emergency Physicians President Paul Kivela called the policy dangerous in expecting patients to know the difference between minor or potentially life-threatening conditions.

    By Les Masterson • July 17, 2018
  • AHA 340B lawsuit denied by federal appeals court

    The hospital industry lost its legal challenge to the Trump administration's cuts to the 340B drug pricing program, with a three-judge panel ruling AHA failed to meet certain necessary "presentment" requirements.

    By Tony Abraham • July 17, 2018
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    HHS kills clinical guidelines website, cites budget cuts

    The National Guideline Clearinghouse, a 20-year-old archive of best medical practices, was shut down this week. On Tuesday, the nonprofit that maintained the site said it will keep a fee-based version to launch in the fall.

    By July 17, 2018
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    FDA approves first drug designed to treat smallpox

    Siga Technologies developed TPOXX under a federal defense contract amid fears of bioterrorism post 9/11.

    By Barbara Boughton • July 17, 2018
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    Major payers unlikely to see financial hit from risk-adjustment halt, Fitch says

    But the decision to halt the payments is likely to destabilize the individual market, according to the ratings agency.

    By Les Masterson • July 16, 2018
  • Docs shouldn't be held accountable for healthcare costs, NEJM survey finds

    Industry experts say out-of-pocket costs are important to patients but there are multiple barriers to properly educating them about healthcare pricing.

    By Les Masterson • July 16, 2018
  • HHS OIG cites flawed efforts to prevent fraud in Medicaid managed care

    A new report found that not all managed care organizations use proactive data analysis or inform states when providers are suspected of abuse.

    By Les Masterson • July 13, 2018
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    CMS pitches expanded telemed billing, fewer MIPS measures

    A proposed payment rule includes streamlining coding and setting new payments for virtual check-ins and examinations of patient-submitted images. More unpopular is a requirement to meet 2015 EHR standards by next year.

    By Tony Abraham • July 12, 2018
  • Many docs support MIPS concepts, but a big chunk unaware

    Nearly two-thirds of physicians surveyed reported little or no knowledge of the CMS Merit-based Incentive Payment System.

    By July 12, 2018
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    ACA plan member costs increasing, networks narrowing, study says

    Avalere, which conducted the report for the Physicians for Fair Coverage, said restricted networks are resulting in more out-of-network care and surprise billing.

    By Les Masterson • July 12, 2018
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    EHRs combined with nurse-led support improved medication compliance

    A JAMA study showed the potential and limitations of nurse educators and EHRs.

    By Les Masterson • July 11, 2018
  • CMS cuts ACA navigator funding down to $10M

    This is not the first funding cut for navigators, who received $62.5 million in 2016. CMS Administrator Seema Verma said the "need for federally funded Navigators has diminished."

    By Tony Abraham • July 11, 2018
  • CMS will let providers withdraw retroactively from BPCI-A

    The agency is not, however, delaying the program's Oct. 1 start date.

    By Les Masterson • July 11, 2018
  • MA star ratings would change if socioeconomic status taken into account, study finds

    The report in Health Affairs evaluated how scoring changes connected to blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol control could improve plan ratings.

    By Les Masterson • July 11, 2018
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    Gottlieb: FDA seeking 'right balance' in regulating opioid prescriptions

    "The roots of this crisis are embedded in the practice of medicine, and prescribing practices that were at times too cavalier," Gottlieb said.

    By July 10, 2018
  • Low-quality healthcare persists in high-income countries, report finds

    The study found that 10% of patients in high-income countries are harmed during medical treatment and 15% of hospital expenditures in those countries come from mistakes or hospital-acquired infections.

    By Les Masterson • July 10, 2018
  • CMS defends hospital star-rating program, plans only minor changes

    An agency spokesperson told Healthcare Dive it will get expert feedback on methodology over the summer.

    By Les Masterson • July 10, 2018