Government: Page 64
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AHA moves to shift cost blame to health plans in letter to antitrust regulators
The letter included an updated AHA-funded study on the benefits of hospital mergers, which was previously criticized by outside experts for cherry-picked data, among other methodological weaknesses.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 19, 2021 -
Opinion
The federal price transparency rules have critical gaps that must be addressed to achieve their objectives
Castlight Health CEO Maeve O'Meara argues that if regulations aren't implemented in a meaningful way for consumers, the efforts will likely fail to inform healthcare decision making and achieve the desired cost savings.
By Maeve O'Meara • Aug. 18, 2021 -
Payments to MA plans raised overall Medicare spend by $7B in 2019, analysis finds
The Kaiser Family Foundation chalked the higher spending up to how MA is paid, including how benchmarks for plan payments are set and the risk adjustment process.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 18, 2021 -
Jens Schlueter via Getty Images
US to offer coronavirus boosters to all Americans in aggressive plan to counter delta's spread
The Biden administration's call comes ahead of FDA authorization for additional doses in people who aren't immunocompromised, although agency head Janet Woodcock joined other officials in supporting the plan.
By Ned Pagliarulo • Updated Aug. 18, 2021 -
Image courtesy of FDA
Medtechs need to up their cybersecurity threat modeling game, FDA says
The agency "will be looking for much more detailed and comprehensive" cyber threat models as part of premarket review, said Suzanne Schwartz, director of CDRH's Office of Strategic Partnerships and Technology Innovation.
By Greg Slabodkin • Aug. 18, 2021 -
Medicaid redeterminations
CMS extends deadlines for Medicaid redeterminations after COVID-19 public health emergency ends
Due to significantly increased workloads, state health officials will now have 12 months instead of six after the PHE ends to complete pending verifications, redeterminations and renewals.
By Hailey Mensik • Aug. 17, 2021 -
Sarah Silbiger via Getty Images
FDA authorizes third coronavirus vaccine dose for immunocompromised people
A CDC advisory panel is expected to vote on Friday to recommend the additional dose, after which certain people with weakened immune systems can receive a third shot of Pfizer's or Moderna's vaccine.
By Shoshana Dubnow • Aug. 13, 2021 -
Alex Wong via Getty Images
UnitedHealth settles for $15.6M after Labor Department finds mental health cuts, denials
"You should expect to see more investigation," of those not abiding by the federal mental health parity law, a top DOL official said. "I predict this will be a very active issue for us for years to come."
By Shannon Muchmore • Aug. 12, 2021 -
Alex Wong via Getty Images
Biden embraces Medicare drug price negotiation as Democrats seek to widen health coverage
But the proposal, which features several familiar and long-debated policy ideas, could face an uphill battle in Congress as the drug industry lines up against it.
By Jonathan Gardner • Updated Aug. 12, 2021 -
HCA accused of hospital monopoly in North Carolina
After acquiring Mission Health System in 2019, the hospital operator has continued tactics of all-or-nothing arrangements with payers and gag clauses, driving up prices and insurance premiums, the class action complaint alleges.
By Shannon Muchmore • Aug. 11, 2021 -
Rebecca Pifer/Healthcare Dive
HIMSS21HHS 'making progress' on disincentives for providers found info blocking, ONC head says: HIMSS21
The fact that HHS has yet to codify appropriate disincentives for providers found guilty of information blocking is probably the "biggest gap to be filled on the enforcement side," Micky Tripathi said.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 10, 2021 -
Opinion
Digital therapeutics — a double-edged sword?
Aloha McBride, EY's global health leader, argues that algorithms need to be regularly audited and screened for bias and discrepancies, while clinicians play a vital role in explaining the key features of apps and patient privacy risks.
By Aloha McBride • Aug. 10, 2021 -
Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock.com
Delaware caps hospital price growth to fund more primary care
Gov. John Carney signed the multi-pronged healthcare bill on Friday. "As I think about the things, particularly in healthcare that we focus on, there's not much that's more important than this," he said.
By Samantha Liss • Updated Oct. 5, 2021 -
FDA puts Class I label on Boston Scientific recall estimated to affect one-third of pacemaker line
The medtech giant took the action after discovering devices, once hailed as a growth driver, can incorrectly enter safety mode, putting patients at risk of serious injury.
By Nick Paul Taylor • Aug. 9, 2021 -
Lance Cheung. (2018). "20180927-RD-LSC-0093" [Photograph]. Retrieved from Flickr.
Telehealth has promising future if obstacles can be overcome, poll finds
A new survey by the Bipartisan Policy Center concludes that telehealth could continue to be used on a large scale after the COVID-19 pandemic winds down, and could help prevent unnecessary emergency room visits.
By Ron Shinkman • Aug. 6, 2021 -
OIG audit targets Aetna’s Medicare Advantage plans as government cracks down on fraud
CVS contends the reviews are a regular part of doing business in federal programs, and it "expects CMS and the OIG to continue these types of audits."
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 5, 2021 -
DOJ reportedly considering suit to block UnitedHealth-Change tie-up
The deal was first announced in January and immediately drew opposition, including from competing payers, the American Hospital Association and the American Antitrust Institute, over anticompetitive concerns.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 5, 2021 -
Lance Cheung. (2018). "20180927-RD-LSC-0093" [Photograph]. Retrieved from Flickr.
Telehealth waivers wind down, restricting some providers from delivering care across state lines
A number of states allowed medical professionals licensed elsewhere to hold virtual visits with their residents during the pandemic. While some are making those rollbacks permanent, others are going back to pre-pandemic rules.
By Hailey Mensik • Aug. 4, 2021 -
Permission granted by Biogen
After controversial approval, doctors are still debating how to use Biogen's Alzheimer's drug
Nearly two months since Aduhelm became available, many physicians have yet to use the first treatment approved in the U.S. to slow Alzheimer's disease.
By Jacob Bell • Updated Aug. 3, 2021 -
Carol Highsmith. (2005). "Apex Bldg." [Photo]. Retrieved from Wikimedia Commons.
FTC warns it may challenge deals later as it's hit by 'tidal wave' of merger filings
"Companies that choose to proceed with transactions that have not been fully investigated are doing so at their own risk," the regulator said Tuesday.
By Samantha Liss • Aug. 4, 2021 -
Permission granted by The Boldt. Co.
Medicare-reliant hospitals perform worse financially, more likely to face closure or acquisition: Health Affairs
But researchers cautioned policymakers not to view the results as a reason to avoid reducing Medicare reimbursement.
By Samantha Liss • Aug. 3, 2021 -
Alex Wong via Getty Images
CMS axes hospital price transparency mandate from 2022 inpatient payment rule
Hospitals will also receive a 2.5% pay bump for inpatient stays in 2022 under the new rule. That's lower than the 2.8% proposed in the initial draft, but "largely within the range of market expectations," one analyst wrote.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 3, 2021 -
Retrieved from Gustavo Fring from Pexels.
Primary care docs, facing 'existential' threat, fear for profession's future
A new survey from the Larry A. Green Center and Primary Care Collaborative found that 40% of clinicians worry primary care will be gone in just five years.
By Rebecca Pifer Parduhn • Aug. 2, 2021 -
Getty Images
Patient deaths called 'injury,' 'other' in FDA medical device database: study
Mislabeled patient death reports can go missed by FDA, potentially leading to unsafe devices remaining on the market, a researcher noted. The analysis raises questions about the complex and often opaque reporting system.
By Ricky Zipp • Updated July 30, 2021 -
AstraZeneca still eyes US vaccine filing despite another delay
The company now expects to file for full approval by year's end and has a variant-specific shot in advanced testing. But the long-term prospects for AstraZeneca's new vaccine business are unclear.
By Ben Fidler • July 30, 2021
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