Anthem ED policy a sticking point in Indiana contract dispute

Saint Joseph Health System mailed a letter to patients warning they could soon face out-of-network costs if it does not agree to new terms with the payer by the end of the month.

By Les Masterson • June 12, 2018

Wide spectrum of patients see better outcomes at academic medical centers, study finds

Authors of the Health Affairs report said they were surprised that even among less sick patients, the centers had better outcomes. 

By Les Masterson • June 11, 2018

Explore the Trendline➔

Surprise Billing

Federal legislation banning surprise bills has hit a barrage of roadblocks, complicating efforts to protect consumers from unexpected out-of-network charges.

By Healthcare Dive staff

Fixing provider directories a low-risk way to test blockchain, report suggests

UnitedHealth, Humana and Quest Diagnostics are among those working on a pilot blockchain project to update provider directories.

By Les Masterson • June 11, 2018

Thin margins for major healthcare providers over next 2 years, Fitch predicts

The annual report sees organic revenue growth at 3% to 4% for most of the 20 U.S. healthcare providers, specialty pharmaceuticals and medical device and diagnostic companies it profiled.

By Les Masterson • June 11, 2018

Alert fatigue a focus after patient's drug allergy warning missed

Two people are now required to sign off on alternatives when a patient has a serious drug allergy at a Massachusetts hospital slammed by CMS for the blunder.  

By Meg Bryant • June 8, 2018

Geisinger's revenue, operating income up in first 9 months of FY 18

The health system attributed the growth to higher patient service and premium revenues.

By Meg Bryant • June 8, 2018

ED visits increased nearly 10% in California after ACA

A Health Affairs study also found the chance of a Medicaid enrollee being a frequent ED user was "significantly lower" after the Affordable Care Act was signed into law.

By Les Masterson • June 8, 2018

NYU Langone Health touts technology at new facilities

Despite interest in smart patient rooms, hospitals have been slow to adopt them, largely due to lack of capital or infrastructure.

By Meg Bryant • June 7, 2018

Reduction in hospital-acquired conditions saved $2.9B over 2 years

An Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality report found improved patient safety in 2015 and 2016 prevented about 8,000 deaths.

By Les Masterson • June 7, 2018

Social determinants tech field wide open for health industry

Less than 4% of the total care delivery market has invested in commercial SDoH referral platforms, according to a new study from Patchwise Labs.

By Jeff Byers • June 7, 2018

Virtua to acquire 2 Trinity hospitals in New Jersey

Trinity, the nation's second-largest Catholic health system, said it expects to record a loss of between $75 million and $100 million on the sale of Lourdes Health System. 

By Tony Abraham • June 6, 2018

Mandatory CMS bundles showed advantages over voluntary initiatives, report finds

A Health Affairs report found mandatory and voluntary bundled payment models "engaged different types of hospitals."

By Les Masterson • June 6, 2018

Ascension launches online scheduling campaign

The move comes as hospitals are under pressure to raise patient satisfaction and convenience.

By Meg Bryant • June 5, 2018

BCBS of Texas delays unnecessary ED visit policy

The Texas Department of Insurance requested the delay and questioned the payer on the new policy.

By Les Masterson • June 5, 2018

UPS seeks to disrupt implantable medical device supply chain

But without device manufacturer buy-in, uptake of the effort appears to be slow.

By David Lim • June 5, 2018

Payer-provider partnerships on record pace

So far this year, 22 alliances have been formed, with more than 90% using value-based reimbursement as a component.

By Les Masterson • June 4, 2018

Omission of observation stays in readmission measures misses key patient cohort, analysis suggests

The rate of 30-day readmissions for observation stays between 2007 and 2015 increased while inpatient readmissions declined, according to a New England Journal of Medicine paper.

By Meg Bryant • June 1, 2018

Cleveland Clinic operating income drops 22% in Q1 as expenses climb

The health system attributed the jump in operating expenses to increases in employee compensation, as well as pharmaceutical costs and supplies.

By Meg Bryant • June 1, 2018

Trump administration pushes 340B ceiling price rule to 2019

It is the fifth delay for the rule, which would also set a penalty for drugmakers that overcharge participating hospitals.

By Tony Abraham • June 1, 2018

Technology, value-based care driving M&A, report says

Buyers are looking for targets that can respond quickly to regulatory and market changes.

By Meg Bryant • May 31, 2018

Industry group offers roadmap to greater provider directory accuracy

One of the first challenges is defining who is and is not a provider, according to a CAQH white paper.

By Meg Bryant • May 31, 2018

Healthcare pricing transparency remains elusive, study finds

A JAMA Network survey found that even fewer hospitals provided pricing information in 2016 than did for a similar study four years earlier.

By Les Masterson • May 31, 2018

Days of information blocking look numbered

Government pressure and emerging business incentives are encouraging companies to share data.

By Meg Bryant • May 31, 2018

Higher ER prices, case severity boosting spending

National emergency room use remained largely unchanged between 2009 and 2016, but new data show higher-severity codes were used more frequently, and the average prices for those codes grew.

By Tony Abraham • May 31, 2018

Healthcare groups mixed on proposed direct provider contracting model

Some groups support DPC as a way to increase access to alternative payment models, but others fear it is too redundant and encouraged CMS to fix other programs instead.

By Les Masterson • May 30, 2018