House passes legislation to avoid Medicare cuts in year-end sprint
Groups like the American Hospital Association came out in support of the legislation, which would mitigate some of the cuts set to soon take effect.
Bright Health nabs $750M capital infusion with help from new investor (and competitor) Cigna
Cigna, a new investor in the company, is investing $550 million in an apparent competitor, attracted by its clinical network and opportunities to drive value there as more insurers look to snap up doctor’s groups.
Physician income dips when hospitals buy practices: Health Affairs
Average doctor pay slipped in hospital employment arrangements even as health systems typically benefit financially from acquiring physician practices.
Medicare Advantage quality bonus program hasn’t improved quality, study finds
The new findings published in Health Affairs suggest the quality bonus program doesn’t move the needle on quality despite a significant federal investment — hinting the American people may not be getting enough bang for their buck.
States with robust merger reviews are tougher on hospital tie-ups, study suggests
Just eight states challenged the majority of the deals that regulators scrutinized during a 10-year time period. Still, it did little to slow price increases, according to new research in Health Affairs.
COVID-19 drops out of top telehealth diagnoses in September even as virtual care use rises
National telehealth use, measured as a percentage of all medical claims, rose more than 2% in September for the second straight month as the delta variant surged, following a sustained period of decline early this year.
Female doctors earn $2M less than men over course of career, study finds
Annual differences in income among male and female physicians accelerated during their first years of practice and did not recover, a study from the nonprofit Rand Corporation published Monday in Health Affairs found.
Nurses burned out, dissatisfied with careers consider leaving the field, survey finds
New staffing approaches would make the profession more manageable, as would higher wages, nurses told staffing firm Cross Country Healthcare and Florida Atlantic University’s College of Nursing.
Medicare telehealth visits increased 63-fold from 2019 to 2020, new government data shows
Virtual visits for Medicare beneficiaries went from hundreds of thousands pre-pandemic to tens of millions in 2020, with many beneficiaries using telehealth for the first time.
Congress passes on delay to Medicare rate cuts for lab tests, for now
The American Clinical Laboratory Association wants lawmakers to stave off Jan. 1 cuts for nearly 600 lab tests. A stopgap bill late last week did not include a reprieve, but Cowen analysts are optimistic a legislative fix will be found.