Hospital mergers led to diminished quality of care, Elevance study finds
The study from the Blues payer is the latest finding hospital acquisitions lead to increased readmissions and higher costs for patients.
CVS announces restructuring plan after profit falls 37%
CVS also lowered its 2024 earnings outlook, citing cost pressures, and said investors should no longer rely on its 2025 target.
UnitedHealth unit sued by Labor Department over systematic claims denials
The government is alleging plan administrator UMR improperly denied thousands of ER and drug screening claims submitted between 2015 and 2018.
Strengthening primary care key to fix healthcare system woes
Primary care advocates Ann Greiner and Shawn Martin argue the U.S. needs to turn around decades of underinvestment in its primary care chassis to lower costs and improve care quality.
CMS finalizes 3.1% inpatient payment bump for hospitals
Hospitals decried the rate adjustment, which is higher than the 2.8% proposed earlier this year, as out of touch with their financial reality.
Amazon’s virtual care marketplace expands nationwide
Amazon Clinic — which is now available to consumers in all 50 states — launched in November not long after the company announced plans to shutter a separate enterprise virtual care offering.
Operating margins improve, but hospitals still face high expenses: Kaufman Hall
Most hospitals underperformed in June, which the consultancy attributes to a growing gap between affluent and poor hospitals.
Tenet posts $123M profit on strong surgical demand, lower contract labor costs
Tenet is the third for-profit hospital to raise its revenue forecast for the year following its second quarter performance.
CVS to lay off 5K employees amid cost pressures
The layoffs come as CVS faces significant integration costs from recent M&A activity, including its $10.6 billion buy of Oak Street and $8 billion acquisition of Signify.
Elevance rebrands Amerigroup segment as Wellpoint
The return of the Wellpoint brand for Amerigroup, which covers Medicaid and Medicare members, is the payer’s latest corporate reinvention.