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.
Are you leaving your FHIR API front door unlocked?
Research shows FHIR APIs come with major security vulnerabilities — here’s how to protect your data.
Hospital lobbying fails to stop looming Medicare cuts in year-end proposal
Lawmakers on Thursday reached a bipartisan deal that would extend current levels of government funding through Feb. 18 and doesn’t include provisions to push back or stop the upcoming Medicare cuts.