The Trump administration is preparing to allow states to remodel their Medicaid programs with block grant proposals, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.

The top city for healthcare mergers and acquisitions is Boston, according to an analysis by Mergermarket and Acuris.

The accountable care organization industry is asking for a later deadline to apply for CMS’ revamped Medicare Shared Savings Program.

The emergence of private equity funding across physician practices has continued into 2019, with these firms targeting high-value platforms that can turn around a nice profit in a sale just a few years later. The phenomenon has led to a decline in independent physician practices and created new implications for care services, according to an article in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

The $69 billion merger between CVS Health and Aetna is facing another potential obstacle, as the government shutdown could impact court proceedings currently holding up closure of the deal, Reuters reported.

HHS Secretary Alex Azar has a demand for the pharmaceutical industry: “Prices must start coming down.”

With high demand and high salaries, healthcare jobs took 44 spots of the 100 best jobs for 2019, as ranked by U.S. News.

President Trump summoned top officials for a meeting at the White House on Jan. 8, Politico reported. The meeting comes as major drugmakers raised prices at the start of the year, prompting a Twitter response from the president.