Policy & Regulations

This channel includes news coverage of healthcare policy and regulations set by Congress, the states, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and medical associations and societies. 

Thumbnail

Senate passes FDA user fee reauthorization

By an easy vote of 94-1, the Senate passed the FDA Reauthorization Act (FDARA) of 2017, approving the user fee agreements paid by pharmaceutical and medical device companies to the Food and Drug Administration.

Thumbnail

Hospitals win on $2.4B raise, AO reports, 90-day meaningful use in final IPPS rule

CMS has finalized the Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) and Long Term Acute Care Hospital (LTCH) payment rules, lowering the total increase to $2.4 billion while removing a controversial proposal to require public release of previously confidential hospital inspections by accrediting organizations (AOs).

Lobbyist groups takes credit for malpractice bill passed by House

The Physician Insurers Association of America (PIAA), a group which lobbies for medical liability insurance companies, is claiming a bill passed by the House to limit malpractice damages was largely written by the group, not members of Congress.

Court ruling may stop Trump from cutting off ACA insurer subsidies

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has allowed 16 state attorneys general to intervene in a lawsuit surrounding the Affordable Care Act’s cost-sharing reduction subsidies, or CSRs, paid to insurers for lowering deductibles for low-income ACA enrollees.

US rep offers bill to add addiction history to EHR to combat opioid misuse

In response to the opioid epidemic, U.S. Rep. Tim Murphy, MA, PhD, R-Pennsylvania, has introduced the Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety (OPPS) Act, which allows physicians to review patient information regarding previous addiction treatment through electronic health records (EHRs).

Thumbnail

Q&A: Why repeal-and-replace of the ACA isn’t dead

Years of efforts by Republicans to repeal and/or repeal the Affordable Care (ACA) culminated in a dramatic early-morning defeat as three GOP senators voted against the rest of their party. Which leaves the healthcare industry wondering: What now?

FDA introduces 'action plan' to improve digital innovation in healthcare

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released its “Digital Health Innovation Action Plan” to provide guidance on medical devices and software in the 21st Century Cures Act. The Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) was launched as a pilot precertification program for the development of digital health technology.

Thumbnail

ACA repeal bill fails in dramatic vote; healthcare groups now seek ‘bipartisan effort’

The decisive vote to repeal and/or replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) ended in an early-morning defeat for Republican opponents of the law, as three GOP senators—Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and John McCain of Arizona—voted no on the so-called “skinny repeal” plan.

Around the web

Cardiovascular devices are more likely to be in a Class I recall than any other device type. The FDA's approval process appears to be at least partially responsible, though the agency is working to make some serious changes. We spoke to a researcher who has been tracking these data for years to learn more. 

Updated compensation data includes good news for multiple subspecialties. The new report also examines private equity's impact on employment models and how much male cardiologists earn compared to females.

When drugs are on the FDA’s shortage list, outsourcing facilities can produce their own compounded versions. When the FDA removed tirzepatide from that list with no warning, it created a considerable amount of chaos both behind the scenes and in pharmacies all over the country. 

Trimed Popup
Trimed Popup