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.

Stewardship Health sale to private equity finalized for $245M
The physician group, once part of Steward Health Care, has been rebranded as Revere Medical.
Baxter producing IV solutions ahead of schedule at Asheville-area site
The company said its largest production line at its North Carolina plant is operational, accounting for 25% of total output. The site was damaged by flood waters from Hurricane Helene.
Hackers were inside an Iowa hospital’s network for two weeks
St. Anthony Regional Hospital confirmed patient data was taken by cybercriminals, but the August incident is still being investigated.
Bill introduced in Congress would raise physician reimbursement by 1.9%
The Medicare Patient Access and Practice Stabilization Act aims to change the annual Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services physician fee schedule, which cut reimbursement by 2.8% for 2025.
Good AI governance can spell the difference between smashing success and mere learning experience
Discussions of AI governance may cause many an eye to glass over, but the discipline is as crucial to the ascent of AI in healthcare as big training datasets drawn from diverse patient populations.

Prescription monitoring requirements aren’t going away after being left out of opioid bill

The final version of legislation to combat opioid abuse and addiction didn’t include a requirement for prescribers to check their state’s prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP), but a new bill in the U.S. Senate would change that.

July 18, 2016

3 Next Generation ACOs have left program since January

Three of the 21 participants in CMS’s newest accountable care organization (ACO) model have dropped out in the program’s first year, according to data released by the agency.

July 18, 2016

State news: Conn. may create health ‘super-agency,' Mich. hospital bans Pokémon Go

Here’s a roundup of the state healthcare news, including: a proposal in Connecticut to consolidate health agencies, a Michigan hospital telling Pokémon Go players to stay away, a patient-dumping lawsuit in California, a $2.7 million settlement over patient data breaches in Oregon and the end of a Colorado court case involving a surgery tech who could have exposed thousands to HIV.

July 15, 2016

Zika update: Congress doesn’t approve funding, first female-to-male transmission recorded

Members of Congress left Washington, D.C., for a seven-week recess without settling disputes over emergency funding to combat the Zika virus, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said has been documented spreading from a woman to a man for the first time.

July 15, 2016

CDC worries about gonorrhea's growing antibiotic resistance

Amid growing public health concerns about antibiotic resistance, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) said July 14 that gonorrhea could be the next infection to see significantly decreased treatability.  

July 15, 2016

Q&A: Half of physicians in survey don’t know about MACRA

HealthExec spoke with Deloitte managing director Sarah Thomas about a recent survey that showed only half non-pediatric physicians were aware of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), despite the fact it will dramatically change Medicare reporting in 2017.

July 15, 2016

House panel debates greater FDA role in regulating health apps

The safety, effectiveness and data security of mobile healthcare applications were examined by a U.S. House subcommittee in a July 13 hearing, with lawmakers alternating between excitement over their potential and concern that consumers’ data isn’t being protected.

July 14, 2016

Senate passes anti-opioid abuse bill despite Dems’ funding concerns

A 92-2 vote in the U.S. Senate will send a legislative package aimed at fighting opioid addiction and abuse to President Barack Obama, who has promised to sign it even though it doesn’t contain the $1.1 billion in extra funding he requested for treatment and prevention programs.

July 14, 2016

Around the web

Cardiovascular Business

Q&A: Why are cardiovascular devices involved in so many recalls? FDA policies may be to blame

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.

Cardiovascular Business

Cardiologist compensation still rising, especially in invasive and interventional cardiology

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.

Cardiovascular Business

FDA’s tirzepatide decision creates uncertainty for patients—and leads to a lawsuit

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.

Policy & Regulations

Stewardship Health sale to private equity finalized for $245M

Baxter producing IV solutions ahead of schedule at Asheville-area site

Hackers were inside an Iowa hospital’s network for two weeks

Bill introduced in Congress would raise physician reimbursement by 1.9%

Good AI governance can spell the difference between smashing success and mere learning experience

Around the web