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.

EPA OKs drinking filtered water in Flint as CDC releases report detailing effects on children

It’s finally OK to drink the tap water in Flint, Mich.—but only if it’s filtered, according to a June 23 announcement from the Environmental Protection Agency.

June 27, 2016

CDC awards $26M for research on hospital ‘superbugs’

Several academic hospitals have been awarded $26 million from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to research new ways to prevent hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), particularly those resistant to antibiotics

June 27, 2016

Patients unhappy with UnitedHealth’s limits on insulin pumps

A new deal between UnitedHealthcare and device maker Medtronic means fewer options for UnitedHealth customers who need insulin pumps to treat Type 1 diabetes.

June 27, 2016

Living organ donation can be ethical minefield

If someone is dying but could donate vital organs before life support was removed, can a spouse make someone a living donor without that person's direct consent?

June 27, 2016

State news: Calif. split on Aetna-Humana merger, N.Y. enacts opioid prescription limits

Here’s a roundup of the latest healthcare news from California, New York, Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana.

June 24, 2016

CDC failed to disclose lab mishaps to Congress

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) told Congress it left out 34 incident reports involving lab mistakes from information it provided to a congressional investigation in 2014, according to USA Today.

June 24, 2016

IT group wants interoperability standards for drug monitoring

As the House and Senate work in a conference committee on anti-opioid abuse legislation, a coalition called Health IT Now has asked lawmakers to lay out more specific standards on how different states’ prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) will be interoperable. 

June 23, 2016

House passes Zika bill opposed by White House, Senate Dems

Legislation providing $1.1 billion in funding for anti-Zika virus efforts has passed in the House, but the Obama administration and the leader of the Senate Democrats are strongly criticizing the proposal.

June 23, 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