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.

Catholic hospital sued for refusing to perform emergency abortion on a hemorrhaging patient
California Attorney General Rob Bonta is suing Providence St. Joseph Hospital to discourage an incident like this from happening in the future.
Newsom vetoes bill to regulate private equity transactions in healthcare
Assembly Bill 3129 would have given the California Attorney General oversight of all private equity investments or purchases involving a healthcare entity. Gov. Gavin Newsom argued that a similar regulatory framework is already in place.
FDA announces recall of Pfizer's fast-tracked sickle cell drug
The drugmaker is voluntarily withdrawing Oxbryta from the market due to a higher-than-acceptable risk of death.
Public health coalition wins lawsuit against EPA for lack of fluoride oversight
A federal judge in California ruled existing evidence of the negative effects of fluoride in drinking water warrants an investigation and potential action from the Environmental Protection Agency.
Cardiology groups cheer new bill that would improve access to Medicare claims data
If passed, this bill would help clinician-led clinical registries explore Medicare data for research purposes. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons and American College of Cardiology both shared public support for the bipartisan legislation.

NYT: Hospital mergers lead to higher costs for patients

On the surface, hospital mergers may seem like an opportunity to create benefits for consumers, including more resources for top-notch care and lower costs. However, cheaper prices aren’t a likely outcome, according to an analysis by The New York Times.

November 14, 2018

CMS to allow Medicaid mental health demonstrations

CMS sent state Medicaid directors an email on Nov. 13 announcing new opportunities to design service delivery systems for treating mental health. The announcement eases previous prohibitions against using Medicaid funding to pay for short-term residential treatment in an institution for mental disease.

November 13, 2018

Envision reaches contract agreement with Cigna

Envision Healthcare has reached a new statewide agreement with Cigna Healthcare of Arizona. The multiyear agreement ensures Envision’s clinicians are in-network.

November 13, 2018

FDA will strengthen expanded access program for non-approved treatments

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, MD, has signaled that the agency will strengthen its expanded access (EA) program to enable more patients to access investigational medical products and treatments for serious or life-threatening diseases.

November 9, 2018

CMS proposes to reform Medicaid managed care

CMS proposed regulatory reform of the Medicaid managed care program on Nov. 8, giving states more freedom over network-adequacy standards.

November 8, 2018

FTC accuses Florida agency of selling $100M in fraudulent insurance plans

A federal judge has temporarily shut down Florida-based company Simple Health Plans after the Federal Trade Commission accused the agency of collecting more than $100 million in fraudulent insurance payments and leaving its enrollees with thousands of dollars in medical debt.

November 7, 2018

PwC: What the midterm shakeup means for healthcare

After holding control of Congress for eight years and attempting to eradicate the Affordable Care Act dozens of times, Republicans lost the majority in the House on Nov. 6 during the midterm elections. The partisan shakeup could have several impacts on the nation's healthcare agenda.

November 7, 2018

Healthcare Leaders Merge to Accelerate the Promise of Value-Based Care

Mingle Analytics and SilverVue form Mingle Health to deliver an all-in-one platform that includes the consulting, analytics, and tools to streamline medical practices, integrate the delivery network, and improve patient outcomes.

November 7, 2018

Around the web

Cardiovascular Business

Cardiology groups cheer new bill that would improve access to Medicare claims data

If passed, this bill would help clinician-led clinical registries explore Medicare data for research purposes. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons and American College of Cardiology both shared public support for the bipartisan legislation.

Cardiovascular Business

Watchdog group, fearful of fraud, wants more oversight for remote patient monitoring

Cardiologists and other physicians may soon need to provide much more information when ordering remote patient monitoring for Medicare patients.

Cardiovascular Business

Most recalled cardiovascular devices gained FDA approval with little to no clinical evidence

Why are so many cardiovascular devices involved in Class I recalls? One possible reason could be the large number of devices hitting the market without undergoing much premarket clinical testing.