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. 

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Anthem to buy palliative care provider Aspire

After months of sitting out of the flurry of mergers and acquisitions between insurers and providers, Anthem has made its first move by announcing it will acquire Aspire, the largest non-hospice, community-based palliative care provider in the U.S.

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Hospital debt is big business for banks and law firms

The $20 billion in tax-exempt bonds not-for-profit hospitals sell on average every year can lead to $300 million going to banks and law firms handling debt deals—with those costs potentially encouraging hospitals to raise prices even as they’re exempt from paying taxes to their communities.

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Mayo Clinic sells off health plan to Wisconsin’s WEA Trust

It marks the not-for-profit WEA Trust’s first entry into the private employer insurance market, having offered group coverage for Wisconsin state employees since its founding in 1970.

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‘Right-to-try’ legislation approved by Congress

The House approved legislation to allow terminally ill the “right to try” experimental drugs not yet approved by the FDA on a largely partisan vote, sending the bill to a supportive President Donald Trump.

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HCA eyeing purchase of Envision with private equity partner

Reuters reports HCA’s proposal would essentially reverse Envision’s 2016 merger with AmSurg. The rest of the $5.1 billion Envision would be taken over by KKR.

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UnitedHealth: Medicaid more cost-effective than ACA plans

UnitedHealth said it costs an average of $9,400 annually to cover a low-income, subsidized enrollee on the marketplace with $7,000 of that cost falling on the federal government. For someone eligible for Medicaid thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the overall cost is $5,400—with $5,100 coming from federal funds.

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HHS proposing stripping Title X funding from clinics providing, referring abortions

Direct federal funding for abortions has been prohibited by Congress for decades, but conservative lawmakers have sought to deny all federal funding to groups like Planned Parenthood for having any involvement in abortion services.

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Medicare Part D consolidation will only get worse with proposed megamergers

Three sponsors of Medicare Part D plans—UnitedHealth Group, Humana and CVS Health—account for more than half the program’s total enrollment. If proposed mergers involving smaller players like Aetna, Express Scripts and Cigna move ahead, the market would become even more concentrated.

Around the web

The FTC alleges that pharmacy benefit managers have set up a system where they get rich, while patients are forced to pay rising insulin costs. The agency also called out drug manufacturers such as Eli Lilly, Sanofi and Novo Nordisk, saying their own actions have raised serious concerns.

In the post-COVID era, wages for permanent RNs are rising, and wages for travelers are decreasing. A new report tracked these trends and more. 

Two medical device companies have announced a transaction that could shake up the U.S. electrophysiology market. 

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