The current environment for clinicians is “a tough time,” according to Donald Berwick, MD, MPP, president emeritus and senior fellow at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. Under pressure to convert to a value-based care system with heightened regulation, clinicians can still be at the forefront of leading a radical redesign to meet the goals of the triple aim.

The completion of the $67 billion merger between health insurer Cigna and Express Scripts has been delayed, according to a public filing. The deal was anticipated to close by December 8, but the companies have decided to delay that deadline by six months.

In another sign that the cost of healthcare is too high, one hospital system based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, denied a heart transplant to a woman and recommended she try to raise $10,000.

CMS proposed several new policies for 2020 that aim to lower prescription drug prices by revising how Medicare plans can cover medicines and negotiate prices.

CVS Health received the final approval for its $69 billion merger with the nation’s third-largest health insurance provider, Aetna, on Nov. 26. CVS expects the deal to close Nov. 28, according to a new public filing.

After a federal judge blocked Kentucky’s Medicaid work requirements from going into effect earlier this year, CMS reapproved the program on Nov. 20.

Health insurers are using new methods to monitor consumers enrolled in their plans, as one person discovered when his sleep habits unknowingly played a role in the benefits he received from his provider, ProPublica reported.

Dana Gelb Safran, a well-known health insurance executive, has been hired by the healthcare joint venture between Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and J.P. Morgan, CNBC reported.