Basic smartphone training could improve rates of engagement in groups of clinical trial participants not proficient in technology, including elderly individuals, according to a study published April 26 in JMIR Human Factors.

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.

Matt Eyles will take over on June 1 as the new CEO of the health insurance industry’s largest lobbying group, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP). Ahead of assuming the top post, he spoke with Vox about several major legislative trends which could impact insurers.

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.

Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in Houston has long been touted as one of the top hospitals in the country for heart transplant and surgery. In recent years, however, its quality scores have plummeted and top physicians have left, all while the center was being led by a relatively inexperienced surgeon.

Vermont has become the first state to pass a law to allow prescription drugs to be imported from Canada, but the plan still has to be approved by HHS—a tall order considering HHS Secretary Alex Azar’s comments that pharmaceutical imports are a “gimmick” and may be unsafe.

The top senators on the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs had floated the idea of issuing a subpoena to CMS Administrator Seema Verma, MPH, after she repeatedly declined to testify before the panel on Medicaid fraud and overpayments. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisconsin, later said Congress and the agency will "work cooperatively."

Primary care physicians and non-physician practitioners have seen their compensation rise more rapidly than specialists, which the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) said is evidence of the worsening shortage of primary care doctors.