The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association said there’s an “urgent” need for Congress to fund additional reinsurance for companies offering coverage on the Affordable Care Act (ACA), saying with the individual mandate gone beginning in 2019, some action is required to keep premiums from increasing as insurers try to manage a sicker risk pool.

Thirty-seven percent of accountable care organizations (ACOs) had a management organization as a partner between 2013 and 2015. While the arrangement didn’t appear to improve an ACO’s ability to meet performance targets, their services and start-up funding may have enabled more practices to participate in accountable care.

The establishment of a primary care-led regional health improvement collaboration in the Cleveland area reduced hospitalizations attributed to conditions like heart failure and bacterial pneumonia, saving nearly $40 million, according to a study published in the February 2017 issue of Health Affairs.

Work requirements have been added to Indiana’s Medicaid program, making it the second state to mandate participation in “community engagement” activities since CMS issued guidelines to states on including those provisions in Section 1115 Medicaid waivers.

The goal of a hospital-run generic drug company is to combat “non-competitive activity” among current generic pharmaceuticals, according to Marc Harrison, MD, CEO of one of the founding companies, Intermountain Healthcare.

The priorities for Republicans in Congress this year don’t appear to include another attempt at repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act (ACA), though some are publicly urging the party to take another shot after several failed attempts in 2017.

The $69 billion proposed acquisition of Aetna by CVS Health remains under review by the Department of Justice (DOJ), which requested the companies provide more information on their merger agreement.

The Idaho Department of Insurance has announced it will allow insurers to sell plans which don’t comply with regulations established by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which could mean the return of plans that deny coverage based on pre-existing conditions, charge higher premiums based on health status and place lifetime or annual caps on benefits.