Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
3 More Top Medical Schools Withdraw From US News Rankings
The Washington Post: Major Medical Schools Join Widening Revolt Against U.S. News Rankings
Within the past few days, medical schools at the University of Pennsylvania and at Columbia and Stanford universities have declared that they would no longer provide U.S. News with data it uses to rank them. Their actions came after Harvard University’s top-ranked medical school on Jan. 17 announced a similar withdrawal from participation. As a result, four of the top 10 on the U.S. News list of best medical schools for research are on record in opposing the ranking process. (Svrluga and Anderson, 1/24)
On cost and quality —
Modern Healthcare: More MA Insurer Audits Mean More Scrutiny On Providers
Tougher audits of Medicare Advantage insurers could lead them to more stringently review the patient codes providers submit and the physician-enablement companies that help clinicians take on patient risk. (Tepper and Berryman, 1/24)
Bloomberg: Medicare Advantage Health Insurers Face $3 Billion Clawback Threat
Humana Inc., UnitedHealth Group Inc. and other big insurers are set for a clash with US officials over up to $3 billion in potential penalties for the industry threatened by an obscure, years-late regulation. (Tozzi, 1/24)
Modern Healthcare: Hospital Price Transparency Improves, But Compliance With CMS Lags
Hospitals’ compliance with the 2021 price transparency law has improved over the past year, but some operators remain reluctant to publicize their pricing data or do not have the resources to do so. As of the end of September, 65% of U.S. hospitals had posted the rates they negotiated with commercial insurers, according to data from data aggregator Turquoise Health. (Kacik, 1/24)
Stat: Health Systems Have Higher Prices, Only Marginally Better Quality
The claims have become almost ubiquitous. Hospital CEO after hospital CEO stands at a podium and promises the merger being announced will improve quality and lower costs. Once deals close, though, there tends to be little, if any, follow-up to determine whether those things actually happened. (Bannow, 1/24)
The New York Times: Emailing Your Doctor May Carry A Fee
Cleveland Clinic said that its email volume had doubled since 2019. But it added that since the billing program began in November, fees had been charged for responses to less than 1 percent of the roughly 110,000 emails a week its providers received. (Ryan, 1/24)
On staffing —
Valley News: Dartmouth Health Plans Hiring Freeze, Job Reviews As It Eyes $120M Budget Cut
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire’s largest private employer, has implemented performance improvement plans and a “position review process” at some of its member organizations as it seeks to close a $120 million budget gap by the end of September, according to an email sent to employees. (Doyle-Burr, 1/24)
Crain's New York Business: Mount Sinai, Montefiore Nurses Ratify Contracts With Wage Increase
Nurses who are members of the New York State Nurses Association at Montefiore and Mount Sinai Hospital have ratified their contracts, NYSNA announced this morning. The nurses and the hospitals reached tentative agreements earlier this month after the nurses went on strike for three days, demanding better wages and safe staff-to-patient ratios. (Neber, 1/24)
KHN: Wave Of Rural Nursing Home Closures Grows Amid Staffing Crunch
Marjorie Kruger was stunned to learn last fall that she would have to leave the nursing home where she’d lived comfortably for six years. The Good Samaritan Society facility in Postville, Iowa, would close, administrators told Kruger and 38 other residents in September. The facility joined a growing list of nursing homes being shuttered nationwide, especially in rural areas. “The rug was taken out from under me,” said Kruger, 98. “I thought I was going to stay there the rest of my life.” (Leys, 1/25)
In other health care industry news —
The Colorado Sun: UCHealth, Intermountain Healthcare Forming Colorado Insurance Network
By some measures, the Denver metro area has one of the most competitive hospital markets in the country. Large health systems duke it out every year for supremacy in the multibillion-dollar marketplace. But now, two of those heavyweight health systems — locally based UCHealth and Utah-based Intermountain Healthcare — have decided to … cooperate? The systems earlier this month announced plans to form what is known as a “clinically integrated network.” (Ingold, 1/24)
Minnesota Public Radio: As Sanford, Fairview Look To Push Merger Forward, Questions About UMN’s Role Remain
As Sanford Health and Fairview Health Services executives make their case in public meetings explaining why the combination of the two health care companies would be good for Minnesota patients and communities, it’s still not clear how a Minnesota institution will fit in. (Wiley, 1/24)
AP: Doctor Who Molested Patients Convicted Of Federal Sex Counts
A gynecologist accused of molesting hundreds of patients during a decadeslong career was convicted of federal sex crime charges Tuesday in a victory for accusers who were outraged when an initial state prosecution resulted in no jail time. Robert Hadden, 64, of Englewood, New Jersey, was convicted after less than a day of deliberations at a two-week trial in which nine former patients described how he abused them sexually during examinations, when they were most vulnerable. (Neumeister, 1/25)
