Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
At Height Of Feud Between Azar And Verma, White House Advisers Drew Up List Of Replacements
Politico: White House Prepared Short List To Shake Up HHS Leadership
White House officials drew up a short list of potential replacements for Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Medicare chief Seema Verma at the height of their contentious feud in case either was forced out late last year, three people with knowledge of the exercise told POLITICO. The officials developed the list days after the increasingly personal clash between Azar and Verma spilled into public view following a Nov. 26 POLITICO report that first detailed their rift. Two people with knowledge stressed that the names were not shared with President Donald Trump and that Azar and Verma are expected to remain in their roles through at least the rest of Trump’s first term. (Diamond and Cancryn, 1/22)
Modern Healthcare: Medicare Spent $2.6 Billion On 2018 Post-Op Visits That Didn't Happen
A new CMS-funded study suggests surgeons are overpaid for certain bundled procedures and proposes a solution it says could save the agency billions of dollars annually. The New England Journal of Medicine report found that just a fraction of post-operative visits the CMS pays for as part of procedure bundles actually take place. The report says reducing the payments accordingly would have saved Medicare $2.6 billion in 2018 by decreasing payments for 10- and 90-day global procedures by 28%. The findings have "huge" implications for physician revenue, but also for Medicare patients, who face a 20% co-pay under Medicare Part B, which includes post-operative visits, said Andrew Mulcahy, lead author of the study and senior health policy researcher with RAND Corp. (Bannow, 1/22)
And in Medicaid news from the states —
Portland Press Herald: Maine Plans To Review Reimbursement Rates For Medicaid Programs
The state will conduct a comprehensive review of its Medicaid reimbursement rates for treatment of mental health and substance abuse as well as for adults with intellectual disabilities and developmental disorders. ... Nonprofits that provide services for some of the most vulnerable Mainers – including those with intellectual and developmental disorders and mental health conditions – have complained for years that services are at risk because reimbursement rates are so low. (Lawlor, 1/21)
Health News Florida: Florida GOP Push To Permanently Pass Medicaid Enrollment Change
A Senate health panel on Tuesday split along party lines as Republicans pushed through a measure to permanently eliminate a 90-day period that seniors and disabled people previously had to apply for Florida's Medicaid program. The legislation would put in law changes lawmakers made as a way to save money in the state’s main safety-net health care program. (Sexton, 1/22)
