Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
First Edition: December 19, 2014
Kaiser Health News: Medicare Cuts Payments To 721 Hospitals With Highest Rates Of Infections, Injuries
In its toughest crackdown yet on medical errors, the federal government is cutting payments to 721 hospitals for having high rates of infections and other patient injuries, records released Thursday show. Medicare assessed these new penalties against some of the most renowned hospitals in the nation, including the Cleveland Clinic, Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, Pa. (Rau, 12/18)
The Wall Street Journal: Medicare To Cut Payments To Some Doctors, Hospitals
More than 257,000 U.S. doctors will see their Medicare payments cut by 1% next year because they didn’t meet federal goals for using electronic medical records, said the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Some 28,000 providers will be docked another 1% of Medicare pay for not prescribing medications electronically. About 200 hospitals were informed in October that they also will lose 1% of their Medicare payments in 2015 for missing a deadline for EMR use. The rules, part of the 2009 stimulus package, were designed to spur the health-care industry’s transition from paper files to electronic record keeping. (Beck, 12/18)
The Associated Press: Md. Calls Revamped Health Care Exchange A Success
Maryland’s public health secretary is calling the state’s revamped health-insurance exchange a success as the second enrollment period hits a milestone. Thursday was the deadline for obtaining coverage starting Jan. 1. The enrollment period began Nov. 15 and continues through Feb. 15. (12/19)
The Washington Post: Wyoming Lawmakers Endorse Indiana-Style Medicaid Expansion
Members of the Wyoming legislature will debate a measure to expand Medicaid during next year’s session — but it won’t be the proposal laid out by Gov. Matt Mead (R). The Joint Labor, Health and Social Services Interim Committee this week voted to endorse a measure that would model a Medicaid program on a version in Indiana, which requires newly eligible recipients to pay into a fund similar to a health savings account. (Wilson, 12/18)
The Washington Post's The Fact Checker: Gruber’s After-The-Fact Explanation Of His Obamacare Remarks
Is this after-the-fact explanation plausible, in the context of his remarks in 2012? Was there ever a possibility the federal government would not set up an exchange for states that chose not to operate their own? (Hee Lee, 12/19)
Los Angeles Times: Aetna Rate Hike Excessive, California Insurance Commissioner Says
Health insurance giant Aetna Inc. is imposing excessive rate hikes on more than 5,000 small employers, according to California's insurance commissioner. Commissioner Dave Jones lashed out Thursday at the third-largest U.S. health insurer for raising premiums as much as 20% on some small businesses starting Jan. 1. The average increase of 10.7% will cost small employers and their workers $23.5 million in excessive premiums, according to the state. (Terhune, 12/18)
The New York Times: How The High Cost Of Medical Care Is Affecting Americans
Over the past two years, the New York Times series Paying Till It Hurts has examined the high costs of ordinary medical care in the United States, exposing the reasons and chronicling the human fallout behind the nation’s extraordinary $2.9 trillion medical bill. In response, more than 10,000 readers shared individual experiences like the ones above. But how does a collection of often heartbreaking, often startling tales reflect national experiences and attitudes? The available data did not answer all of my questions. So, using reader comments as a starting point, The Times designed a questionnaire with CBS News and conducted a national poll this month. (Rosenthal, 12/18)
The Wall Street Journal: Lawsuit Alleges Price Gouging By Maker Of Hepatitis Drug
In arguing its case, the transit agency claims that, by using “exorbitant pricing,” Gilead has made it difficult for some consumers and government programs to afford its medication and, subsequently, has violated antitrust laws. The lawsuit also maintains the drug maker engages in discriminatory pricing, which violates the Affordable Care Act, because hepatitis C sufferers are “disabled.” (Silverman, 12/18)
NPR: Is Your State Ready For The Next Infectious Outbreak? Probably Not
The report issued Thursday gives half of the states and the District of Columbia failing grades on 10 measures of preparedness, which include maintaining funding for public health services from 2012; getting half the population vaccinated for flu; reducing the number of bloodstream infections caused by central lines for people in the hospital; testing the response time for emergency laboratory tests; and testing 90 percent of suspected E. coli 0157 infections within four days. (Shute, 12/18)
