First Edition: June 2, 2015

The New York Times: Seeking Rate Increases, Insurers Use Guesswork
In a sign of the tumult in the health insurance industry under the Affordable Care Act, companies are seeking wildly differing rate increases in premiums for 2016, with some as high as 85 percent, according to information released on Monday by the federal government for the 37 states using HealthCare.gov as their exchange. The data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services included only proposed rate increases of 10 percent or more, and federal officials emphasized that it would be months before final rates were set. Regulators in some states have the authority to overrule rate increases they deem to be too high. (Abelson, 6/1)

The Wall Street Journal: More Health-Care Insurers Seek Big Premium Increases
The Obama administration published more information Monday about hefty premium increases for 2016 sought by large insurers selling plans under the health law. Major carriers from around the country are proposing big increases in the premium rates paid by consumers who buy insurance policies on their own. (Radnofsky and Armour, 6/1)

Politico: Insurers Seek Double-Digit Obamacare Hikes
Health insurers are asking federal and state regulators to sign off on double-digit rate hikes for hundreds of Obamacare plans next year, increases that are being driven by skyrocketing drug costs and better data on how healthy or sick their customers are. On Monday, the Obama administration posted proposed premium hikes from a wide range of carriers — including major players like Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans — and their rate requests provide the most comprehensive preview yet of what insurers expect for the 2016 enrollment season. (Demko, 6/1)

Los Angeles Times: A Look At The Important Cases Pending Before The Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is heading into the final month of its annual term. ... Another much-anticipated decision will be whether the Obama administration may continue to subsidize health insurance for low- and middle-income people who buy coverage in the 36 states that failed to establish an official insurance exchange of their own and instead use a federally run version. If the court rules against the Obama administration, about 8.6 million people could lose their subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. Between now and late June, the court will hand down more than two dozen decisions on matters such as politics, civil rights, free speech and air pollution. Several of these cases have been pending for months, suggesting the justices have been sharply split. (Savage, 6/1)

The Wall Street Journal: State Officials Had Secret Huddle On Health-Law Subsidies
Officials from states across the nation flew to Chicago in early May for a secret 24-hour meeting to discuss their options if the Supreme Court rules they have to operate their own exchanges in order for residents to get health-insurance subsidies. Over the course of an evening reception, a day’s presentations and a Mexican buffet at the O’Hare International Airport’s Hilton hotel, some of those officials concluded their options are likely unworkable. (Radnofsky and Armour, 6/1)

The Wall Street Journal's Washington Wire: Rep. McCarthy: No Obamacare Bill Until After Supreme Court Ruling
House Republicans likely won’t introduce their response to a possible Supreme Court ruling striking down part of the Affordable Care Act until after the court’s decision, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) said Monday. Some Republicans had hoped to unveil a GOP plan ahead of the high court’s ruling, expected later this month, on whether people can continue to receive subsidized insurance coverage in as many as 37 states where residents use the federal HealthCare.gov website to obtain insurance because their states didn’t create exchanges. (Peterson, 6/1)

The New York Times: Data Shows Large Rise In List Prices At Hospitals
The prices that hospitals ask customers to pay for a series of common procedures have increased by more than 10 percent between 2011 and 2013 — more than double the rate of inflation. But the amounts paid by Medicare, the government health care program for seniors and the disabled, has stayed flat, according to data released Monday by the federal government. The hospitals’ rising list prices mainly affect the uninsured and people who use hospitals outside their insurance network. (Sanger-Katz and Thomas, 6/1)

The Wall Street Journal: Small Group Of Doctors Are Biggest Medicare Billers
A small cadre of doctors and individual medical providers are consistently the biggest recipients of Medicare dollars, new government data show. The top 1% of billers of the federal program in 2013 reaped 17.5% of all payments to individual providers that year. That same cluster of doctors and other individual providers received 16.6% of the program’s payments in 2012. (Weaver, Barry and Stewart, 6/1)

The Associated Press: Vast Trove Of Medicare Data Details How Billions Are Spent
Joint replacement was the most common hospital procedure that Medicare paid for in 2013, accounting for nearly 450,000 inpatient admissions and $6.6 billion in payments. Among physicians, cancer specialists received the largest payments from Medicare, but much of their reimbursements went to cover the cost of the very expensive drugs to treat their patients. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 6/1)

USA Today: Mental Health Spending Up, New Medicare Data Shows
Medicare providers got more for mental health and specialty care including sports and sleep medicine in 2013, according to new payment data released Monday that shows which healthcare providers received the most money. A USA TODAY analysis also found Medicare payments in more traditional areas of medicine -- including cardiology, general practice and geriatric medicine -- were all down. (Hoyer, Ungar and O'Donnell, 6/1)

The Wall Street Journal: Humana’s Pricey Medicare Prize
Humana, the health insurer reportedly on the block, has a rare asset to sell, with a lofty valuation to match. The prize embedded within Humana, the fifth-largest U.S. managed-care company by market value, is its stronghold in Medicare Advantage, the privately run version of the government program. The aging American population makes a strong Medicare presence desirable. (Grant, 6/1)

The Washington Post: Study: Nearly Third Of Teens Changed Health Habits Based On Online Search
Some good news about teens and the Internet: Many switch to healthier habits after consulting the Web. In the first national study in more than a decade to look at how adolescents use digital tools for health information, nearly one-third of teenagers said they used online data to improve behavior — such as cutting back on drinking soda, using exercise to combat depression and trying healthier recipes — according to a study to be released Tuesday by researchers at Northwestern University. (Sun, 6/2)

The Washington Post: ‘Paradigm Change’ In The Development Of Cancer Drugs
The National Cancer Institute’s announcement Monday that it will soon begin a nationwide trial to test treatments based on the genetic mutations in patients’ tumors, rather than on where the tumors occur in the body, highlights a profound shift taking place in the development of cancer drugs. Researchers increasingly are using DNA sequencing, which has become far faster and cheaper over time, to identify molecular abnormalities in cancers. (Dennis and Bernstein, 6/1)

NPR: High Price Of Cancer Treatment Drugs Is 'Unsustainable,' Doctor Says
NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with Dr. Leonard Saltz, chief of Gastrointestinal Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, about his concerns regarding the high price of cancer treatment drugs. (6/1)

The Wall Street Journal's Pharmalot: Anthem Plan For Containing Cancer Drug Costs Shows Promising Signs
Last year, Anthem started changing how it paid for cancer care, aiming to blunt costs and push oncologists to adhere to standardized treatment guidelines. Its program, which began last July in six states and has since expanded, offered oncologists a $350-a-month payment for each patient who was on one of its recommended regimens. (Mathews, 6/1)

The Wall Street Journal's Pharmalot: Senators Complain FDA Guidelines May Restrict Use Of Roche’s Avastin
In a bid to tighten regulation of compounding pharmacies, the FDA issued draft guidelines this year that, among other things, would place restrictions on the amount of time that some drugs can be used by patients. Specifically, the agency would not permit a biologic medicine to be used more than five days after it has been repackaged by a compounder, but only if a study confirms the drug is protected. (Silverman, 6/1)

Los Angeles Times: Prison Overseer Says Inmate Medical Care Lacking In Private Lockups
Though healthcare within the state's 34 prisons continues to improve, problems persist in contract prisons where the state pays to house its overflow inmate population. "Little progress has been made in resolving, much less improving," the care provided to 4,200 inmates in seven contracted lockups, medical receiver Clark Kelso said in a report filed Monday with the three federal judges who oversee the state's prison system. Four of the seven prisons in Kern and San Bernardino counties are owned by the GEO Group; three are owned by small communities. (St. John, 6/1)

The New York Times: Medical Marijuana Feeds Familiar Hopes Of Renewal Around New York State
Don Crawford comes from a long line of Orange County farmers. Though he no longer tends dairy cows, he still cuts hay for the thriving equestrian industry, and cringes at the creep of the suburbs. So when a stranger came to town and announced plans to grow marijuana on the fallow land next to his, Mr. Crawford was thrilled. (Hartocollis, 6/1)