Health Insurers’ Stocks Are Holding Up Surprisingly Well Despite Choppy Political Waters
The industry is even outpacing others when it comes to profit growth, and UnitedHealth and Anthem, the two largest insurers, each beat Wall Street estimates with their second quarter results. Other health industry news looks at medical device litigation, a lab's court challenge of a multi-billion dollar Medicare cut, hospices, and more.
The Associated Press:
Health Insurers Experience July Heatwave
Health insurer stocks heated up in July. UnitedHealth Group, Anthem and several other insurers outpaced the broader market in what has been an otherwise choppy year for the industry. The industry is also holding up surprisingly well during the most recent round of corporate earnings. It is showing solid profit growth while companies within the broader S&P 500 are expected to report an overall contraction. (Troise, 8/1)
Reuters:
Higher Medical Costs Take Shine Off Cigna Second-Quarter Profit Beat
Health insurer Cigna Corp raised its 2019 profit forecast on Thursday, helped by last year's acquisition of pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts, but medical costs in the second quarter were higher than expected and its shares fell slightly. As health insurers face regulatory uncertainty amid political efforts to lower U.S. healthcare costs ahead of the 2020 presidential election, Cigna is hoping the $52 billion acquisition will help rein in its own costs. (Mathias and Humer, 8/1)
MPR:
3M Claims 'Major Victory' In Medical Device Litigation
A federal judge has dismissed thousands of lawsuits against the 3M Bair Hugger patient warming system.The system keeps patients warm before, during and after surgery. 3M says its forced-air heating blankets have been used safety more than 300 million times in the past 30 years. (Moylan, 8/1)
Modern Healthcare:
HCA's Government Relations Head Retiring After 47 Years
The head of HCA Healthcare's government relations team is retiring after 47 years with the investor-owned hospital chain. Vic Campbell, HCA's senior vice president of government relations, will step down Feb. 29, 2020, the company announced Thursday. Nashville-based HCA has tapped a longtime Federation of American Hospitals lobbyist to take over the role. (Bannow, 8/1)
Modern Healthcare:
Labs' Challenge Of Multibillion-Dollar Medicare Cut Gets New Life
A federal appeals court on Tuesday revived a group of clinical laboratories' challenge to billions of dollars in lost Medicare revenue. In a unanimous decision, the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit overturned a lower court ruling that the laboratories couldn't dispute the lost reimbursement funding. The Medicare changes stemmed from the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014, or PAMA, which required certain clinical laboratories to give the CMS private payer data that could be used to set new reimbursement rates. (Teichert, 7/31)
Modern Healthcare:
Hospices To Score $520 Million Medicare Pay Increase
Hospices will see a smaller pay hike in fiscal 2020 than anticipated, after the CMS Wednesday finalized a 2.6%, or $520 million, raise for the providers. The agency in April proposed a 2.7% increase. The agency also finalized its payment policy for inpatient rehabilitation facilities, giving them a 2.5%, or $210 million, raise for fiscal 2020. The CMS initially proposed a $195 million increase. (8/1)
