Providers, Patients Will Have Instant Access To Drug Costs Come Oct. 1

Becker's Hospital Review: Real-Time Drug Pricing Access Rule To Take Effect
HHS announced prescription drug reforms are set to take effect Oct. 1, designed to give patients and physicians real-time access to prescription drug costs, insurance coverage details and prior authorization requirements. The rule was issued in July as part of CMS Inpatient Prospective Payment System and Long-Term Care Hospital Prospective Payment System final rule. It will require healthcare providers to use certified health IT systems to electronically submit prior authorization requests, check on drug prices during appointments and share prescription information with pharmacies and insurers, according to a Sept. 2 news release from the agency. (Murphy, 9/2)

Stat: Gilead Wants State AIDS Drug Programs To Pay Big Price Hikes For HIV Meds
Gilead Sciences, the largest maker of HIV medicines, is seeking to boost prices significantly for several treatments that are widely distributed by state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs. And the move is adding to financial uncertainty for the programs on top of concerns prompted by Trump administration funding cuts. (Silverman, 9/2)

Becker's Hospital Review: Court Rules Trump Tariffs Unlawful: 6 Things To Know
President Donald Trump’s imposed tariffs on foreign nations have been ruled unlawful by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The court ruled he went too far by declaring national emergencies to justify the duties, CBS News reported Sept. 1. Here are six things to know: The 7-4 decision, rendered Aug. 29, largely sided with a decision made in May by a federal trade court in New York. However, the appeals court decision got rid of a part of the previous ruling that struck down tariffs immediately, allowing time for the Trump administration to appeal to the Supreme Court. (Murphy, 9/2)

In news about medical devices and biotech —

Modern Healthcare: Alphabet’s Verily Ends Medical Devices Program, Cuts Staff
Alphabet’s life sciences company Verily has stopped manufacturing medical devices and laid off staff. The move continues a strategic refocus the company began in 2023 to simplify its business and concentrate resources on precision health, a Verily spokesperson said. The number of employees who were laid off was not disclosed. (Dubinsky, 8/28)

Modern Healthcare: Thermo Fisher Acquires Solventum’s Filtration Unit For $4B
Thermo Fisher Scientific announced Tuesday it acquired Solventum’s purification and filtration business for $4 billion. The unit is now part of Thermo Fisher’s life sciences solutions segment, operating as its filtration and separation business. The business sells purification and filtration technologies used to manufacture medical devices, biologics and industrial products. The technologies are used in devices such as hemodialyzers and blood oxygenators. (Dubinsky, 9/2)

Modern Healthcare: Labcorp's Adam Schechter Expects Tax Law To Boost Lab Sales
Laboratory businesses could see a boost from the new tax law as more hospitals look to sell lab assets and save on operational expenses ahead of cuts, said Labcorp CEO and Chairman Adam Schechter. Health systems and hospitals have already been selling off lab assets to independent labs like Labcorp or Quest Diagnostics, which can often do higher volumes of diagnostic tests at a lower cost. But the tax law, which calls for more than $1.1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid over the next 10 years, is expected to further drive asset sales, Schechter said. (DeSilva, 8/29)

More health industry developments —

Modern Healthcare: Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Sutter See Improved Finances In Q2
Many large health systems are showing strong balance sheets as second-quarter earnings reports roll out, but some analysts say the upswing is likely on a time limit. Talk about major funding cuts related to the new tax law President Donald Trump signed in July are dominating executive board rooms industrywide. However, much of the $1.1 trillion in Medicaid and exchange cuts won’t take effect for a couple of years. (Hudson, 9/2)

Modern Healthcare: Cigna To Sell Evernorth Care Clinics To HonorHealth
Cigna is selling 18 Evernorth Care Group clinics in the Phoenix area to HonorHealth. Upon closing, the Evernorth locations will become part of HonorHealth’s integrated system. The deal is expected to close in January, pending legal and regulatory approvals, according to a Tuesday news release. Evernorth Care Group, formerly Cigna Medical Group, is a subsidiary of The Cigna Group and provides primary care to nearly 80,000 patients. (Hudson, 9/3)

North Carolina Health News: ECU Health, For-Profit Acadia Open New Psych Hospital 
A new psychiatric hospital in Greenville will begin serving patients in eastern North Carolina later this month. ECU Health Behavioral Health Hospital is a new 144-bed facility intended to provide inpatient and intensive outpatient psychiatric services to adults and children; it will open with a 24-bed unit designated for pediatric patients. (Knopf, 9/3)

WUSF: Memorial Healthcare, Florida Blue Fail To Reach Deal, Leaving 31,000 In Broward Out Of Network 
Memorial Healthcare is now out of network for about 31,000 Florida Blue members in Broward County after the hospital system and insurer failed to reach a new contract by a Monday deadline. Florida Blue customers must pay higher rates for some services through Memorial's hospitals, urgent care centers, specialty facilities and affiliated physicians. (Mayer, 9/2)

Chicago Tribune: Nurses At Howard Brown Health Move Toward A Possible Strike
Nurses at Howard Brown Health have voted to allow their bargaining team to call a strike amid contract talks and concerns about staffing and pay, according to their union. (Schencker, 9/2)

KFF Health News: Listen To The Latest 'KFF Health News Minute'
Aug. 28: Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: Emergency rooms with no doctor on staff are becoming more common in rural areas, and higher costs for Affordable Care Act plans could hit early retirees and small-business owners hard next year. Aug. 21: Zach Dyer reads the week’s news: Some doctors are changing how they talk to patients about immunizations because of changes to federal vaccine policy, and 26 is the age with the highest uninsured rate. (Cook, 9/2)