Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Uninsured Rate Remained Hovering Around 8% In 2025, CDC Says
Modern Healthcare: CDC Says Uninsured Rate Held Steady At 8.3% In 2025
The share of Americans lacking health insurance has held steady for the past few years — but the percentage is expected to rise. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report released Thursday shows 8.3% of Americans, or 28 million people, lacked health insurance in 2025. In comparison, 8.2% of residents lacked coverage in 2024. (Tepper, 5/28)
KFF Health News: KFF Health News’ ‘What The Health?’: More Kids Without Coverage
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed by congressional Republicans in 2025, was supposed to backload cuts to health programs so they wouldn’t take effect until after the 2026 midterm elections. That’s not how things are working out, with numerous analyses showing insurance coverage is already starting to drop. Meanwhile, the Trump administration claims that the coverage reductions prove its anti-fraud efforts are working. But those efforts are likely to affect far more people than just those who commit fraud against federal health programs. (Rovner, 5/28)
More on the high cost of healthcare —
Modern Healthcare: Feds Finalize No Surprises Act Rule Overhauling Dispute Process
After more than two years of delay, the federal government issued a regulation Thursday implementing major updates to the No Surprises Act. The final rule from the Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury departments and the Office of Personnel Management overhauls the law’s Independent Dispute Resolution process, which health insurance companies and out-of-network providers use to reconcile claims covered under the No Surprises Act, which is intended to protect patients against surprise bills. (Early, 5/28)
ProPublica: More Than $100M Billed For Questionable Vascular Procedures, IG Report Finds
Dozens of doctors are routinely performing risky vascular procedures in medical offices, generating tens of millions of dollars in Medicare payments for potentially unnecessary procedures, according to a federal report released earlier this month. The review, completed by the Office of the Inspector General at the Department of Health and Human Services, flagged nearly 140 doctors across the country as having “concerning” billing patterns. (Waldman, 5/29)
KFF Health News: After Her Bout Of Amnesia, A $59,000 Billing Dispute Wouldn’t Go Away
On April 10, 2025, several hours after finishing a hike in Sedona, Arizona, Jan Anderson started repeating herself. “Did we hike this morning?” she asked. “Yes, we hiked,” said her husband, Steve Francks. “And you did really well.” But 15 seconds later, she asked the same question: “Did we hike today?” Anderson, 65, a retired finance executive, doesn’t remember any of it. She can recall what happened that afternoon only because her husband started recording her on his cellphone. “I was just on this nonstop loop,” she said. Almost immediately, Francks knew something was wrong. “Jan was out of it,” he said. (Sausser, 5/29)
In other healthcare industry developments —
Fierce Healthcare: HCA Acquiring Healthcare Professional College To Boost Workforce
For-profit hospital chain HCA Healthcare announced a deal to acquire The College of Health Care Professions, an in-person and online educator that prepares more than 8,000 students per year for non-physician healthcare positions. Terms for the deal announced Wednesday afternoon were not disclosed. A letter to students from the school’s chancellor and CEO, Eric Bing, said the acquisition would close “in the coming months, subject to customary regulatory approvals.” (Muoio, 5/28)
Modern Healthcare: Teladoc Debuts Clinical Offerings On Walmart’s Better Care Services
Teladoc Health launched several services on Walmart’s virtual health hub. The company said in a Thursday news release it will offer virtual urgent care, dermatology and nutrition services through Walmart’s platform for $89 per visit. Walmart created its Better Care Services hub in January to connect users to third-party digital health providers such as Teladoc. (DeSilva, 5/28)
Modern Healthcare: Clover Health Wins Medicare Advantage Star Ratings Lawsuit
Clover Health is in line for a boost to its Medicare Advantage star ratings under a court ruling that could embolden other health insurance companies. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia ruled Wednesday that 20 measures the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services uses to assess quality are improper. The court ordered CMS to recalculate Clover Health’s 2026 scores. (Tepper, 5/28)
San Francisco Chronicle: California University To Open Medical School In Central Valley
The University of the Pacific plans to open a medical school at its main campus in Stockton, one of the only institutions to issue a doctor of medicine (M.D.) degree in California’s Central Valley. The school is slated to open in the fall of 2030, according to Thursday’s announcement. University officials hope it will help address the growing shortage of physicians in the Central Valley. UOP is the second major university in California to announce plans to open a medical school in recent weeks, after Santa Clara University with Sutter Health. (Ho, 5/28)
Iowa Public Radio: Broadlawns Hospital Brings Iowa’s First Mobile Memory And Wellness Unit To Polk County
Broadlawns Medical Center in Des Moines launched a new mobile memory unit that will offer mobile care services for dementia. The Mobile Memory and Wellness Clinic will serve as an extension of Broadlawns’ Memory Center and will travel to different neighborhoods and community centers in Polk County. (Curran, 5/28)
The Baltimore Sun: Construction Starts On Hickory Emergency Services Hub
Harford County began construction this week on a new Emergency Services Special Operations facility in Hickory, meant to centralize all emergency response teams. (Foster, 5/27)
