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Hacking at UnitedHealth Unit Cripples a Swath of the US Health System: What to Know

KFF Health News Original

Change Healthcare, a firm recently bought by insurance giant UnitedHealth Group, reportedly suffered a cyberattack. The company processes 14 billion transactions annually, including payments and requests for insurance authorizations.

Senators Weigh Whether Health Care AI Needs a Leash

KFF Health News Original

The Senate Finance Committee contemplated the future yesterday: artificial intelligence and its potential applications to health care. And it turns out the future looks an awful lot like the past and present: Democrats want regulations. And the industry wants money. “There are a lot of reasons to be optimistic,” Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) […]

What the Health Care Sector Was Selling at the J.P. Morgan Confab

KFF Health News Original

When bankers and investors flocked to San Francisco for the largest gathering of health care industry investors, the buzz was all about artificial intelligence, the next hit weight-loss drug, and new opportunities to make money through nonprofit hospitals.

Mammography AI Can Cost Patients Extra. Is It Worth It?

KFF Health News Original

Artificial intelligence software to aid radiologists in detecting problems or diagnosing cancer has been moving rapidly into clinical use, where it shows great promise. But it’s a turnoff for some patients asked to pay out-of-pocket for technology that’s not quite ready for prime time.

Feds Rein In Use of Predictive Software That Limits Care for Medicare Advantage Patients

KFF Health News Original

Software sifts through millions of medical records to match patients with similar diagnoses and characteristics and then predicts what kind of care an individual will need and for how long. New federal rules will ensure human experts are part of the process.

As More Patients Email Doctors, Health Systems Start Charging Fees

KFF Health News Original

Doctors say billing for email consultations reduces message volume and gives them more free time. The increasingly prevalent practice has also raised fears about negative impacts to patient care.

Pacientes reciben facturas por enviarles correos electrónicos a sus médicos

KFF Health News Original

Con un fuerte aumento de los mensajes de correo electrónico durante la pandemia de covid, un número creciente de sistemas de salud han empezado a cobrar a los pacientes cuando los médicos y otros profesionales clínicos responden a sus mensajes.

Artificial Intelligence May Influence Whether You Can Get Pain Medication

KFF Health News Original

To contain the opioid crisis, health and law enforcement agencies have turned to technology to monitor doctor and patient prescription data. Experts have raised questions about how these systems work and worry about their accuracy and potential biases. Some patients and doctors say they’re being unfairly targeted.

What Does a Chatbot Know About Eating Disorders? Users of a Help Line Are About to Find Out

KFF Health News Original

The National Eating Disorders Association’s help line has seen demand climb to unsustainable levels since the beginning of the covid pandemic, with more people reporting severe mental health problems, the nonprofit says. But staffers worry this chatbot may make things worse.

Denials of Health Insurance Claims Are Rising — And Getting Weirder

KFF Health News Original

The Department of Health and Human Services is tasked with monitoring denials both by Obamacare health plans and those offered through employers and insurers. As insurers’ denials become more common, they sometimes defy not just medical standards of care but sheer logic. Why hasn’t the agency fulfilled its assignment?

An AI Chatbot May Be Your Next Therapist. Will It Actually Help Your Mental Health?

KFF Health News Original

Given a dire shortage of human behavioral health providers in the U.S., it may prove tempting for insurers to offer up apps and chatbots to meet the federal mental health parity requirement. But artificial intelligence, by definition fake, can’t master the empathic flow between patient and doctor that’s central to therapy.