Latest Morning Briefing Stories
Anthem, Express Scripts Face Legal Challenge Over Prescription Drug Prices
The case alleges that insured consumers were overcharged because of a contract agreement.
Ga., Calif. Hospitals Sue Blue Cross Plan For Sending ER Reimbursements To Patients
The lawsuits allege that the practice costs the hospitals money because the patients often spend the funds.
HHS Proposes To Streamline Medicare Appeals Process
The changes announced Tuesday seek to eliminate the backlog by 2021.
‘Digital Health’ Not Just For Well-Heeled Fitness Fiends
A small group of advocates and entrepreneurs is using mobile phones and digital scales to make a difference in the health of poor people, too.
California Drug Price Measure Fiercely Opposed By Pharmaceutical Industry
Proposed legislation would require drugmakers to disclose and justify price hikes. The industry has taken to Facebook and Twitter, warning that the proposal could lead to medication shortages in some regions of the state.
Doctors Wrestle With Mixed Messages When Deciding Whether To Prescribe Painkillers
Though the CDC’s new prescribing guidelines follow a theme of less is more, another federal agency’s patient satisfaction surveys include questions about pain management that some say encourage doctors to prescribe the highly addictive medicines.
Filling A Prescription? You Might Be Better Off Paying Cash
Amid growing concern about rising drug costs, the practices of prescription benefit management firms are drawing a new level of attention.
California Insurance Commissioner Weighs In Against Aetna-Humana Deal
Commissioner says $37 billion deal would stifle market competition, raise health insurance rates and reduce access to care.
In Alameda County, A Big Data Effort To Prevent Frequent ER Visits
Hospitals share patient records of “super-users” to save money and avoid duplicating medical treatment.
Office Chatter: Your Doctor Will See You In This Telemedicine Kiosk
Employers and insurers are installing sophisticated kiosks in more workplaces so that workers can quickly consult a doctor offsite when they take ill at work.
Health Effects Of Egg Donation Not Well Studied
Fertility specialists say that egg donation is safe and involves the same process as in vitro fertilization, but there are sporadic reports of cancers, some fatal, and subsequent fertility problems among egg donors. Because of a lack of research, it isn’t known whether these problems are linked to the process or are the result of chance.
California Regulator Signs Off On $37 Billion Aetna-Humana Insurance Merger
Aetna to spend nearly $50 million on health initiatives, agrees to more rate review.
California Insurance Commissioner Urges Feds To Block $54 Billion Anthem-Cigna Deal
Commissioner Dave Jones says the deal would further reduce competition in the state’s health insurance market and harm consumers.
Screen Flashes And Pop-Up Reminders: ‘Alert Fatigue’ Spreads Through Medicine
Electronic health records increasingly include automated alert systems pegged to patients’ health information. In some cases, though, the sheer volume of these messages has become unmanageable.
Medicare Releases Draft Proposal For Patient Observation Notice
Although there is widespread agreement on the need to let people know if they haven’t been admitted, the language proposed by federal officials hasn’t satisfied everyone.
As Hospital Chains Grow, So Do Their Prices For Care
The average patient stay costs $4,000 more at Sutter and Dignity hospitals than at other California medical centers, study shows.
Medicare’s Efforts To Curb Backlog Of Appeals Not Sufficient, GAO Reports
Investigators from the GAO call for HHS to improve oversight of the Medicare appeals process and streamline it to make sure repetitive claims are handled more efficiently.
For Doctors-In-Training, A Dose Of Health Policy Can Help The Medicine Go Down
Medical residents at George Washington University spend three weeks examining and diagnosing the nation’s health care system.
At This Medical School, Students Mix Science And Health Policy
Health policy is far from an afterthought at George Washington University, where med students begin tackling the knotty topic in their first semester.
FDA Eases Paperwork To Help Some Patients Get Experimental Drugs
The Food and Drug Administration has introduced a simplified form that doctors will use to seek FDA approval to treat seriously ill patients with experimental drugs after other options run out.
