The Latest

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  Providers, drugmakers at odds over new 340B dispute resolution process

  PhRMA said the new rule “panders to 340B hospitals,” while the American Hospital Association and 340B Health said the rule would preserve the drug discount program’s integrity.

  Hospitals

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  CHS to sell Tennessee hospital for $160M

  CEO Tim Hingtgen told investors in February that divestitures could yield more than $1 billion for the hospital operator.

  Hospitals

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  Novant, CHS fire back after FTC sues to block North Carolina hospital sale

  The health systems resisted regulators’ allegations that the deal would stifle competition in the Charlotte area.

  Hospitals

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  Tracker

  Tracking healthcare data breaches

  A data breach at a dental care provider may have exposed the information of more than 618,000 people.

  Updated April 18, 2024

  Hospitals

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  Elevance notches $2.3B in profit, unfazed by Change attack

  The insurer says it has caught up on claims delayed due to the cyberattack on the clearinghouse earlier this year, and shared more details on a new primary care venture with a private equity firm.

  Payer

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  Telehealth linked to modest quality, cost increases, study finds

  The findings suggest it would be challenging to restrict telehealth payment in Medicare, researchers said. Some pandemic flexibilities are set to expire at the end of 2024.

  Health IT

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  Q&A // Change Healthcare cyberattack

  The aftermath of Change: Two experts on how healthcare organizations can prevent the next cyberattack

  Providers should form a cyber strategy involving incident response plans, testing, multifactor authentication and automating tasks, according to managing directors at NetSPI.

  Health IT

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  Envision Healthcare names permanent CEO

  Jason Owen took on the leadership role this week, months after the physician staffing firm emerged from bankruptcy restructuring.

  Medical Groups

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  Change Healthcare cyberattack

  Lawmakers raise healthcare consolidation concerns after Change cyberattack

  Legislators also slammed UnitedHealth Group, which acquired Change Healthcare nearly two years ago, for not sending a representative to the House subcommittee hearing.

  Health IT

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  Deep Dive // Tracking Steward's decline

  Steward bankruptcy likely as massive debt remains, with few options left

  Steward Health Care’s forbearance period ends in less than 15 days. Analysts say this time, creditors are unlikely to extend the embattled company another lifeline.

  Hospitals

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  Over 20% of healthcare bankruptcies last year were linked to private equity: report

  Another wave of private equity-backed bankruptcies is expected this year, according to the Private Equity Stakeholder Project.

  Hospitals

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  ACOs led by independent physicians save Medicare ‘substantially’ more money, CBO says

  Independent practices have clearer financial incentives to lower medical spending than hospitals participating in accountable care organizations, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

  Payer

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  Change Healthcare cyberattack

  UnitedHealth expects up to $1.6B hit from Change cyberattack this year

  Investors on Tuesday got a clearer picture of the cyberattack's financial fallout on the healthcare juggernaut. Some said it wasn't as bad as they'd feared.

  Payer

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  Cybersecurity takes center stage at AHA annual meeting

  In the wake of the Change Healthcare attack, experts advised hospital leaders to increase their cyber defenses.

  Hospitals

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  Elevance partners with private equity firm on primary care

  The payer has inked a deal with Clayton, Dubilier and Rice to join their primary care assets as Elevance looks to catch up with peers like UnitedHealth and CVS in care delivery.

  Payer

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  Telehealth company Cerebral to pay $7M fine over data sharing

  The Federal Trade Commission alleged the digital mental healthcare company had provided sensitive data to third parties and maintained “sloppy” security practices.

  Health IT

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  Florida issues Medicaid managed care awards booting out UnitedHealth, CVS and Molina

  Meanwhile, Centene, Elevance and Humana held onto statewide contracts. The reprocurement was especially positive for Centene, which had been expected to lose market share, analysts said.

  Payer

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  VillageMD faces lawsuit over online tracking technologies

  The class action alleges the Meta Pixel embedded on VillageMD’s website allowed the primary care provider to disclose protected health information to third parties, including Facebook and Google. 

  Health IT

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  VA plans to resume Oracle EHR rollout by end of FY 2025, secretary says

  The agency needs a single electronic health record that’s more interoperable with the Department of Defense, VA Secretary Denis McDonough told lawmakers.

  Health IT

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  Medical Properties Trust selling spree continues, Utah deal closes

  The deal is expected to generate approximately $1.1 billion in in cash for the liquidity-strapped hospital landlord.

  Hospitals

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  Opinion

  No appointments available: America’s escalating primary care shortage

  Chronic disinvestment and inadequate training have created a shortage of primary care workers, according to leaders at the Milbank Memorial Fund, National Association of Community Health Centers and others.

  Hospitals

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  Medicaid redeterminations

  More than 20M disenrolled amid Medicaid redeterminations

  Nearly a quarter of adults removed from the safety-net program since early last year said they are uninsured, according to KFF.

  Payer

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  More than three-fourths of doctors are employed by corporations, report finds

  Rampant consolidation continues to threaten the existence of independent physicians, according to a new report from Avalere and the Physicians Advocacy Institute.

  Finances

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  Tracking Steward's decline

  Steward buy could add 3,000 doctors to Optum’s physician network, regulator says

  There’s a long way to go before the highly anticipated deal can close, as parties have yet to file the paperwork required to kick off Massachusetts' antitrust review process, a regulator said yesterday.

  Hospitals

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  US sues Regeneron, alleging false price reporting on Eylea

  The Department of Justice accused Regeneron of defrauding Medicare by knowingly inflating the average sales price for its top-selling eye drug.

  Government

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