Author's posts
HHS promoting access to contraceptive care
The Department of Health and Human Services is renewing a push to protect and expand contraception access, sending a letter to Medicare plans, health insurance issuers, and state Medicaid and CHIP programs about upholding their obligations under federa…
AHA says Medicare payments to long-term care hospitals are inadequate
A change in Medicare payments to long-term care hospitals (LTCHs) may result in such hospitals incurring ever-increasing losses while threatening beneficiaries’ future access to care, according to a new white paper published by the American Hospital As…
UHC debuts resource hub in bid to expand wellness programs, lower costs
UnitedHealthcare is debuting a new resource hub designed to help simplify the process for employers of selecting and purchasing health programs for employees. The idea is that members will have an easier time using wellness offerings while employers wi…
Cigna leadership changes expand top executives’ roles
Health insurer Cigna is shaking up its leadership structure by expanding the roles of its top executives, saying the move was designed to continue accelerating growth across Cigna Healthcare and subsidiary Evernorth Health Services.
Seventy percent of physicians work on vacation, contributing to burnout
Most physicians – about 70% of them, in fact – work on their days off and during vacations, while about 20% of physicians took less than one week of vacation during the previous year, research in JAMA Network Open has found.
Blue Cross NC acquiring FastMed locations in urgent care expansion
Blue Shield and Blue Cross of North Carolina is expanding its urgent care presence in the state, having officially closed a deal to nab 55 FastMed urgent care clinics, which the insurer said was meant to address the lack of providers in rural areas.
An…
$250M health system initiative to launch ‘healthcare high schools’
A new initiative and partnership between public schools and major health systems will create healthcare-centric high schools in various communities around the country that will graduate students directly into high-demand healthcare jobs with sustainabl…
Premium hikes outpacing employee wages, especially for Blacks, Hispanics
Employee wages have been unable to keep pace with the rising costs of premiums in employee-sponsored coverage, and the disparity is having an outsized effect on Black and Hispanic employees in particular, a new study in JAMA Network Open has found.
Solid operating margins have hospitals looking to strategic growth, says Kaufman Hall
Hospitals in the U.S. can begin to transition from financial stability to strategic growth after a month in which operating margins and other performance metrics improved, according to the newly released Flash Report from Kaufman Hall.
BCBSA seeks to reduce racial maternal care disparities
The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association is kick-starting an effort to reduce ethnic and racial disparities in maternity care in about 600 acute care and pediatric hospitals across the country.
