Author's posts
Walgreens to pay $269 million for overbilling government
National pharmacy giant Walgreens agreed to settle two allegations that it defrauded the federal government and 39 states in elaborate overbilling schemes.
Maine governor rejects predecessor’s Medicaid work rules
Maine’s Democratic governor wrote to the CMS that she’s instead directing Maine’s health and labor agencies to help prepare recipients of governmental assistance for work.
Johnson & Johnson puts up strong profit and revenue in 4Q
A big jump in prescription drug sales, particularly overseas, helped Johnson & Johnson swing to a large fourth-quarter profit after posting a huge loss a year earlier, when it took a $13.6 billion charge related to the late-2017 U.S. tax…
Rising insulin prices drive higher diabetes care spending
The average cost of managing Type 1 diabetes spiked by nearly $6,000 from 2012 to 2016, thanks in large part to insulin prices nearly doubling during that time.
Dozens of hospitals sue to end site-neutral payment policy
A group of 38 hospitals sued HHS over a new rule that cuts Medicare payments for some services provided at off-campus hospital sites.
CMS revokes Ohio hospital’s Medicare funding over low patient volume
The CMS terminated an Ohio hospital’s Medicare and Medicaid funding because it didn’t serve enough patients. The hospital hopes the agency will delay the decision.
Shutdown stories: Rural hospital feels the pain from loan freeze
“We’re buying a week at a time.” It’s Day 32 of the partial government shutdown, and a small rural hospital in New Mexico has seen its Agriculture Department loan dry up, threatening a pricey delay of a construction project.
Hospital groups urge faster progress toward data interoperability
The American Hospital Association and six other hospital groups say the current “patchwork system” lacks universally agreed-upon ways of sharing and using information.
Bundled payment models’ downside risk sparks provider dropouts, GAO finds
Only 39% of hospitals that participated in the second model of Bundled Payments for Care Improvement continued in the model after they faced downside risk.
WellCare to help Kentucky Medicaid members meet work requirement
State Medicaid work requirements put pressure on health insurers to help their members find jobs or community service gigs. WellCare Health Plans is launching a program in Kentucky to keep beneficiaries from losing their benefits.
