Author's posts
HHS targeting mental health pay parity in new roadmap
As efforts to address mental healthcare access and pay parity are bogged down in Congress, the Biden Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services have established a roadmap for increasing access to behavioral health services, in addit…
CMS attempting to curb dubious telehealth claims
While the vast majority of providers billing for telehealth services do so in a way that poses no significant risk to Medicare, a small percentage of telehealth claims are problematic – and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is looking to c…
Evernorth expands digital health formulary to address substance use, anxiety
Evernorth, the health services business of Cigna, has expanded its Digital Health Formulary to include five new app-based programs designed to help people better manage their sleep issues, anxiety, alcohol and opioid use disorders, and inflammatory con…
Amazon, Walmart join providers in pushing Senate to extend telehealth policies
Major healthcare disruptors Amazon and Walmart have joined a chorus of hospitals, provider groups and telehealth organizations in pressing the U.S. Senate to extend telehealth flexibilities, such as removing in-person requirements for virtual behaviora…
Blue Cross NC’s value-based program saved $130 million in 2021
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina’s Blue Premier program, which emphasizes value-based healthcare, has saved members about $130 million in health costs in 2021, and almost $500 million total since the program first launched three years ago, …
YouTube, KFF partnering on health equity streaming content
YouTube and the Kaiser Family Foundation are joining forces on a new program geared toward nonprofit organizations, with an emphasis on creating educational videos about inequities in healthcare, including behavioral health and maternal care.
AMA joins class-action lawsuit accusing Cigna of underpaying claims
The American Medical Association is accusing health insurer Cigna of underpaying claims filed by providers in the contracted MultiPlan network, the largest third-party network in the country. The AMA has joined a class-action lawsuit alleging the insur…
HHS approves first Medicaid mobile crisis intervention program in Oregon
In the realm of mobile crisis interventions, the state of Oregon will be getting a boost from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. HHS, through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, has announced approval of the Oregon Health Aut…
Most physicians unsure of when abortion is legally protected
Almost three quarters of physicians, 74%, say they’re unclear on what constitutes a life-threatening emergency that would allow a doctor to legally perform an abortion in states where it is otherwise banned, a new survey has found.
Aetna expanding to ACA exchanges in four new states
Aetna will now be in the Affordable Care Act’s exchanges in 12 states after adding four more states to that total, the insurer said.
California, Delaware, Illinois and New Jersey have been added to Aetna’s slate for the 2023 plan year, joining Arizona,…
