News
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is challenging two hospital acquisitions, one in Ohio and another in Georgia that's currently under review by the U.S. Supreme Court, and the outcomes may establish precedent for post-health reform provider consolidation.
Increased adoption of consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs) and an increased emphasis on employee health management programs helped U.S. employers hold their health benefit cost increases to an average of 4.1 percent in 2012, the lowest average annual increase since 1997, according to a new survey from global consulting firm Mercer.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will have to manage and analyze double the volume of Medicare data and triple the terabytes of Medicaid data after health reform is fully in place.
One of several private health insurance exchanges that has evolved over the past several years, Buffalo-based benefits exchange company Liazon garnered some attention recently when it was ranked number 132 on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest growing companies.
A report released Nov. 29 by the Office of Inspector General calls for random audits of doctors and hospitals prior to payout through the meaningful use EHR incentive program, to ensure they have qualified. It is also calling for EHR certification changes to allow for reporting of yes/no measures.
Physicians in all care settings will see a slight pay hike in 2013, with salaries expected to rise by an average of 2.6 percent, according to a recent survey conducted by global consulting firm Hay Group.
The average premium for family health plans sold through eHealthInsurance.com was $412 a month in 2012, down slightly from 2011, amid "a relative flattening of the cost curve," eHealth Inc. CEO Gary Lauer said.
In a new study published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, it was found that after examining patients suffering from pneumonia and heart failure, a broad range of social factors affect the risk of post-discharge readmission and mortality.
AHRQ review finds lack of evidence to determine cost effectiveness of home versus institutional care
The message that home- and community-based care is more cost effective than institutional care has been touted by federal and local governments and those within the healthcare community, but a new comparative effectiveness review of long-term care of older adults receiving home- and community-based services versus care in institutions concludes that there is not enough evidence in the literature to determine cost effectiveness.
BayCare Health System in Clearwater, Fla., has agreed to pay over $10.1 million to the federal government to resolve allegations that the health system violated the False Claims Act announced the U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) last week.