Payer | Healthcare Finance News

PAYERS

Keep up with the ever-evolving health insurance landscape

This section highlights Healthcare Finance News' coverage on Payer topics

including changing Medicare and Medicaid regulations and rules, Medicare Advantage star ratings, policy implications, payer and provider contracts, premium changes,

AI and analytics, compliance, ACA exchanges, mergers and acquisitions and all other issues that affect U.S. insurers.

Clinician at computer

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

Health plans adopt standardized approach to prior authorization

April 24, 2026

HCA sign

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

ACA market dynamics cost HCA $150M in Q1

Underlying shifts in payer mix resulting from the changes in the exchanges were generally in line with expectations, CEO Sam Hazen said.

April 28, 2026

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

Hartford HealthCare to invest $1 billion, anchored by patient tower

The investment is part of a broader strategy for Hartford Hospital to be a destination for research, teaching, innovation and clinical discovery, CEO says.

April 27, 2026

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

AI deployment may actually increase healthcare costs

April 27, 2026

CMS and FDA announce RAPID Medicare coverage for breakthrough medical devices

UnitedHealth Group on track to invest $1.5 billion in AI

Reimbursement pressure has physicians adopting membership or cash-pay models

Sign Up Get the Payer newsletter

UnitedHealth building

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

UnitedHealth Group on track to invest $1.5 billion in AI

April 23, 2026

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

Despite Q1 profit decline, Elevance Health raises financial outlook

April 22, 2026

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

PBM proposed transparency rule supported by public comment

April 21, 2026

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

ACA enrollment declines as fewer enrollees pay their premiums

April 17, 2026

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

Lean payment, voluntary participation test new ACCESS model

April 16, 2026

scales of justice

Accounting & Financial Management / Payer

Elevance subsidiary No Surprises Act lawsuit dismissed

The complaint alleged corruption by HaloMD, a company that handles the arbitration process for medical billing disputes.

April 15, 2026

Payers need to speed up prior authorization for drugs under proposed rule

Inpatient and long-term care hospitals get proposed 2.4% payment increase

KEY PAYER TOPICS

Teenager uses diabetic patch

MEDICARE & MEDICAID / Payer

CMS and FDA announce RAPID Medicare coverage for breakthrough medical devices

The pathway will allow the evidence generated for FDA review to support Medicare coverage decisions.

April 24, 2026

Lean payment, voluntary participation test new ACCESS model

Payers need to speed up prior authorization for drugs under proposed rule

Inpatient and long-term care hospitals get proposed 2.4% payment increase

States' lawsuit against HHS cuts moves forward after court win

Kenneth Harper, Microsoft_Las Vegas Strip at twilight Photo by Michael Lee/Moment/Getty Images

ANALYTICS / Payer

Democratizing innovation with agentic AI

AI technology has evolved so quickly that even healthcare staff with no technical expertise can now build custom agents to solve clinical or back-office challenges, explains Kenneth Harper, Dragon general manager at Microsoft.

April 06, 2026

National digital maturity vision unites siloed Italian healthcare regions

AI-enabled device provides early health warnings

How biometrics and QR codes will 'kill the clipboard'

Leveraging analytics to improve mental health outcomes

Doctor on phone in front of computers

REVENUE CYCLE MANAGEMENT / Payer

Payer denials and prior authorization delays are top RCM concerns

Close to 60% of providers who responded to an HFMA survey say they have yet to implement AI or automation in the revenue cycle.

April 08, 2026

Hospitals' net revenue leakage increases 25% due to denied claims

Amazon introduces Connect Health agentic AI for healthcare

Optum Real, Microsoft partner on AI for claims and reimbursement

Google Cloud to showcase how Gemini-powered AI agents are transforming healthcare at HIMSS26