Policy and Legislation

A 2.3 percent medical device tax went into effect on Jan. 1 as part of the Affordable Care Act, despite claims from medical device companies that the tax will significantly hurt their businesses.

With the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) over the next few years there are going to be several new fees for both health insurers and employers sponsoring self-insured health plans that go into effect.

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have voted by 257-167, with 172 Democratic votes and only 85 Republicans voting in favor, to approve the previously Senate-passed bill that will avert the so-called "fiscal cliff" of automatic tax increases and mandated spending cuts.

Gene Lindsey, MD, president and CEO of Newton, Mass.-based Atrius Health shares his thoughts on accountable care organizations (ACOs) and talks about Atrius' experience as a Pioneer ACO.

Despite objections of a large block of fiscally conservative Republicans, the House yesterday approved a fiscal cliff compromise crafted in the Senate in the first hours of the new year by a vote of 257 to 167, which also averted steep Medicare payment cuts to doctors for yet another year.

As healthcare organizations increase their focus on data security and HIPAA compliance, Kroll's Cyber Security Forecast offers a list of four concerns every provider should take very seriously.

Medicare on Dec. 20 disclosed bonuses and penalties for nearly 3,000 hospitals as it ties almost $1 billion in payments to the quality of care provided to patients.

Researchers from global consulting company PwC say providers and insurers have ample opportunities, but also significant challenges in serving the roughly 30 million people who will become newly insured through Medicaid expansion and via the health insurance exchanges in the coming years.

With the increasing costs of a growing Medicare population and of an American population that is living longer but with more chronic disease, the U.S. healthcare system needs to utilize better care coordination and payment reform to keep costs down, according to a report from the American Hospital Association (AHA).

As lawmakers debate the ingredients of a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff, a long-term care membership organization offers a recipe for post-acute system reform that can be adapted for all sectors of healthcare.