Author: Scott Welch

The spring coronavirus swell that’s turning into the summer coronavirus surge is starting to result in more hospital admissions, although the amount of serious illness is still far less than before widespread vaccination.

Watch out, pharma—the federal government has its eye on add-on drug patents that can lead to higher prices. In a new effort, the FDA and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) are teaming up to take a close look at patenting procedures. Wednesday, the PTO said it plans to crack down on patenting of “incremental, obvious ...

Hospitals and community and rural health clinics that serve low-income patients say drug manufacturers have threatened their financial stability by dramatically cutting back their participation in a federal drug discount program that saves those health providers millions of dollars a year. Without the drug discounts, the hospitals and clinics say, they are getting close to ...

The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case has caused a tidal wave of emotion and debate across the nation – especially about health care, and how it can be obtained. The high court ruled that access to pregnancy-termination/abortive care is not a constitutionally protected right. Instead, it is up to ...

When Pat Paulson’s son told her he was feeling anxious and depressed at college, Paulson went through her Blue Cross Blue Shield provider directory and started calling mental health therapists. No providers in the Wisconsin city where her son’s university is located had openings. So she bought a monthly subscription to BetterHelp, a Mountain View, ...

More than 2 million potential surprise medical bills across all patients in commercial plans were prevented in the first two months a key law went into effect, a new study said. Insurance groups AHIP and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association released a survey and analysis (PDF) of the impact of the No Surprises Act, which banned ...

Biden administration officials are developing a plan to allow all adults to receive a second coronavirus booster shot, pending federal agency sign-offs, as the White House and health experts seek to blunt a virus surge that has sent hospitalizations to their highest levels since March 3. Virus levels have risen across the country, fueled by ...

To dodge hefty costs for eyewear, California’s health insurance program for low-income people, Medi-Cal, has an innovative strategy: It contracts exclusively with the state’s prisons, and inmates make glasses for its beneficiaries. But the partnership that began more than 30 years ago has fractured. Medi-Cal enrollees, many of whom are children, and their eye care ...

Many technology and nontechnology employers require that workers who have access to proprietary and sensitive information sign contractual agreements not to compete during and when their relationship terminates. This contractual aid is common in Nevada and other states that allow such noncompete agreements.

It’s estimated that there are more than 250,000 Nevadans who depend on insulin to survive — but the price of the medication is steep.