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Compliance

This section focuses on health care compliance and regulations – both national and state – including the ACA. It includes changes in health care law, regulation, and court decisions and their impact on health insurance professionals, employers, and individuals.

7 Virus Variants Found in U.S. Carrying the Same Mutation

Scientists don’t know yet whether the mutation makes the variants more contagious, but they are concerned that it might.

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Here’s How Far Medicare Claims Dropped Last Spring Due To COVID-19

COVID-19 caused a massive 51% drop in outpatient Medicare fee-for-service claims last April compared to 2019 as the pandemic reached full swing, according to a new analysis. The analysis, released Tuesday from consulting firm Avalere Health, sought to explore the impact of the pandemic on healthcare utilization from March through May. The pandemic caused doctors’ offices to ...

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Pentagon Approves Over 1,000 Personnel to Help FEMA with COVID-19 Vaccines

The Pentagon has authorized more than 1,000 active-duty service members to help the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) with its vaccination effort against COVID-19. The 1,110 active-duty troops will be broken up into teams of 222 people to support five state vaccination sites, according to a Defense Department fact sheet released Friday.

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Democrats Push Temporary Obamacare Expansion In COVID Bill

The bill, which the Ways and Means Committee will mark up later this week, would fully subsidize ACA coverage for people earning up to 150 percent of the federal poverty level and those on unemployment insurance.

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Oscar Health Files To Go Public

Oscar Health has officially filed to go public. The tech-enabled startup insurer filed for its initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday, where it intends to list its stocks under the ticker OSCR. Details on the plans beyond that were limited. “The number of shares of Class A common stock to be offered ...

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Pandemic Habits Could Spur US Health Spending To Decelerate Over 2 Decades, Deloitte Predicts

Dive Brief: * The growing shift from reactive to preventive healthcare could rapidly decelerate health spending over the next two decades, according to a new report from Deloitte, running counter to much more dire predictions made before COVID-19. * Previous CMS analyses estimate health spending will grow by 5.3% per year through 2028, which — if ...

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Medicare Advantage Enrollment In Chronic Illness Benefits Tripled In 2021: Avalere

More than 3 million Medicare Advantage beneficiaries chose plans for the 2021 coverage year that provide additional supplemental benefits for chronic illnesses, a major increase over the more than 1 million that signed up in 2020, a new analysis found. The analysis, released Friday by consulting firm Avalere Health, also found the number of enrollees in ...

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Republicans Seek To Pin California’s Covid-19 Problem On Biden’s HHS Pick

Senate Republicans plan to link President Joe Biden’s pick for Health secretary with California’s troubled pandemic response in a long-shot bid to sink the nomination later this month. As the state’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra enforced stay-at-home orders and other restrictions imposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, including limits on indoor religious services that outraged many ...

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Biden Administration’s Methodical Approach To Drug Price Reform

Ah, the vexing problem of prescription drug prices. As a share of healthcare expenditures, prescription drugs account for about a dime for every dollar spent. And it’s been that way for a very long time. Yet, for patients, because coverage of prescription drugs is much less comprehensive than reimbursement for hospital and physician services they feel the ...

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Why Are Insulin Prices Going Up? Chuck Grassley Explains It

More than 7 million Americans require insulin to treat their diabetes but some people struggle to afford the cost. On Jan. 14, 2021, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, tweeted, “2day Sen Wyden & I released Finance Cmte report on INSULIN costs Prices hv gone THRU THE ROOF for patients/taxpayers bc of manufacturer, health plan & PBM biz ...

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