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Industry Updates

This broad category includes articles concerning health insurance costs, carrier and health plan news, changing benefits technology, and surveys by the Kaiser Family Foundation and others on employee benefits.

Employers Are Getting More Creative On Benefits

Employers bracing for a major hike in health care costs are retooling their benefits, aiming to provide perks better targeted to workers’ needs as they closely mind the bottom line. Why it matters: Employer health costs are expected to see their largest jump in a decade, but many companies facing an ongoing workforce crunch are hesitant to pass ...

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Biden Administration to Ban Medical Debt From Americans’ Credit Scores

The Biden administration announced a major initiative to protect Americans from medical debt on Thursday, outlining plans to develop federal rules barring unpaid medical bills from affecting patients’ credit scores. The regulations, if enacted, would potentially help tens of millions of people who have medical debt on their credit reports, eliminating information that can depress consumers’ scores ...

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COVID Vaccine Rollout Snarled By Insurance Denials, Canceled Appointments

Some consumers trying to get updated versions of the COVID-19 vaccine this week have encountered red tape, canceled appointments and delays getting private insurance to cover the shots. The major snarl comes amid a systemic shift, as the federal government no longer pays for or distributes all COVID-19 vaccinations. Public and private-sector health insurance providers must ...

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Select Health, Mark Cuban Team To Lower Prescription Drug Costs

The partnership grew out of a philosophical alignment between the companies, with each citing the desire to simplify access and pricing.

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US Employers To See Biggest Healthcare Cost Jump In A Decade In 2024

U.S. employers are bracing for the largest increase in health insurance costs in a decade next year, according forecasts from healthcare consultants, but workers may be somewhat spared this time around in a tight labor market.

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Biden Administration Announces $600M To Produce COVID Tests And Will Reopen Website To Order Them

The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it is providing $600 million in funding to produce new at-home COVID-19 tests and is restarting a website allowing Americans to again order up to four free tests per household — aiming to prevent possible shortages during a rise in coronavirus cases that has typically come during colder months. The Department of Health and Human ...

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IRS’ 2024 ‘Affordable’ Health Plan Threshold: Employers May Need To Lower Premiums

For employers that set their employee premium costs last year right at the ACA affordability threshold, their plans will no longer be affordable if they charge employees the same amount in 2024 as they did in 2023.

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Why Health Insurance Is Poised To Make Inflation Jump

Inflation is broadly retreating in the U.S. economy. But starting in October, health insurance is poised to act as a countervailing force that buoys inflation for about a year, economists said.

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‘The Rule Has Sticks As Well’: Biden’s Getting Tough With Health Insurers

The administration says insurance companies are using loopholes to deny mental health care. Insurers say that’s not the case.

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Health Programs Could Be Stranded By Government Shutdown

The threat of a government shutdown is hanging over Capitol Hill. But so is the realization that gridlock could claim an array of health programs that are due to sunset at the end of the month without congressional action. Who’s affected: Key health interests potentially have billions of dollars of funding on the line, from community ...

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