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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.

America’s Doctors Need More Obesity Medicine Training

The relatively small number of health care providers trained in obesity care can hardly keep up with Americans’ demand for new weight-loss drugs. Why it matters: Tens of thousands of U.S. patients each week are starting on treatments like Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Wegovy, but obesity medicine specialists worry there are still too few providers with enough specialized training ...

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Kaiser Physicians Vote To Unionize

Resident and fellow physicians employed by Kaiser Permanente hospitals in Northern California voted to join the Committee of Interns and Residents, a local chapter of the Service Employees International Union. Nearly all participating voters (99%) cast ballots in favor of unionization, according to a May 23 CIR/SEIU news release. The National Labor Relations Board has not yet ...

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Senator Urges CMS To Hold Rogue Brokers Accountable In ACA ‘Plan-Switching’ Scheme

Stronger actions are needed immediately to thwart insurance brokers who fraudulently enroll or switch people in Obamacare coverage, wrote Senate Committee Chair Ron Wyden to CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure.

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Single-Payer Healthcare Meets Its Fate Again In The Face Of California’s Massive Budget Deficit

The latest attempt to bring a single-payer healthcare system to California failed in the state Legislature on Thursday, undercut by its steep price tag as lawmakers struggle with a mounting budget shortfall.

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Expert Warns About Healthcare’s Cybersecurity Weakness

A cybersecurity expert said that the ransomware attacks on Change Healthcare and St. Louis-based Ascension has highlighted the healthcare industry's cybersecurity weakness, CNN reported May 15.

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UnitedHealth’s Unit To Launch New Drug Pricing Model Next Year

The new model, Optum Rx Clear Trend Guarantee, will provide value-based pricing of drugs per member combining the cost of these medicines from various sources such as retail pharmacy, home delivery, specialty drug and rebates.

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Senate Drug Shortage Bill Zeroes In On Supply Chain, Would Pay Hospitals To ‘Stockpile’

With drug shortages at an all-time high, the Senate Finance Committee wants to create a new program to incentivize improved contracting and purchasing practices in the supply chain by offering bonuses to hospitals and providers.

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Prescription Drug Ads Should Soon Start Looking Noticeably Different

A new chapter in drug advertising begins Monday when a federal transparency rule takes effect requiring commercials to clearly spell out potential side effects and when a person should avoid the medicine. Why it matters: The effort, more than a decade in the making, could demystify those rapid-fire disclaimers at the end of TV and radio ads through ...

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Wegovy Could Bankrupt U.S. Health System, Sanders Says In New Report

Blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy could bankrupt the U.S. health care system unless the price drops, according to a staff report released Wednesday from the office of Senate Health Committee Chair Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Unless prices dramatically decline, Wegovy and weight loss drugs could push Americans to spend $1 trillion per year on prescription drugs, the report concluded. ...

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People Spent the Most Money on These 25 Prescription Drugs Last Year

According to a study published in the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy on April 24, the U.S. spent more than $722 billion on prescription drugs in 2023, a 13.6% increase from 2022. This is the largest uptick in spending in 20 years. Semaglutide (sold under brand names Ozempic, Wegovy, and Rybelsus) ranked No. 1 on the list of the ...

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