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.
Nearly 25,000 Californians could see their medication switched next year. Doctors can object, but insurers would gain new power over prescriptions.
UnitedHealth Group and CVS Health are exploring the possibility of adding to their vast enterprises, executives said at the Wells Fargo Annual Healthcare Conference Wednesday. Both conglomerates see acquisitions as part of their future as they rebound after a tough few years, company leaders said. UnitedHealth Group expects to deploy stock buybacks more aggressively and ...
One potential solution for soaring health care expenses may not be limiting access or reducing the cost of care but avoiding the need for expensive treatments through prevention. Much of what the nation currently spends on health care is devoted to managing diseases that often could have been delayed, minimized or even avoided altogether. “The ...
The White House announced Thursday that it plans to issue $500 refunds to close to a million people enrolled in Affordable Care Act plans. The administration said in a fact sheet that the refunds come from “overcharges” collected in the Biden administration through user fees intended to fund the operation of the federal insurance exchange, ...
Overview Health Net is exiting the California Small Group and Large Group medical markets. The exit impacts all Health Net Small Group and Large Group medical groups, including groups enrolled through CalChoice. This change does not impact the Medi-Cal, Marketplace/Covered California or Medicare lines of business. The final Health Net renewal and new-business effective date is September ...
By the time Democrat Xavier Becerra left Washington, D.C., more Americans than ever had health insurance, owing partly to his work over the years to pass, defend, and expand the Affordable Care Act. It’s an achievement the former congressman and former U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services often touts as he campaigns for California governor against Republican Steve Hilton, a ...
New penalties can fine hospitals and insurers up to 125% of their overspending, with enforcement starting as early as 2028. Hospital executives argue much of their spending, like drug costs and labor, is outside their control.
This week, lawmakers in the Texas state House brought in more than a dozen expert speakers to discuss how to make healthcare more affordable. One of those experts was entrepreneur and billionaire Mark Cuban, whose Cost Plus Drugs company seeks to address affordability and access for critical medications and often comes into conflict with legacy ...
Employers are bracing for an expected 8.2% increase in per-employee benefit cost in 2027, even after factoring in planned cost-control measures. This not only would be the fifth-consecutive year of elevated cost growth but also would be the largest annual increase since 2003, according to the 2026 National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans from Marsh. “Few ...
More employers are putting GLP-1 coverage on the chopping block as they prepare for a historic year of healthcare cost hikes. New figures from the Business Group on Health (BGH) find that 14% of employers have already dropped or plan to drop coverage of GLP-1s for weight management by 2027. Overall, fewer employers are covering ...