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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.

Newsom Vowed To Transform Kids’ Mental Health. Many California Schools Are Still Waiting.

When Taletha Washburn and the staff at Plumas Charter School first heard that California wanted to help schools treat more kids struggling with mental health, it felt like a well-timed remedy for a rural community where families struggle to find care. Getting the program funding up and running, however, has proved difficult. Employees spent two ...

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CMS Goes Live With GLP-1 Bridge Program For Part D Beneficiaries

The Trump administration has officially launched its new “bridge” model that brings GLP-1 coverage for weight loss to Medicare beneficiaries. Eligible people enrolled in Medicare Part D can secure certain GLP-1 medications for weight loss or management at $50 each month. The program will remain in place through the end of 2027, the Centers for ...

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Health Care Leads The Way In June Small Business Hires

Small businesses added an estimated 32,900 new jobs in June — led by the Health Care and Social Assistance sector — marking the fifth consecutive month of positive net hiring across all sectors, according to the June 2026 Small Business Jobs Report from Gusto, a leading payroll, HR, and benefits platform. The Health Care and Social ...

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Copay Assistance Is Meant To Defray Patient Drug Costs. Some Insurers Keep It Instead.

For 16 years, Larry Gruber, a fitness coach from Wilton Manors, Florida, received a coupon card to help him pay for a psoriatic arthritis medication he needs that costs more than $7,700 a month. Each year, Amgen, which makes the drug, called Enbrel, sent the coupon card worth thousands of dollars, and that counted toward Gruber’s ...

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With Tougher Times Ahead, Hospitals Need To Be Planning Now

Some hospitals are struggling financially, and some are holding their own, but even stronger health systems need to be looking toward the future. Hospitals are expected to face continuing cost increases in labor and supplies, and Medicaid cuts unfolding over the next several years are going to create more pressures. Joe Kight, head of healthcare ...

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U.S. Life Expectancy On Track To Reach Record High As Death Rate Falls To Record Low In 2025

New mortality data from the federal government suggests that life expectancy probably hit another record high in 2025, as death rates have continued to fall since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. There were about 689 deaths for every 100,000 people in the US in 2025, according to a new report from the US Centers for Disease ...

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Newsom, California Legislature Reach $351.7-Billion Budget Deal

Gov. Gavin Newsom reached an agreement Friday with legislative leaders on a $351.7-billion state budget in his final year as governor, a spending plan that uses a tax windfall to avoid major cuts and lessen California’s chronic deficit in the years ahead. The deal provides nearly $2 billion in state revenue next year through tax ...

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States Seek To Lower Drug Prices By Targeting The Companies That Manage Them For Health Plans

As consumers worry about medication costs, states are trying to lower drug prices by reining in big companies that oversee prescription coverage for health insurers. Some of those companies, called pharmacy benefit managers, also own pharmacies, and one of them, CVS, has spent millions of dollars fighting the regulations. Affordability is a key issue ahead ...

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Millions Drop Obamacare Health Coverage After Subsidies Expire And Costs Rise

About 3 million fewer people in the United States had Affordable Care Act health insurance plans in February compared with the same time last year, according to new federal data. In the report released Friday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services suggested the 13% drop in enrollment from 22.1 million people in 2025 to 19.2 million this ...

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House Panel Oks Hospital Price Transparency Bills

Republicans and Democrats on the House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee joined Thursday to approve a total of 15 health care bills by voice votes. The Lower Costs, More Transparency Act of 2026, the Premium Transparency Act, the Prior Authorization Accountability Act and the Prices on the Wall Act of 2026 are approved bills that could directly affect employer-sponsored ...

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