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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.

Why Your Next Prescription Could Include An App

Federal regulators are confronting a new twist in drug development: manufacturers that include software with the medicine to prod patients to take pills as directed, manage side effects or track how well a treatment works. Why it matters: The apps could boost the drugs’ clinical value and provide a more personalized approach to managing chronic conditions ...

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Down To The Wire: 2024 Elections Impacting Health Care And Employee Benefits

The upcoming election results will have a significant impact on health care and employee benefit policies for at least the next four years.

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Cigna And Humana Re-Engage In Merger Talks

Cigna Group has reinitiated discussions with Humana regarding a potential merger, following the collapse of their discussions last year. According to a Bloomberg News report, which cited sources privy to the development, the talks are in the preliminary stages and no decisions have been made. In December last year, Cigna abandoned its plans to merge with Humana ...

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Blue Shield Of California, Salesforce Join Forces To Streamline Prior Authorization

Blue Shield of California and Salesforce are teaming up to simplify and streamline the prior authorization experience. The partners announced at HLTH on Monday that they would leverage Salesforce’s Health Cloud to make the process feel as simple as paying with a credit card. When a clinician needs to submit a prior auth request, the ...

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Almost 75% Of ACA Buyers Will Not Compare Plans For 2025

Nearly 75% of workers surveyed do not believe they have enough information to make a confident decision in open enrollment.

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Can The New CVS CEO Handle The Aetna Challenge?

As CVS Health’s (CVS.N), opens new tab new CEO David Joyner steps into the top job after Karen Lynch’s quick departure on Friday, Wall Street analysts and some investors are questioning whether he has the right experience to turn around the Aetna health insurance business as it struggles with high medical costs. Joyner, who headed the company’s ...

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More Than Half Of U.S. Employees Regret Their Open Enrollment Decisions, Study Finds

The average American spent only 30-60 minutes making open enrollment decisions last year.

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Novartis Loses Latest Bid To Block Generic Version Of Blockbuster Heart Drug

Novartis (NOVN.S), opens new tab has lost a bid to keep a generic version of its top-selling heart failure drug Entresto off the U.S. market by blocking regulators from approving it, though the generic’s launch faces other legal roadblocks. U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich in Washington, D.C., in an order made public on Tuesday, said the U.S. ...

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Employer Health Care Premiums Hit $25K In 2024: KFF

The average employer-sponsored health insurance premium for US families rose 7% this year – same as last year, according to the annual KFF survey of 2,100 companies.

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Walgreens Plans To Close 1,200 Stores By 2027 As Part Of Ongoing Turnaround Strategy

Walgreens reported a loss of $3 billion in the fourth quarter and plans to close 1,200 stores over the next three years as part of the retail drugstore chain’s ongoing turnaround strategy amid a rocky fiscal 2024. The company will close 500 stores next year as it works to improve its cash flow. The closure ...

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