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.
A new bipartisan bill would mandate that Medicare Advantage (MA) insurers “adequately reimburse” providers for services, citing a trend of health systems pulling out of MA contracts. The Prompt and Fair Pay Act was introduced by Reps. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, and Greg Murphy, R-N.C. The legislation would require that insurers pay providers at least what ...
UnitedHealthcare is rolling out a new benefit to encourage preventive cancer screenings. The insurer’s new breast and colon cancer detection benefit will be available for eligible commercial plans starting Jan. 1, 2026. Through the program, UHC will cover members’ first diagnostic imaging tests for breast cancer and diagnostic tests for colon cancer. This closes a ...
Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente plans to lay off 42 nurses at two outpatient clinics, attributing the decision to shifting volume patterns and patient care needs, according to July 18 reports from local news outlets. The job cuts are set to take effect in 60 days and will affect nurses at clinics in San Rafael and ...
With plenty of policy questions still up in the air, a new report suggests insurers are set to propose steep premium increases for Affordable Care Act (ACA) plans in 2026. Researchers at KFF examined early filings from 105 insurers in 20 markets, including 19 states and the District of Columbia, and found that the medium ...
Blue Shield of California is conducting a second round of layoffs this year, with 138 more employees being laid off in September. The majority of the layoffs affect employees in Oakland and El Dorado, with the remaining cuts taking place in Long Beach, Woodland Hills, Rancho Cordova, San Diego, Lodi and Redding, according to regulatory ...
More than half of Americans — 57 percent — said in a new survey that they think the GOP’s sweeping package extending tax cuts and slashing welfare services will increase their health-care costs. Thirteen percent in the CBS/YouGov poll released Sunday said that the “big, beautiful bill” will lower their health-care costs and 33 percent said there will be ...
In late June 2025, the California legislature approved a delay to the new fertility benefit mandate for fully insured group health plans — including coverage for In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) and other specified services. Originally set to take effect July 1, 2025, under Senate Bill 729 (signed in Fall 2024), the mandate will now apply ...
CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz, MD, is charting an ambitious path to reshape federal healthcare policy in line with President Donald Trump’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda. His vision comes as President Trump on July 4 signed The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a sweeping package of reforms targeting Medicaid, Medicare, and the ACA marketplace. From plans to ...
H.R.1—the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA)—contains several provisions that directly affect employer-provided benefit programs, primarily health and welfare programs.
Trump’s sweeping plan slashes Medicaid and food aid, putting millions of Californians at risk — especially low-income residents, undocumented immigrants and rural communities.