Medicare Medicaid Category

Medicare & Medicaid

News articles in this section include actions by federal regulators like the CMS and HHS, as well as information on Medicare and state Medicaid coverage and benefits.

After A Pandemic Pause, The State Will Restart Checking Medi-Cal Eligibility

California will soon restart its annual eligibility review for people enrolled in Medi-Cal, a process that has been suspended since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This means that starting in mid-April, residents enrolled in Medi-Cal, the state’s insurance program for low-income people, will start to receive renewal notices in the mail. The process will ...

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CMS: US Health Care Spending Reached $4.3 Trillion In 2021 During COVID

During the peak COVID timeframe in 2021, the U.S. spent nearly $4.3 trillion on health care. Government insurance programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, made up 42% (or a whopping $1.8 trillion of national health care spending) in 2021. That’s according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which says private insurance programs, including employer-sponsored ...

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450K Nevada Residents Could Lose This Federal Benefit. Are You On The List?

Thousands of Nevadans could lose their no-cost Medicaid health coverage this year as pandemic emergency provisions wind down, according to state officials. Following a three-year grace period during the worst of COVID-19, Medicaid recipients will be required to reapply for benefits beginning April 1.

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Eli Lilly To Cut Insulin Prices, Cap Costs At $35 For Many People With Diabetes

Eli Lilly announced Wednesday a series of price cuts that would lower the price of the most commonly used forms of its insulin 70% and said it will automatically cap out-of-pocket insulin costs at $35 for people who have private insurance and use participating pharmacies.

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Medicare Advantage Yielded Strongest Margins For Insurers, Study Finds

Health insurers’ margins in Medicare Advantage were more than double those seen in other markets in 2021, reinforcing the way the program can produce strong financial returns for plans, a new Kaiser Family Foundation analysis shows. Why it matters: Private Medicare plans are expected to draw more than half of eligible beneficiaries this year. But government payments to ...

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Insurers, Republicans Square Off With Biden On Medicare ‘Cuts’

The insurance industry and Republicans are using the debt ceiling fight and President Biden’s vows not to cut Medicare to fend off changes to private Medicare Advantage plans, which are popular among the public but have faced criticism about their costs to the government. So far this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ...

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U.S. Proposes Medicare, Medicaid Programs To Cut Drug Costs, Including $2 Generics

The U.S. health department proposed on Tuesday three new pilot projects aimed at lowering prescription drug prices for people enrolled in government health insurance plans, including offering some essential generic drugs for $2 a month.

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‘We Ain’t Gonna Get It’: Why Bernie Sanders Says His ‘Medicare for All’ Dream Must Wait

After railing at the injustices of U.S. health care for decades, Sen. Bernie Sanders in January became the new chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee. The job gives the health care industry’s biggest Washington nemesis an unprecedented opportunity to shape health care reform in Congress.

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Biden Administration Allowing State Medicaid Funds to Cover Groceries, Nutritional Care

The Biden administration has started allowing state Medicaid funds to be used to pay for groceries and dietary advice in an effort to promote better overall health and wellness among the population and to decrease the need for expensive medical interventions. Supporters of the effort, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, believe that utilizing medical ...

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HHS Releases New Guidance Implementing Key Medicare Drug Rebate Program

The Biden administration rolled out new guidance to drugmakers for meeting a new requirement to dole out rebates if their prices on Medicare Parts B and D go above inflation. The guidance, released Thursday by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), implements a key part of the Inflation Reduction Act passed last year. ...

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