The already fragile medical supply chain is facing more stress this week, after Hurricane Helene ravaged a huge Baxter International plant in North Carolina that makes IV fluids for many U.S. hospitals. Why it matters: While the damage hasn’t been totaled up, and the company says it’s lining up backup plants and making other contingencies, the closure of ...

The Biden administration is once again trumpeting the Medicare Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate Program to prove to voters it is lowering drug prices. Through the program, 54 drugs will be less expensive for Medicare enrollees because of a lower Part B coinsurance rate from Oct. 1 through the end of the year. This is because ...

The “vast majority” of the nation’s 67 million seniors eligible for Medicare health insurance won’t shop around for coverage options, let alone switch plans, a new analysis shows. KFF’s new research, which comes before open enrollment begins Oct. 15 for various Medicare coverage options for 2025 including Medicare Advantage, shows that 69% of those eligible Medicare beneficiaries did ...

Most Americans don’t plan to get vaccinated against the flu or COVID-19 this season, a new survey has found. Fewer than two in five U.S. adults (38%) say they will definitely get a flu jab, and only one in four (26%) say they’ll get the updated COVID vaccine, according to a survey released Wednesday by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases. ...

On September 27, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law two bills that will impact health care service plans and insurers in the state. AB 3275 – Health Care Coverage: Claim Reimbursement AB 3275 amends, repeals, and adds California Health and Safety Code §§ 1371, 1371.34, 1371.35, Insurance Code §§ 10123.13, 10123.147, and Welfare and ...

Four California governor hopefuls made big promises on single-payer health care but skimped on details Sunday during a candidate forum at a health workers’ union conference in San Francisco.