U.S. Hospitals Struggle to Absorb Pandemic-Era Rising Costs

Labor costs per patient jumped by 19% in 2021 from 2019, and supplies rose by over 20% per patient during that period, according to the report. Nursing expenses shifted heavily toward travel nurses. The travelers’ share of nursing budgets rose to 39% in 2022 from 5% in 2019.

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Employers Still Overlooking A Big Factor That’s Fueling Burnout

Burnout has been on the rise since the start of pandemic — a trend that been a big factor in the turnover tsunami that has swept the nation.

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L.A. County Keeps Mask Mandate At Airports, On Public Transit, Despite Federal Changes

Despite recent changes at the federal level, Los Angeles County is continuing to require travelers to mask up when aboard public transit or in indoor transportation hubs such as airports. The new health officer order, which went into effect at 12:01 a.m. Friday, means the nation’s most populous county again has face-covering rules that go ...

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CMS Proposes 5 Medicare Special Enrollment Periods

Medicare beneficiaries experiencing specific illnesses or circumstances could soon get Part B coverage outside the normal open enrollment periods under a proposed rule released Friday. Individuals who are impacted by an emergency or disaster, formerly incarcerated people and those subject to a health plan or employer error that prevented them from enrolling in Medicare on ...

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Despite Losing Federal Money, State Is Still Testing Uninsured Residents for COVID — For Now

California is still offering free covid testing to uninsured residents even though the federal government ran out of money to pay for it. While Congress debates whether to put more money into free testing, California is leaning on programs it already had in place: special state-based coverage for uninsured Californians, school testing, and free tests ...

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Trump Era Rule That Expanded Duration Of Short-Term Health Plans In Democrats’ Crosshairs

Democratic lawmakers and advocacy groups are making a push to convince the Biden administration to nix a controversial Trump-era rule that expanded the duration of short-term health plans. A collection of more than 40 House Democrats wrote to Department Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra earlier this week calling for the agency to ...

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