The exact nature of the Change Healthcare cybersecurity incident remains mysterious as concerned parties come forward to voice concerns about Change, UnitedHealth Group and the use of healthcare technologies controlled by large companies.
Last Friday, Change Healthcare announced that it would offer a temporary assistance loan program...
Last week, UnitedHealth Group's (UHG) health care technology subsidiary Change Healthcare was hit by a cyberattack that disrupted services for pharmacies and patients.
UHG said that once the attack was detected, Change was forced to disconnect some of its digital network from client access and shut down services including programs...
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have taken the next step on the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan draft guidance, which is required by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 to advance President Joe Biden's plan to lower drug costs for seniors.
The draft guidance provides communication and education requirements for...National News
Last week, the Supreme Court heard arguments in two cases that challenge the precedent set by Chevron v. National Resources Defense Council in 1984 that determined courts should generally defer to the wisdom of a state or federal agency when interpreting federal statute.
This precedent, now referred to as Chevron deference, appears to...National News
This week marks what would have been the 51st anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, had it not been overturned by the Supreme Court decision Dobbs v. Jackson Whole Women's Health in 2022. The Biden administration made efforts to highlight advances and protections made in the name of reproductive health by the president to mark the...Arizona News
It's an election year in a post Roe v. Wade America, which means ballot measures to let the public in states decide whether or not abortion should be legal are gaining steam and opposition.
In Arizona, Arizona for Abortion Access, the organization raising support and gathering signatures for the abortion-related ballot initiative, has...National News
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights Division will soon propose new rules that will include guidance on how providers that are operated by state and local governments can meet Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards for advanced medical items.
The items include exam tables, scales, dental chairs, X-ray scanners...National News
This week, the Biden administration rescinded most of a Trump-era rule that allowed medical workers to refuse to perform services that conflicted with their religious or moral beliefs.
The so-called "conscience rule" originated in the George W. Bush administration in 2008 and has been rescinded or reinstituted by each president since...National News
On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that the national health data exchange governed by the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA) is now online.
The creation of the national health information exchange (HIE) was authorized by the 21st Century Cures Act which described the...CMS Rules
Last week, the Biden administration announced a proposed rule through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor and the Treasury Department that would implement the independent dispute resolution process (IDR process) outlined by the No Surprises Act, which seeks to protect patients and medical services consumers from...
Providers, payers and the government have yet to reach a consensus on how telehealth services will be compensated following the COVID-19 pandemic and the waivers that the public health emergency allowed.
During the pandemic, Congress required that insurance companies pay equally for virtual visits as it would for in-person care for...
Roughly halfway through the Medicaid eligibility review, states are now leaning on waivers from the federal government to lower disenrollment rates due to procedural reasons. Also, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) intervened to prevent half a million children from disenrollment by raising states' awareness of a system...CMS Rules
Low-income Medicare beneficiaries are expected to see some much needed relief as a result of a new rule issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) this week. The rule seeks to simplify the enrollment and renewal processes for Medicare Savings Programs (MSPs), as many beneficiaries are currently encumbered from...Arizona News
Under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) people with Medicare may pay a lower coinsurance for some Part B drugs if the drug’s price increases faster than the rate of inflation.
The IRA, signed by President Biden in 2022, applied to Part D the same year, whereas Part B took effect in 2023. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid...National News
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has proposed a new rule that would explicitly bar providers from discriminating against people with disabilities.
The proposal updates regulations on disability protections in order to clarify that groups receiving federal funding are required to make decisions without relying on...
The Biden administration released its list of 10 drugs for direct price negotiations with manufacturers. The highly anticipated list is the most recent step in enacting a part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022. The drugs listed are largely treatments related to Type 2 diabetes, blood thinning, arthritis and cancer...
The Affordable Care Act of 2010 requires private insurers to cover a range of preventive services outlined by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services with no out of pocket cost, but many insurers are failing to let consumers know of these prepaid benefits. This revelation comes as the "free" preventive services are caught in...
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a $100 million grant program for certain universities and health systems in order to bolster nursing recruitment and training numbers.
Arizona State University (ASU) and the University of Arizona (UA) will receive $608,530 and $650,000 respectively through the Advanced...
Fewer Americans are uninsured than ever before according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These numbers are anticipated to rise as Medicaid redeterminations continue.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human services (HHS) announced the milestone on August 3, boasting a 7.7% uninsured rate for the...
On Tuesday, the Biden administration announced a series of proposed rules that aim to address the ongoing mental health crisis in the U.S.
The rules would require insurers to keep records and study patient mental health access and mental health benefits in order to meet the requirements outlined by the Mental Health Parity and...
