This week the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments for a case that could not only overturn the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's authorization of the abortion pill mifepristone but also open the door for the courts to question decisions made by government agencies.
Even the justices appointed by former President Donald Trump...National News
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit heard arguments in Braidwood v. Becerra, a case that would determine the future of the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) provision for private insurers to cover preventative care services.
Last year, a federal judge in Texas ruled that the ACA's requirement that employers cover vaccines,...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...
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has offered its suggestion for a solution to the Supreme Court decision that would return $9 billion to hospitals that were paid less than rates the court said were set unconstitutionally.
Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) ruled unanimously that the differential payment...
Last week, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans issued a decision that restricts the use of mifepristone, a medication that is used in abortion. The U.S. Department of Justice, which is defending the Food and Drug Administration in the case, said that it would appeal the decision to the Supreme Court.
The three-judge...National News
Last Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that supermarket chains Safeway and Supervalu defrauded the government by knowingly claiming fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements.
The decision overturned a 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that the defendants didn't "knowingly" violate the False Claims Act (FCA),...
Local communities in New Mexico are implementing their own bans on abortion. New Mexico is one of a few states in the Southwest with few abortion restrictions, making it an important hub for reproductive health care access in the region.
The town of Edgewood, a small town near Albuquerque, adopted the ordinance that would prohibit the...
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments last week on an issue regarding retail pharmacies overcharging government health plans that could compromise the False Claims Act.
The case dates from 2006, when Walmart offered unsustainably low drug prices to cash customers and charged Medicare and Medicaid plans far higher than the original...
COVID-19 cases across the state are down this week, but are expected to rise following the winter holidays. The Supreme Court ruled that a Trump-era border restriction enacted due to the COVID-19 pandemic will remain in effect while the court settles the issue.
The U.S. Supreme Court allowed the controversial Title 42 to remain in...
President Joe Biden announced on Monday that the returns in the 2022 Midterm Election would not provide support that Congressional Democrats would need to pass legislation codifying abortion protections into federal law.
Republicans have taken control in the U.S. House of Representatives by a slight majority, and while Democrats have...
On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) heard arguments in the case which asks two questions that could have huge impacts for not only Medicaid and state-owned nursing homes, but any person who receives federally funded benefits.
The first question the case asks is narrow, and more to the point of the plaintiff. Indiana...
On November 1, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized the Calendar Year (CY) 2023 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and the Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System rules. In the rule, OPPS and ASC payment rates will increase by 3.8% and announced a new provider designation: the rural...
On Monday, Planned Parenthood resumed providing abortions at a clinic in Pima County.
According to KNAU, a Planned Parenthood representative said that the clinic would be allowed to provide abortions under a court injunction that stops the Arizona near-total abortion ban from going into effect. A judge is expected to rule on the...
In addition to overturning Roe v. Wade and with it abortion access for millions of American women, the Supreme Court ended their term this year with a slew of other decisions that will carry new precedent for health industry legal cases going forward.
Last Friday, the high court announced an end to a years-long fight between the U.S....
On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously sided with the American Hospital Association (AHA) against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in a case that challenged a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rule that would have cut outpatient drug payments for hospitals that treat Medicaid enrollees and...
As fallout continues from the leaked Supreme Court (SCOTUS) opinion on Dodd v. Jackson Women's Health, in which it appears that the court plans to overturn Roe v. Wade (1974), policymakers and industry stakeholders are lining up to support for reproductive healthcare.
The American Medical Association released a statement on the leaked...
The success of Medicare Advantage (MA) can't be understated. In the last 11 years, the program has grown to represent nearly 50% of the Medicare-eligible market, a benchmark it will likely pass within the next year.
Arizona MA growth reflects the program's national success. At the Hertel Report's 2020 Winter State of the State, Dan...
The Request for Information (RFI) is on track with Biden-Harris Administration’s work to advance health equity and reduce health disparities, as is the DHS proposed rule that would exclude Medicaid and other benefits from public charge determinations. This week, Arizona told the Supreme Court of the United States that the public charge...
The seven-day rolling average for COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. has been trending upward since late fall and experts warn that the unprecedented level of daily COVID-19 infections due to the Omicron variant will bring a sharp increase in deaths soon.
Despite the lower chance of becoming sick due to the "mild" symptoms associated with...
With the rise of the Omicron variant continuing the COVID-19 pandemic into the foreseeable future and the Build Back Better Act stalled in Congress, the landscape of healthcare in 2022 is somewhat uncertain. Two analyses, one from the U.S. Office of Public Policy and the other from the J.P. Morgan 2022 Healthcare Conference, lend some...