Month: April 2025

April 09, 2025 

Nona Tepper  

Health insurance investors cheered after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services granted Medicare Advantage carriers their largest pay increase in a long while.

Wall Street reacted enthusiastically to the 5.1% payment hike for 2026 that CMS finalized Monday, which could signal a more favorable regulatory environment under Republican President Donald Trump than during the four years Democratic President Joe Biden occupied the White House. Health insurance stocks jumped 8.4% when the markets opened Tuesday.

April 02, 2025

Bridget Early   

The Health and Human Services Department is restructuring agencies that enforce regulation, handle claims disputes, and investigate potential civil rights violations as part of a department-wide reorganization.

A new assistant secretary for enforcement will oversee three parts of HHS — the Departmental Appeals Board, the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals and the Office of Civil Rights — as part of a sweeping overhaul announced last week. The new role raises questions about how HHS plans to handle billions of dollars in claims disputes and appeals resolutions, as well as how the offices will operate within the new structure.