July 30, 2019 04:16 PM MARIA CASTELLUCCI The CMS is asking stakeholders if hospitals should report quality information on their websites alongside retail charges. Tucked within its 819-page Medicare Outpatient Prospective Payment System proposed rule this week, the CMS requested feedback on ways patients can have better access to quality data including the value of providers displaying […]
CMS proposes requiring hospitals to publish negotiated rates
July 29, 2019 05:07 PM Shelby Livingston, Alex Kacik and Susannah Luthi The CMS issued several proposed rules on Monday that it hopes will make it easier for patients to understand the cost of a hospital service before accessing care. Starting in January 2019, the CMS began requiring hospitals to publish their list of […]
Trump demands transparency on healthcare costs: 7 things to know
Becker’s Hospital Review Kelly Gooch President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that aims to lower healthcare costs by improving price transparency. Seven things to know: 1. The order, signed June 24 at the White House, directs HHS to develop rules requiring hospitals to publish prices “that reflect what people actually pay for services in a […]
FTC approves UnitedHealth-DaVita deal with conditions
June 19, 2019 05:12 PM TARA BANNOW UnitedHealth Group announced Wednesday it has closed on its $4.3 billion purchase of DaVita Medical Group after the parties reached a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission that resolves the federal government’s concerns about harm to competition in Nevada. Under the FTC settlement, UnitedHealth Group has agreed to sell DaVita Medical […]
FTC Imposes Conditions on UnitedHealth Group’s Proposed Acquisition of DaVita Medical Group
Companies will divest assets to preserve competition in the Las Vegas area of Nevada June 19, 2019 Healthcare provider and insurer UnitedHealth Group Incorporated and healthcare provider DaVita, Inc. have agreed to a settlement to resolve Federal Trade Commission allegations that UnitedHealth Group’s proposed $4.3 billion acquisition of DaVita’s DaVita Medical Group will harm competition in healthcare […]
Judge signals broad CVS-Aetna antitrust concerns
June 04, 2019 SUSANNAH LUTHI A federal judge who has refused for months to sign off on the $69 billion CVS-Aetna merger reiterated on Tuesday that he wants to look at any potential harm that the deal might cause for the public. U.S. District Judge Richard Leon in Washington, D.C., kicked off a three-day hearing as he considers […]
Supreme Court rejects HHS’ Medicare DSH changes
June 03, 2019 11:08 AM SUSANNAH LUTHI The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled that HHS improperly changed its Medicare disproportionate-share hospital payments when it made billions of dollars in cuts. In a 7-1 decision, the justices said HHS needed a notice-and-comment period for the Medicare DSH calculation change. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote in the decision that HHS’ […]
New HHS Fact Sheet on Direct Liability of Business Associates under HIPAA
May 24, 2019 The HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has issued a new fact sheet that provides a clear compilation of all provisions through which a business associate can be held directly liable for compliance with certain requirements of the HIPAA Privacy, Security, Breach Notification, and Enforcement Rules (“HIPAA Rules”), in accordance with the […]
Indiana Medical Records Service Pays $100,000 to Settle HIPAA Breach
May 23, 2019 Medical Informatics Engineering, Inc. (MIE) has paid $100,000 to the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and has agreed take corrective action to settle potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules. MIE is an Indiana company […]
States, cities sue HHS over expanded faith-based protections
May 22, 2019 02:04 PM SHELBY LIVINGSTON A coalition of 23 states, cities and municipalities sued HHS on Tuesday to stop its final rule that expands protections for healthcare providers that refuse to perform certain medical tests and procedures because of religious or moral beliefs. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in the Southern […]