Policy & Regulations

This channel includes news coverage of healthcare policy and regulations set by Congress, the states, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and medical associations and societies. 

Analysis: Part D is main cause of $500B Medicare slowdown

Prescription drug spending (or Part D) has accounted for more than 60 percent of the slowdown in Medicare benefits since 2011, according to an analysis presented in Health Affairs.

October 22, 2014

Most uninsured don’t know about upcoming enrollment period

Only 11 percent of people without health insurance are aware that open enrollment is set to begin, according to The New York Times.

October 22, 2014
cms

Open Payments website gets improvements

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has issued a beta release of an online search tool to help users better navigate its Open Payments website, which went live with data on physicians' corporate relationships on Sept. 30, reports The Wall Street Journal.

October 20, 2014

Obama taps Ron Klain to serve as 'Ebola czar'

President Obama has brought in Ron Klain, a crisis-response operative and former chief of staff to two vice presidents, to handle the government’s response to Ebola, reports The New York Times.

October 17, 2014

Calming fears that ACA would overburden the healthcare industry

With 10 million individuals in the U.S. now on insurance rolls thanks to the Affordable Care Act, many worried that the already overburdened industry would burst at the seams. A UCLA study appears to put some of those concerns to rest, reports California Healthline.

October 16, 2014

CDC to offer more Ebola training to healthcare industry

In response to news that a nurse has contracted Ebola, a spokesperson from the Centers or Disease Control and Prevention announced that the agency would issue more specific instructions and explanations on the use of protective gear, reports The New York Times.

October 14, 2014
California health IT illustration

Calif. HIX awards $184M in no-bid contracts

California’s health insurance exchange, Covered California, has awarded $184 million in contracts without the competitive bidding and oversight that is typical for state government, reports Fox News.

October 13, 2014
U.S. Congress

Editorial: Americans ill-informed about ACA thanks to Democrats, Republicans

The mass confusion surrounding the Affordable Care Act—which includes rules forbidding insurance companies from denying coverage and promotes free preventative care, among many other provisions—is the fault of both Democrats and Republicans, according to The Hill.

October 13, 2014

Around the web

Half a year after President Biden officially directed federal agencies in the executive branch’s bailiwick to “seize the promise and manage the risks” of AI, the White House has posted a status report.

U.S. physicians often receive payments from medical device manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies. New research in JAMA found a connection between receiving such payments and using specific devices—should the industry be concerned? 

Five of the largest U.S. medical societies focused on cardiovascular health are one step closer to seeing their paradigm-shifting proposal become a reality.

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