House panel proposes new strategy for Medicare to cover weight loss drugs Wegovy, Zepbound
WASHINGTON — As weight loss medications have exploded in popularity, a bill to allow Medicare…
Category: Medicare
Senators push Medicare for a PET scan pay bump
You’re reading the web edition of D.C. Diagnosis, STAT’s twice-weekly newsletter about the politics and…
STAT+: House panel weighs new plan for Medicare coverage of Wegovy, cancer blood tests
WASHINGTON — A House panel is exploring holding a vote on scaled-back versions of two…
STAT+: Bold’s CEO on fall prevention, ageism in health care, and ‘movement is medicine’
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. – When Amanda Rees was in her twenties she moved in with…
STAT+: Biden administration to recalculate Medicare Advantage quality ratings and bonuses
The federal government is rescoring the quality ratings of this year’s Medicare Advantage plans, which…
Biden and Trump are fighting to claim credit for $35 insulin. It was actually a pharma giant’s idea
WASHINGTON — Both President Biden and former President Trump love to claim credit for getting…
STAT+: Humana scores a win in a Medicare Advantage case
You’re reading the web version of Health Care Inc., STAT’s weekly newsletter following the flow…
STAT+: Medicare Advantage plan’s quality ratings were incorrectly calculated by government, judge rules
The federal government inappropriately lowered the 2024 Medicare Advantage star ratings of SCAN Health Plan,…
.jpg)
Opinion: Outdated Medicare rules prevent some dementia patients from getting the medications they need
Memory loss is the most obvious symptom of Alzheimer’s disease. But for the more than…
STAT+: A short-lived Medicaid freakout sends insurers’ stocks diving
You’re reading the web version of Health Care Inc., STAT’s weekly newsletter following the flow…
STAT+: Value-based payment is getting renewed attention. What it means isn’t getting any clearer
WASHINGTON — Nearly 20 years ago, policymakers had an epiphany: The health care system should…
UnitedHealth argues algorithm lawsuit should be dismissed because patients didn’t spend years appealing denials
UnitedHealth Group should be released from a lawsuit that alleges its algorithm-based technology prematurely cut…
STAT+: Class action against UnitedHealth asks about DOJ probe transparency
You’re reading the web version of Health Care Inc., STAT’s weekly newsletter following the flow…
STAT+: CVS is willing to dump 10% of its Medicare Advantage members next year
CVS Health is preparing to make significant changes to its 2025 Medicare Advantage plans, which…
STAT+: The stories that shaped our understanding of the health care system
You’re reading the web version of Health Care Inc., STAT’s weekly newsletter following the flow…
Opinion: Congress: Close Medicare’s dangerous gaps in coverage for addiction treatment
While many people immediately picture young adults when thinking about the current addiction and overdose…
The public wants Medicare to cover obesity drugs
Want to stay on top of the science and politics driving biotech today? Sign up to get…
STAT+: UnitedHealth CEO downplays his company’s control over physicians
You’re reading the web version of Health Care Inc., STAT’s weekly newsletter following the flow…
.jpg)
STAT+: Senate drug shortage bill would pay hospitals bonuses for good contracting practices
WASHINGTON — The Senate Finance Committee has drafted a bipartisan bill to mitigate drug shortages…
STAT+: Lawmakers unlikely to permanently extend telehealth flexibilities this year
WASHINGTON — Members of Congress appear poised to advance another short-term extension of pandemic-era telehealth…
STAT+: CVS went hard after Medicare Advantage patients, now it’s retreating
CVS Health got walloped at the outset of 2024 as older adults in its Medicare…
STAT+: Medicare official says breakthrough device reimbursement rule coming in early summer
WASHINGTON — A federal rule aiming to make reimbursement for breakthrough devices easier is slated…
Medicare expects a big spike in spending on Leqembi
You’re reading the web version of Health Care Inc., STAT’s weekly newsletter following the flow of money…
STAT+: Medicare expects to spend $3.5 billion on new Alzheimer’s drug in 2025
Medicare for the first time has estimated that a new Alzheimer’s treatment could cost the…
STAT+: Regeneron accused by Justice Department of manipulating Medicare pricing
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit accusing Regeneron Pharmaceuticals of manipulating Medicare pricing…
HCA’s charity care filings are on hyperdrive
You’re reading the web version of Health Care Inc., STAT’s weekly newsletter following the flow of money…
STAT+: HCA reports almost $1 billion more in charity care to Medicare than to its shareholders, drawing more taxpayer money
The country’s biggest hospital chain, HCA Healthcare, told the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services…
STAT+: Watch: Medicare billing forms are running out of space for growing health care prices
WASHINGTON — Health care costs are getting so high that prices are literally running off…
STAT+: Biden administration sticks with slight cuts to 2025 Medicare Advantage payments
Over the past few weeks, Medicare Advantage insurers demanded that the Biden administration give them…
STAT+: Medicare Advantage insurers pressure Biden administration for bigger payments
The public will soon find out whether the federal government is willing to meet the…
STAT+: Despite new Wegovy coverage, Medicare patients may face high drug costs and other hurdles
Medicare confirmed this week that it will cover Novo Nordisk’s obesity drug Wegovy if prescribed…
STAT+: Medicare expected to negotiate obesity drug prices soon, new analysis predicts
WASHINGTON — Medicare will likely choose the obesity drug semaglutide for price negotiation “within the…
STAT+: Medicare couldn’t cover Wegovy for weight loss. But now that it’s also a heart drug, the door is open
WASHINGTON — Novo Nordisk’s newly won permission to market the heart benefits of its obesity drug…
STAT+: UnitedHealth is on a buying spree of outpatient surgery centers
UnitedHealth Group quietly acquired dozens of outpatient facilities in 2023, with a particular focus on…
STAT+: Medicare announces loan program to aid providers affected by Change cyberattack
Medicare announced on Saturday that it will make advance payments available to physician groups, hospitals,…
Eli Lilly’s anti-vanity ad campaign for Oscars
Want to stay on top of the science and politics driving biotech today? Sign up to get…
In his State of the Union, Biden takes clear aim at ‘Big Pharma’
WASHINGTON — Often, a president’s State of the Union address is a staid affair, with…
STAT+: Pharma giants, government spar in court over Medicare drug price negotiation
TRENTON, N.J. — Pharma industry giants including Bristol Myers Squibb, Johnson and Johnson, Novartis, and…
STAT+: Nursing home owners can hide nearly two-thirds of their profits, new study shows
A new study shows that some nursing homes are shunting the majority of their profits…
Biden to propose expanding Medicare drug price negotiation in State of the Union
WASHINGTON — President Biden wants to more than double the size of Medicare’s new drug…
STAT+: Medicare is a tricky market for telehealth companies. Why is Talkspace betting on it?
Over the last few years, virtual mental health company Talkspace has been on a relentless…
STAT+: Congress gives doctors Medicare pay bump, sets up December fight in new funding package
WASHINGTON — Doctors will get a 1.68% pay hike in Medicare starting March 9 under…
STAT+: Federal judge rules against AstraZeneca in lawsuit challenging Medicare drug price negotiation
WASHINGTON — A federal judge in Delaware on Friday ruled against AstraZeneca in a case…
Opinion: New federal guidance is hurting cancer patients, especially those in rural areas
I recently started a patient with metastatic triple-positive breast cancer patient on a targeted therapy…
STAT+: Medical device lobby says it’s tired of waiting on Medicare to cover breakthrough devices
Medical technology lobby AdvaMed is fed up with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services….
House looks to weaken Medicare negotiation
You’re reading the web edition of D.C. Diagnosis, STAT’s twice-weekly newsletter about the politics and…
Why won’t Medicare deliver food to sick seniors, if it could get them healthy?
WASHINGTON – Some twelve percent of traditional Medicare beneficiaries have heart failure. Roughly a quarter…
Opinion: Medicare Advantage is bad for patients and bad for investors
In 2023, enrollment in Medicare Advantage, the version of Medicare run by private insurers, surpassed…
STAT+: Congress ditches site-neutral hospital pay policy
WASHINGTON — Congress will not move forward with a controversial policy to equalize certain Medicare…
STAT+: Congress punts on PBM reform efforts
WASHINGTON — Congress has abandoned its attempt to reform how pharmacy middlemen operate in an…