The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized new payment policies that will radically change the way cardiac ablation procedures are reimbursed going forward. For cardiologists, perhaps the biggest news to come out of this final rule is the fact that cardiac catheter ablation has been added to the ASC covered procedures list […]
The Trump administration has finalized the rule that sets government payments to hospital outpatient facilities and ambulatory surgical centers, including a 2.6% rate bump for each. That is an increase from the proposed Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) rule, which pitched a 2.4% increase in the payment rate for outpatient services and ASCs. The rule
CMS Finalizes 2.6% Payment Increase for Hospital Outpatient Centers, ASCs Read More »
Medicare payments to hospital-based dialysis centers will increase 1.5% in 2026, while standalone clinics would see an estimated 2.2% bump in payments under a final rule released by the Trump administration. The final rule (RIN 0938-AV52) from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services plans to allocate $6 billion to approximately 7,600 end-stage renal disease
Dialysis Centers to Receive $180M Medicare Payment Boost Read More »
Australia on Friday blocked a A$672 million ($435 million) buyout offer for Mayne Pharma (MYX.AX) from Cosette Pharmaceuticals after the U.S. drugmaker became a reluctant suitor and threatened to close a local plant. The decision by the country’s centre-left government sent shares in Mayne tumbling 23% before it halted trading pending an update on the
Australia Blocks Takeover of Mayne Pharma by US Firm, Cites National Interest Read More »
Day Kimball Hospital is nearly all systems go to join UConn Health as legislation enabling the partnership sits on the governor’s desk awaiting signature. The state Senate passed legislation that allowed UConn Health to pursue acquisitions of hospitals. That includes Day Kimball in Putnam, northeastern Connecticut’s only hospital. The state will provide $390 million over
Day Kimball Hospital Could Join UConn Health Network Under New State Plan Read More »
The Connecticut General Assembly approved legislation on Nov. 13 for Farmington, Conn.-based UConn Health to invest in Waterbury (Conn.) Hospital, part of Los Angeles-based Prospect Medical Holdings. “The action by lawmakers marks a major milestone in UConn Health’s proposal to bring Waterbury Hospital under its stewardship following years of instability under Prospect ownership,” a Nov.
State OKs UConn Health to Acquire Prospect Connecticut Hospital Read More »
Most Medicare enrollees will face premiums that are 10% higher next year, creating budget anxiety for millions of seniors. Older adults and people with disabilities will pay almost $203 per month in 2026 for their Medicare Part B premium, the Trump administration said late Friday. That’s about 10% higher than the $185 per month that
Medicare Premiums to Jump 10% Heading into 2026 Read More »
The battle over renewing Affordable Care Act tax credits is entering a new phase, with shifting alliances and a tight timetable complicating prospects for any bipartisan deal. Without an extension by the end of the year, premiums will more than double on average for roughly 20 million Americans on the ACA marketplaces. The impact of
ACA Push Enters New Phase with Clock Ticking Read More »
Behavioral health and addiction treatment providers are expecting renewed guidance from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) around telehealth prescribing flexibilities for controlled substances, now that the longest government shutdown in the country’s history has been resolved. A pending executive order sent to the Office of Management and Budget titled “Fourth Temporary Extension of COVID-19 Telemedicine
For years, the conversation around health insurer consolidation and vertical integration has simmered through antitrust inquiries, oversight hearings, and policy papers. The Patients Over Profit Act (the “POP Act”), introduced in both chambers of Congress this fall, marks a decisive shift. Rather than regulating insurer-provider integration, the POP Act proposes to ban it outright. If
