Reimbursement

S&P Global Ratings has placed Aetna and Humana on creditwatch following the Department of Justice's announcement Thursday to block their merger.

Government says the ratings, which will award between one and five stars to each hospital, will be more useful to consumers than its current mishmash of more than 100 individual metrics, many of which deal with technical matters. The hospital industry, however, fears the ratings will be misleading and oversimplify the many types of care at the institutions.

Nineteen states have yet to expand their Medicaid programs under the Affordable Care Act, and a new study from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation shows just how much enrollment would increase if they did: 7.8 to 8.8 million, while the number of uninsured would decline between 4.1 and 5 million, the research found.

Anthem and Aetna plan to pursue in court the Department of Justice's injunction to block their respective mergers with Cigna and Humana, according to statements from both insurers.

Covered California, the state's Obamacare health insurance exchange, said Tuesday that its premiums will balloon by a statewide average of 13.2 percent next year -- more than triple the roughly 4 percent increases in each of the previous two years.

While sources have said they expect a decision in August, Bloomberg said the DOJ could file the lawsuits this week or next.

Top four insurers, led by Blue Shield of California and Anthem, control more than 90 percent of enrollment.

Cigna has launched CareAllies Inc., a new service company to help providers make the move to value-based care by easing their administrative burden across payers and even supporting the launch and management of their own health plans.

If the law doesn't become too complicated, the CMS chief said it will lead to better care and happier doctors.

The new rule hopes to drive the mass transition to value-based reimbursement, with doctors getting paid based on the quality of their work and the steps they take to improve their practices.