Reimbursement
Data released by the Department of Health and Human Services today show that premiums for Medicare Advantage plans decreased an average of seven percent for 2012 and that enrollment in the plans increased by 10 percent.
New Department of Health and Human Services data released last week show that premiums for Medicare Advantage plans decreased an average of seven percent for 2012 and that enrollment increased by 10 percent.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC) will roll out a new enterprise master patient index (MPI) that will enable the insurer to meet new demands for comprehensive, aggregated patient data in the health information exchange (HIE) environment.
The Dartmouth Atlas Project, known for its work detailing variations in care among Medicare recipients, announced last week that it will develop a regional study of variations in pediatric healthcare and regional variations in healthcare among commercially insured adults.
As a leader in specialty procedures, cardiology is a growing field that is in demand from patients, as well as from hospitals looking to acquire practices. While some cardiologists are interested in being employed by hospitals, about 67% others prefer the private practice route.
Florida Governor Rick Scott wants to rein in state spending and has proposed using Medicaid as the major tool with which to fill in its $2 billion shortfall.
Marilyn Tavenner, acting administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, expressed urgency in pressing forward with the "triple aim" goals of better individual health care, better population health and lower costs called for in the health reform law and translated into initiatives by her predecessor.
When the state health insurance exchanges (HIX) come online in 2014, the insurance industry will begin to shift from a B2B market to one that includes B2C. The Affordable Care Act will allow individuals and small businesses to buy coverage through these online insurance marketplaces at the state level. As such, participants likely will buy on value, and health plans will need to stand out from the many options available to members, while also remaining price competitive.
In addition to being the sole state named on the moniker Florida et al vs. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services case that the Supreme Court will hear in late March, Florida is one of four states trailing the most on health reform.
A new report published online in the journal Health Affairs showed that 94.2 percent of the non-elderly population in Massachusetts had health insurance, a significant increase over the 86.6 percent who were insured prior to the state's health reforms.