Chris Anderson

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released new regulations for the state health insurance exchanges that give states broad flexibility in their design, while also preserving a role for insurance brokers in the post-exchange marketplace.

A bill sponsored by Republican state Rep. Andrew Manuse to prevent New Hampshire from setting up and running a health insurance exchange passed on Thursday by an overwhelming margin.

A new whitepaper from the Center for Progressive Reform says medical tort reform won't provide significant savings, since the costs of malpractice insurance and paying injured patients amounts to only 0.3 percent of total healthcare costs each year.

Home-based care management company Univita Health has acquired HME and DME provider All-Med Services of Florida, in a deal that adds more than 1 million patient lives to Univita's book of business.

A report published last month in the journal Health Affairs showed that 94.2 percent of the non-elderly population in Massachusetts had health insurance, a significant increase from the 86.6 percent who were insured prior to the state's health reforms.

Building on what it has learned over the past few years in numerous patient-centered medical home pilots, WellPoint announced in late January plans to increase primary care physician reimbursements by 10 percent, a move the company believes will create healthier members and significant future healthcare savings.

The Florida Chapter of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) has been taken up a fight against Medicare pre-payment audits first announced by the state's Medicare Administrative Contractor, Jacksonville, Fla.-based First Coast Service Options.

Any lingering illusions that the transition to the HIPAA 5010 standard would present only minor glitches have come crashing down. In late January, the Medical Group Management Association sent an urgent plea to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, asking the agency to take immediate action to alleviate a host of claims problems and payment delays.

An amendment tacked onto an unrelated transportation bill that would allow any employer, not just those affiliated with a religious organization, to not offer contraceptive health coverage to employees failed yesterday in the U.S. Senate by a vote of 51-48.

In moves designed to solidify its presence in the Florida market, UnitedHealthcare announced earlier this week that it will acquire the operations of two senior-focused health plans in the state, Preferred Care Partners and Medica HealthCare Plans.