Diana Manos

The Department of Health and Human Services has unveiled a new Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan (PCIP) that will offer coverage to uninsured Americans who have been unable to obtain healthcare coverage because of pre-existing health conditions.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has proposed a regulation that would implement preventive health benefits created under the Affordable Care Act for seniors and persons with disabilities who rely on Medicare for their healthcare coverage.

Congress passed measures Thursday to delay a 21 percent Medicare doctor payment cut that was scheduled to take place this month. According to Cecil B. Wilson, MD, president of the American Medical Association, the six-month delay is only "a very temporary reprieve."

Although the U.S. economy is beginning to show signs of recovery, hospitals are still impacted by the lingering effects of the economic recession, according to the American Hospital Association.

One expert at the Healthcare Financial Management Association's ANI conference in Las Vegas this week said getting back to financial basics will help a hospital weather the changes ahead.

The National Governors Association is calling for Senate leaders to extend the Medicaid funding boost states were given under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Executives from county safety net Natividad Medical Center in Monterey, California said they saved their hospital from closing. The hospital went from a $25 million loss to an $8 million gain in just four years, they said at a morning session of the Healthcare Financial Management Association's (HFMA) annual conference in Las Vegas on Monday.

Starting an accountable care organization, or ACO, doesn't require a lot of initial capital, according to some experts.

In a surprise turnaround, the Senate voted Friday afternoon to approve a six-month delay in a 21 percent Medicare physician pay cut from June 1 to December 1, according to the American Hospital Association's AHA NewsNow.

The Senate failed to pass a bill Thursday that would stall a 21 percent Medicare physician pay cut. Leaders at the American College of Physicians said they are confident a fix, even if temporary, will be passed.