The week in healthcare reform
“[American Hospital Association] wants CMS to include Medicare Advantage in its proposed prior authorization rule that would expedite the prior authorization process and reduce delays in patient care.”
AHA Calls for Medicare Advantage Inclusion in Prior Authorization Rule
Recycle Intelligence | Victoria Bailey | October 22, 2021
“As [Medicare Advantage] space grows and profitability balloons, regulators have increasingly scrutinized the business practices insurers use in this market.”
Fierce Healthcare | Paige Minemyer | October 21, 2021
“Scaling down his ‘build back better’ plans, President Joe Biden on Tuesday described a more limited vision to Democratic lawmakers….”
Biden Focuses on Climate, Families in Trimmed $2T Plan
Associated Press | Lisa Mascaro, Alan Fram, Matthew Daly | October 20, 2021
“The health insurance industry is spending big to halt efforts to expand Medicare benefits.”
Insurance Companies Are Trying Desperately to Stop Medicare Expansion in the Budget Reconciliation
Jacobin | Julia Rock | October 20, 2021
Warren: “This is all a reminder of how powerful industry groups are. There’s not a reason on earth that the Trump administration couldn’t have gotten these rules out in 2017.”
Elizabeth Warren on Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids, Health Lobbying, and the FDA’s Independence
Stat | Nicholas Florko | October 19, 2021
When it comes to medical device recalls, “It truly is like we are operating in about the 1950s.”
Anatomy of a Medical Device Recall: How Defective Products Can Slip Through an Outdated System
Healthcare Dive | Ricky Zipp | October 19, 2021
“This week, nearly a third of all California hospitals reported ‘critical staffing shortages’ to the federal government, with more predicting shortages in the coming week.”
Hospitals Brace for Strikes as California Workers Protest Staff Shortages
CalMatters | Kristen Hwang | October 15, 2021
“Single-payer bills have been introduced into eighteen state legislatures since the beginning of 2021. The prospects of passing a single-payer bill in some of the state legislatures are looking much better than in Congress.”
The State Road to Universal Single-Payer Health Care
Jacobin | Casey Buchholz, Stephanie Attar, Gerald Friedman | October 15, 2021
“The truth is, if Congress passes legislation to give Medicare negotiating power to make drugs more affordable, we will still have robust innovation.”
Opinion | Why We Can Have Both Innovative Drugs and Lower Drug Prices
Politico | Ezekiel Emanuel | October 13, 2021
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