Policy & Regulations

This channel includes news coverage of healthcare policy and regulations set by Congress, the states, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and medical associations and societies. 

American College of Radiology submits 23 imaging-related CPT codes for consideration

ACR presented its proposals at the AMA's Specialty Society Relative Value Scale Update Committee meeting held Jan. 14 to 17 in Los Angeles. 

Medical Debt

Fans and foes of medical debt relief | Heat on the Hill for payer CEOs | One and done with algorithmic care | and more briefings

Several states use taxpayer dollars to help struggling residents pay down medical debt. One is considered a leader of the movement—by critics as well as proponents. 

Texas announces childhood vaccine probe as RFK-backed group files RICO case against AAP

The Children’s Health Defense, a vaccine-skeptic lobby once chaired by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., filed a complaint in federal court against the American Academy of Pediatrics, alleging it engaged in systemic corruption. The same day, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said his state would be investigating the financial ties between vaccine developers, insurers and pediatricians.

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‘No Kings’ in healthcare: leaders serve patients by following the clinical problem

California’s decision to restrict the use of the title “doctor” in clinical settings underscores a growing disconnect between healthcare policy and the realities of modern care delivery. In an op-ed, health policy professor and former Virginia legislator, Dawn M. Adams, DNP, and Marissa J. Levine, MD, a public health physician and former Virginia health commissioner, argue that rigid physician-centric hierarchies no longer reflect how patients actually receive care.

Amtrak eastbound Southwest Chief about to pass under Route 66

Conspiracy to defraud Amtrak’s health plan of $11M sees 12 convictions

The U.S. Department of Justice announced four more guilty pleas on Thursday, bringing the total to 12. The scheme involved providers paying kickbacks to patients, all employees of Amtrak, in exchange for billing their insurance for unnecessary medical care. The incidents happened between 2019 and 2022. 

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California health system sued over 2024 breach on health IT vendor TriZetto

The cyberattack was not discovered until October 2025, and a headcount of the victims is still being conducted. In the meantime, a patient of Sacramento-based One Community Health argues in a lawsuit that the nonprofit health system failed to secure his data, as required by law. The complaint is seeking class action status. 

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State partnership dramatically improves follow-up adherence after interventional procedures

The goal was to turn imaging surveillance into a routine part of post-surgical care, rather than an optional step.

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Radiology business leaders urge Congress to replace ‘burdensome’ Medicare payment program

Last month, the Republican and Democratic Doctors Caucuses sent an informal request to medical societies, seeking ways to reform Medicare’s push toward value-based care.