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.

Senate bounces spending bill back to House with 2.5% Medicare rad fix
In addition, there are no restrictions on pass-through entity taxes (PTET), which “benefits independent physician practices,” one expert notes.
Medicare cost-cutting initiative targets ‘wasteful, inappropriate’ interventional radiology services
Interventional radiologists criticized the CMS proposal, believing it could lead to excess morbidity and mortality in Medicare.
103K Medicare beneficiaries issued new IDs after ‘data incident’ at CMS
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said “malicious actors” created fake accounts for Medicare beneficiaries through the agency’s patient portal, using stolen data from an unknown source. The incident is being investigated.
FDA announces recall of Baxter infusion pumps with mismatched software
Spectrum V8 and V6 infusion pumps may have accidentally had their software switched, which could result in underinfusion or a fluid overload. While no injuries have been reported, for safety the affected pumps need to be removed from where they are used and sold.
Medtronic’s new ECMO system receives a key approval
According to Medtronic, its VitalFlow ECMO system was designed and developed with the user experience in mind.

Tom Price, MD, an orthopedic surgeon, and former secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) during the first Trump administration has been an advocate for changing immigration policy to help solve the growing shortage of doctors and nurses in the U.S. He explains what is needed for bipartisan legislation to make it easier to recruit foreign doctors.

Former HHS Secretary Tom Price: Immigration reform could alleviate healthcare staffing crisis

Tom Price, MD, an orthopedic surgeon, and former secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) is an advocate for changing immigration policy to help solve the growing shortage of doctors and nurses in the U.S.

Feds reinstate physician B Reader Program after HHS staffing cuts left it in limbo

Along with coal miners, the program provides X-ray reads to monitor work-related lung damage from crystalline silica and asbestos.

Newswatch: Trump’s AI extraversion, FDA’s first CAIO, healthcare AI’s true value, more

Where a cautious President Biden wanted to confine American AI know-how to America, a freewheeling President Trump wants to turn it loose—at least to select friends and allies.

AvaMed CEO warns Senate that tariffs threaten medtech innovation

Scott Whitaker, the CEO of the industry lobby AvaMed, told the Senate Finance Committee that he fears tariffs will only raise the cost of care and put patients at risk if companies are unable to overcome supply chain disruptions.

uAngio AVIVA interventional X-ray system

FDA approves industry's first hands-free interventional X-ray system

Its voice recognition capabilities give providers the ability to maneuver the system and view images in real-time hands-free.

Siemens Healthineers invests $150M, with eye on ‘bringing manufacturing back to the US’

The changes will include relocating manufacturing operations for its acquired cancer care company, Varian, from Baja, Mexico, to Palo Alto, California.

RadNet confident payers will cover its breast imaging AI solution by 2026

Leaders with the publicly traded, Los Angeles-based organization discussed the possibility during RadNet’s first quarter earnings call on Monday.

DOJ halts enforcement of updated Mental Health Parity Act

A Biden-era update to the law would require private insurers to update their networks to ensure patients have access to mental and behavioral health services, with those services reimbursed in a manner similar to physical care.

Policy & Regulations

Senate bounces spending bill back to House with 2.5% Medicare rad fix

Medicare cost-cutting initiative targets ‘wasteful, inappropriate’ interventional radiology services

103K Medicare beneficiaries issued new IDs after ‘data incident’ at CMS

FDA announces recall of Baxter infusion pumps with mismatched software

Medtronic’s new ECMO system receives a key approval