The $69 billion merger between CVS Health and Aetna is facing another potential obstacle, as the government shutdown could impact court proceedings currently holding up closure of the deal, Reuters reported.

HHS Secretary Alex Azar has a demand for the pharmaceutical industry: “Prices must start coming down.”

The Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography (SCCT) has issued an updated guidance for the use of CT in transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedures. The full document can be read in the Journal of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography.

The United Kingdom’s National Health Service (NHS) has earmarked £20.5 billion (approximately $26 billion) for its Long-Term Plan to prevent and detect diseases earlier. The ambitious 10-year plan is welcomed by The Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) and could save as many as 500,000 lives. 

With high demand and high salaries, healthcare jobs took 44 spots of the 100 best jobs for 2019, as ranked by U.S. News.

President Trump summoned top officials for a meeting at the White House on Jan. 8, Politico reported. The meeting comes as major drugmakers raised prices at the start of the year, prompting a Twitter response from the president.

Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, the largest public hospital in the city, sticks patients with sky-high medical bills because it does not partner with any private health insurance plans, Vox reported.

Cigna and Tenet announced “good news” on Jan. 1 after reaching an agreement on a new commercial contract. The previous contract between Cigna and Tenet was scheduled to end on New Year's Day, after both companies struggled to come to a new agreement over nearly a year of negotiations.