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. 

Obamacare lawsuit appeals process to launch

Several Democratic states have filed notice to appeal the recent court ruling that declared the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, The Hill reported.

Thumbnail

Judge: ACA to stay in place during appeals process

The Affordable Care Act will remain in place after a judge declared the healthcare rule was unconstitutional in late December. The judge, U.S. District Court Judge Reed O'Connor, has since stated the ACA will remain in effect while the case goes through an appeals process.

Thumbnail

ACR Appropriateness Criteria updated with 7 new topics

The American College of Radiology (ACR) has released seven new and 19 revised topics for its ACR Appropriateness Criteria.

Thumbnail

CMS finalizes changes to the ACO program

CMS has finalized changes to the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) that “dramatically redesigns and sets a new direction” for Medicare accountable care organizations (ACOs). The final rule, as outlined in the proposed rule announced in August, will force ACOs to take on more risk at a quicker pace.

Thumbnail

Cigna, Express Scripts close $67B merger

After a delay, Cigna has closed its $67 billion acquisition of Express Scripts, the company confirmed on Dec. 20.

Thumbnail

Value-based care made major headway in 2017

The shift to value-based care made significant headway in 2017, according to a new survey from the Health Care Transformation Task Force that found nearly half of their business was in value-based payment arrangements by the end of the year.

Thumbnail

3 in 10 Americans delay healthcare due to high costs

Roughly 3 in 10 Americans don’t seek medical care because they can’t afford it, according to a recent Gallup poll.

Thumbnail

CMS to scrutinize conflicts of interest among accrediting organizations

CMS wants to take a closer look at the financial relationships of accrediting organizations (AOs) that survey Medicare-certified healthcare providers.