Ximena Barreto, a communications official in HHS since December 2017, resigned after CNN and Media Matters reported she spread conspiracy theories and made anti-Muslim statements on social media. Barreto was placed on leave in April.

CMS released the 2019 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (HOPPS) proposed rule and 2019 Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System proposed rule this week, pushing for site-neutral payments and updating OPPS payment rates by 1.25 percent.

Patients with limited English proficiency are 4 percent less likely to receive a prompt MRI, according to research published this week in the Journal of the American College of Radiology. But when accounting for factors like hospital environment, age group and priority, both English and non-English speakers appear to be receiving the same quality of care.

Radiology is now the fourth most requested physician search assignment, according to a new report from Merritt Hawkins. The specialty’s average starting salary, however, is down 15 percent—dropping from $436,000 in 2017 to $371,000 in 2018.

More than 60 million Americans speak a language other than English at home. This group faces increased barriers to healthcare—including potential delays for necessary MRI, researchers wrote in a July 26 Journal of the American College of Radiology study.

CMS released its plan to reduce paperwork and improve patient care on Friday, July 27, that could have implications for 40 percent of Medicare payments. The plan combines four levels of paperwork and four levels of reimbursement to be combined in a single form and one flat fee for each physician appointment.

Despite hitting a bump in the road with Medicaid work requirements in Kentucky, the Trump administration will continue to approve applications from other states. HHS Secretary Alex Azar, in a speech to the Heritage Foundation on Thursday, July 26, reiterated a commitment to establishing such requirements for able-bodied people who receive Medicaid.

Legislation requiring patients to receive a notification about issues related to increased breast density is associated with improved follow-up by breast ultrasound imaging, according to a new study published in Medical Care.