Drug-related deaths more than tripled between 1999 and 2015—and many of those can be attributed to opioids. But the numbers may be more alarming than previously thought, according to a new report from Kaiser Health News and Side Effects Public Media.

Efforts from Republicans in Washington, D.C., failed to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), but that hasn’t stopped some states from taking matters into their own hands. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is expected to sign legislation that would allow insurers to sell certain plans that don’t meet ACA regulations.

President Donald Trump announced long-embattled Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin will be replaced by White House physician Ronny L. Jackson, MD.

Patients overwhelmingly take non-clinical factors of care like compassion, comfort, personality and bedside manner into account when choosing a physician, according to a report by Healthgrades and the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA).

Mayo Clinic and Mytonomy, a provider of cloud-based patient education and information services, announced a collaboration to develop short videos addressing questions concerning breast cancer treatment.

Jefferson Health and Einstein Healthcare Network, both based in Philadelphia, have announced they’ve signed a letter of intent to merge, the latest in a string of acquisitions by Jefferson.

The debate over the future of healthcare in the U.S. is really a discussion about inequity, according to America’s Essential Hospitals president and CEO Bruce Siegel, MD, MPH, saying disparities will still need to be addressed even if the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid expansion remain in place.

Discussions to create the largest hospital system in the country by combining Ascension and Providence St. Joseph Health have ended, with the two companies deciding to focus on restructuring existing operations, according to the Wall Street Journal.