About health insurance
Medicaid expansion didn't lead to changes in hospitalizations in safety-net facilities: “The study found no significant changes in safety-net hospitalizations among Medicaid or uninsured patients in states that did and did not expand Medicaid. There were also no major changes among racial and ethnic minority groups or among low-income patients.”
CMS wants to reward dialysis providers for improving home dialysis among low-income beneficiaries: “The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule Thursday that updates payment rates for the End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Prospective Payment System and makes changes to the quality incentive program and ESRD Treatment Choices Model. The goal of the changes is to encourage dialysis providers to decrease disparities in home dialysis and transplant rates, part of a larger effort by the Biden administration.”
And in a related article:
CVS, Anthem, Intermountain form coalition to push for regulatory changes for home dialysis: “Founding members of Innovate Kidney Care include Anthem, CVS Kidney Care, Home Dialyzors United (HDU), portable dialysis machine maker Outset Medical and kidney care startups Cricket Health and Strive Health….
The companies cite existing conditions for coverage that apply a one-size-fits-all set of requirements whether dialysis takes place in a clinic or at home. Due to these complex requirements, many organizations don't offer self-dialysis options, leaving large patient populations without access to these benefits.
Innovate Kidney Care is calling for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to change the end-stage renal disease conditions for coverage to remove barriers to home dialysis training and support so more patients can benefit from the flexibility and personalization of home-based treatment.”
STATEMENT ON U.S. SUPREME COURT ORDER IN 340B MEDICARE CUTS LAWSUIT: “The U.S. Supreme Court announced today that it will review a Court of Appeals decision holding that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) had the authority to make payment cuts to many 340B hospitals under Medicare’s outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS).”
Walmart Unveils LGBTQ+ Health Care Platform: “Through a partnership with San Francisco-based health care company Grand Rounds, employees on a Walmart medical plan and their covered dependents can take advantage of Included Health, which was created especially for the LGBTQ+ community.”
Justices to Consider Narrowing Medicaid Payment Recovery Source: “The U.S. Supreme Court announced Friday that it will clear up a dispute over how state Medicaid agencies recoup health-care costs paid on behalf of beneficiaries who later recover compensation for the medical expenses from other people.
The case involves a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit that allowed Florida’s Medicaid agency to recoup payments made for Gianinna Gallardo’s medical care from a settlement she reached with the person who caused her injuries.
Federal Medicaid law requires states to recover money paid out on behalf of beneficiaries whenever they can.”
ToAbout healthcare IT
Picture Archiving Communication Systems (PACS) Vulnerabilities: “Picture Archiving Communication Systems (PACS) are widely used by hospitals, research institutions, clinics and small healthcare practices for sharing patient data and medical images. In 2019, researchers disclosed a vulnerability in these systems that demonstrated if the systems were exploited there could potentially be an issue with exposed patient data. These systems, which can be easily identified and compromised by hackers over the Internet, can provide unauthorized access and expose patient records.”
This HHS report lists systems with “known vulnerabilities.”
Healthcare workers accuse Alexa of possibly recording protected info: “In a class action filed this week, healthcare workers alleged that their Amazon Alexa-enabled devices may have recorded their conversations – including potentially protected information.
Some of the plaintiffs, who include a substance abuse counselor and a healthcare customer service representative, say they work with HIPAA-protected information. Others say they have private conversations with patients…
The plaintiffs' complaints are twofold: They say that users may unintentionally awaken Amazon Alexa-enabled devices and that Amazon uses human intelligence and AI to listen to, interpret and evaluate these records for its own business purposes.”
About Covid-19
J&J's COVID-19 vaccine shows promise against Delta variant: ”An analysis of blood from eight patients showed that immune responses elicited by the vaccine against the Delta variant, first identified in India, were at a higher level than against the Beta variant, which was first identified in South Africa.”
A Revolutionary Solar Fridge Will Help Keep COVID Vaccines Cold In Sub-Saharan Africa: “Rather than store electricity in batteries to power them through the night, these so called "direct-drive" systems store coldness. They are so efficient and so well-insulated that they can stay cold for 3 days even if the solar panels aren't supplying power. And the lack of batteries makes them far simpler to operate and maintain.”
When will we get this cutting edge technology? Imagine uses such as in long-haul refrigeration train cars and trucks.
EU officially launches digital vaccine passport: “The European Union’s digital COVID-19 certificate officially launched today. The certificate allows people to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination, a recent negative test result, or a past COVID-19 infection.
The certificate, which includes a QR code and digital signature, can either be displayed on a digital device or printed out. People who have the certificate digital COVID-19 certificate have to get an additional COVID-19 test or quarantine when traveling in the EU. The certificate only recognizes COVID-19 vaccines authorized in the EU — that includes the AstraZeneca, Pfizer / BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson shots.”
About pharma
GSK, under pressure to perform, pens $2.2B deal with Alector focused on neuro R&D, Alzheimer's: “The deal is worth a meaty $700 million upfront with up to an additional $1.5 billion in milestone payments, if all goes to plan and the two meds get to the market.
Those assets are formed of two monoclonal antibodies: AL001 and AL101, which belong to a new field of research known as ‘immuno-neurology’ that seeks to harness the body’s own immune system to fight neurodegenerative disease and that the pair hopes will have the same successes seen with immuno-oncology in cancer.”
About home health
Amedisys snaps up hospital-at-home provider Contessa Health in $250M deal: “Amedisys, a home health, hospice and personal care company, said the $250 million deal adds higher acuity, home-based care to Amedisys’ current service offering and significantly expands Amedisys’ total addressable market for in-home care services from $44 billion to $73 billion.
Contessa Health, founded in 2015, provides hospital-at-home and skilled nursing facility at-home services and partners with health systems and health plans including Mount Sinai Health System, Marshfield Clinic Health System, Ascension Saint Thomas, CommonSpirit Health and Highmark Health. The company has potential plans to expand to more than a hundred hospitals in 28 more states.”
About hospitals and health systems
Characterization of US Hospital Advertising and Association With Hospital Performance, 2008-2016: “In this cross-sectional study of more than 4500 acute care hospitals per year, almost half advertised their services to consumers, yet there was no clear association between advertising and objective performance measures. Hospitals that advertised were more likely to have more net assets and income.”