About health insurance/insurers
Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Programs to Remain Stable as CMS Implements Improvements to the Programs in 2025 “Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that average premiums, benefits, and plan choices for Medicare Advantage (MA) and the Medicare Part D prescription drug program will remain stable in 2025. Average premiums are projected to decline in both the MA and Part D programs from 2024 to 2025. Enhancements adopted in the 2025 MA and Part D Final Rule, as well as payment policy updates in the 2025 MA and Part D Rate Announcement, support this stability and increase enrollee protections and access to care for people with Medicare.”
About pharma
J&J to forgo 340B rebate plan implementation “Johnson & Johnson has decided to terminate implementation of its 340B rebate plan, according to an internal email 340B Health shared with Becker's.
In late August, the drugmaker planned to replace upfront 340B discounts with a rebate plan.
The Health Resources and Services Administration notified J&J that it would initiate proceedings to terminate the company's participation unless it halts its 340B rebate policy, which the agency said violates federal law, according to a Sept. 27 news release.”
About the public’s health
U.S. Preterm Births Are on the Rise “Over the past decade, rates of preterm birth in the United States jumped more than 10%, a new study of more than 5 million births shows.
The rise dovetailed with an increase in some factors that make an early delivery more likely, including rates of diabetes, sexually transmitted infections and mental health conditions, along with a corresponding decline in factors that protect against it.
Meanwhile, racial and economic disparities persist.”
About healthcare IT
HEALTHCARE RANSOMWARE ATTACKS CONTINUE TO INCREASE IN NUMBER AND SEVERITY “Across all industry sectors, the number of organizations that reported suffering a ransomware attack in the past 12 months fell from 66% in 2023 to 59% in 2024. Sophos surveyed 402 healthcare organizations, and 67% said they had experienced a ransomware attack in the past 12 months, up from 60% the previous year, and on a par with the 66% that experienced ransomware attacks in 2022.”