Discussion on issues in adaptive design for clinical trials with Dr. Deepak L. Bhatt and Dr. Cyrus Mehta
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Will Your Prescription Meds Be Covered Next Year? Better Check!
The battle continues to rage between drug companies that are trying to make as much money as possible and insurers trying to drive down drug prices. And consumers are squarely in the middle.
That’s because, increasingly, prescription insurers are threatening to kick drugs off their lists of approved medications if the manufacturers won’t give them big discounts.
Cartoon – Leadership Sacrifices
Healthcare, holding politicians accountable among top concerns for US Hispanics
Quality affordable healthcare and holding elected officials accountable for their decisions are among the highest priorities for Hispanics in the U.S., according to a new Harris Poll survey.
Seventy-seven percent of Hispanics surveyed rated quality affordable healthcare as “absolutely essential/extremely important” to improving opportunity in their community while 76 percent rated holding elected officials accountable as “absolutely essential/extremely important,” said Abigail Golden-Vazquez, executive director of The Aspen Institute’s Latinos and Society Program, at the institute’s second annual America’s Future Summit on Tuesday at the California Endowment in downtown Los Angeles.
Health Net tried to block employee whistleblowers, SEC says
For years, insurance provider Health Net Inc. used illegal severance agreements to try to keep departing employees from talking to state and federal officials about company violations, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Tuesday.
The Woodland Hills company agreed to pay a $340,000 penalty to settle the SEC’s allegations. It also agreed to contact former employees who had signed the severance agreements between Aug.12, 2011, and Oct. 22, 2015, and inform them that they were not prohibited from blowing the whistle about potential securities violations.
Health Net did not respond to requests for comment. The SEC said the company had agreed to the settlement without admitting or denying the commission’s findings.
The health insurer changed language in its severance agreements after the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation was enacted in 2010. The law encourages whistleblowers to report possible securities law violations by providing financial awards and other incentives.
Under Health Net’s amended severance agreements, former employees waived their right to any monetary recovery that came from becoming a whistleblower. The SEC’s order does not address non-securities-related whistleblower lawsuits.
“Financial incentives in the form of whistleblower awards, as Congress recognized, are integral to promoting whistleblowing to the commission,” said Antonia Chion, associate director of the SEC’s enforcement division. “Health Net used its severance agreements with departing employees to strip away those financial incentives.”
The Outpatient Imperative: Beyond Putting ‘Heads in Beds’
http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/physician-leaders/outpatient-imperative-beyond-putting-heads-beds
Healthcare leaders are developing outpatient strategies that enhance access in an increasingly risk-based environment. This can happen by several means—through acquisitions, partnerships, building new facilities, and often through some combination thereof. From there, the possibilities are almost endless.
Cartoon – Getting High
Hospital Bond Rally Undeterred by Latest Threat to End Obamacare
The $250 billion municipal hospital-bond market is proving immune to Donald Trump’s plan to eliminate Obamacare.
Sutter Health is among nonprofits tapping demand for the tax-free debt, with the California chain planning to sell $850 million in new securities this week. Health-care bonds are beating the overall $3.7 trillion municipal market for a third straight year as the federal law expanding medical coverage to Americans improves business. Despite the Republican presidential nominee’s goal, the rally has been undaunted as investors hunt for yield while rates hold near record lows.
“There’s lots of demand with all of the money pouring in,” said Mike Quinn, a managing director at Chicago-based investment bank Ziegler, which underwrites bonds for hospitals. “This is a really great environment for health-care borrowers to issue tax-exempt money.”
Top 10 Takeaways from the HealthLeaders Media CFO Exchange
More than three dozen top healthcare finance executives share insight and strategies for tackling their toughest business challenges.
Participants at the 2017 HealthLeaders Media CFO Exchangein Coeur d’Alene, Idaho last week said they are generally optimistic about weathering the storm of regulatory changes, new payment models, and shifting market forces buffeting their organizations.
The finance executives at the invitation-only event also shared many mutual concerns such as offsetting traditional revenue-stream declines at hospitals and assessing the appetite to adopt value-based care models in their markets.
Here are 10 of the most insightful comments from the gathered finance leaders:
