Laura Joszt, MA

Since taking office, President Donald Trump has toyed with the idea of eliminating the cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments to insurers under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Doing so would actually decrease the number of uninsured individuals starting in 2020, but would increase the federal deficit by $194 billion from 2017 through 2026, according to a new report released by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).

Patrick Conway, MD, MSc, will leave his position as the deputy administrator for Innovation and Quality at CMS and the director of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to lead Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (Blue Cross NC).

AJMC®TV interviews let you catch up with experts on what’s new and important about changes in healthcare. The interviews provide insights from key decision makers-from the clinician, to the health plan leader, to the regulator. When every minute in your day matters, AJMC®TV interviews keep you informed. You can access the video clips at ajmc.com/interviews.

After Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) returned to Congress last week after surgery and a brain tumor diagnosis, he called on his fellow senators to put aside partisan differences and work together on healthcare reform. In the House of Representatives, a bipartisan group is trying to do just that.

With Senator John McCain of Arizona joining with Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, Republicans were unable to pass the skinny repeal option.

The Senate voted mostly along party lines in support of the motion to proceed to debate a replacement for the Affordable Care Act. Republican Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine were the only 2 Republicans who voted against the motion.

Many accountable care organizations participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program focus on disease control and medication use, but a new study published in JAMA Cardiology has found that the programs have not made any meaningful changes in medication use or adherence.

A review of past literature on topical corticosteroid phobia in atopic dermatitis sought to better understand a phenomenon that is a major factor in treatment failure.

In a study designed to identify the relevant cost per number needed to treat for the 2 biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs tocilizumab (TCZ) and abatacept, researchers determined that TCZ had a higher efficacy.

There are multiple factors that can affect how patients respond to treatment or how their health is maintained. One that is gaining more attention is how social interactions can benefit a person’s health.

With plans to repeal and simultaneously replace the Affordable Care Act derailed now that 4 Republican senators have announced they would oppose the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) is returning to an older plan: repeal and delay.

With 2 more Republicans announcing that they oppose the Senate healthcare bill, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) no longer has enough votes to pass the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017, which would repeal and replace parts of the Affordable Care Act.

Proposed change to the payment rate under the 340B program for certain Medicare Part B drugs would cut reimbursement rate in attempt to address rising drug costs.

An analysis of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) in healthy adults in the primary care setting found that 1 in 5 had a previously unrecognized variant associated with a rare disease, according to a study published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

From 2011 to 2014 the use of high-intensity statins following hospitalization for myocardial infarction (MI) increased progressively, according to a study published in Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Whipple’s disease (WD) is a rare disease that predominantly affects middle-aged white men, and its diagnosis is often delayed because it is misdiagnosed as rheumatoid arthritis. A new study in Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases aimed to describe clinical symptoms of WD and appropriate treatment.

On Thursday, the House of Representatives passed a bill that would reform medical malpractice by capping noneconomic damages at $250,000. Supporters say the reform would reduce frivolous claims and prevent doctors from practicing costly defensive medicine. Here’s a look at 5 aspects of medical malpractice in the United States.

With half a year behind us, The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) is reflecting back on the journal articles published through all journals in the franchise over the first half of 2017. The topics of interest ranged from alternative payment models to yoga and all focused on providing better care and better outcomes for patients.

With the year 2017 halfway over, The American Journal of Managed Care® is looking back at the news of the first half of the year. Here we bring you the most read news stories, including conference coverage, a take on the new president’s first executive order, reimbursement challenges, and more.

Republican leaders in the Senate unveiled a long-awaited healthcare reform bill, called the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017, that will roll back the Affordable Care Act’s taxes and Medicaid expansion, although at a slower timeline than included in the House of Representatives’ American Health Care Act, which was passed on May 4 by a vote of 217-213.

Coverage from the 2017 Spring Live Meeting of the ACO & Emerging Healthcare Delivery Coalition® on May 4-5, 2017, in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Although the country is moving toward value-based payments, for providers it’s basically still a fee-for-service world, said Charles J. Fazio, MD, MS, of HealthPartners Health Plan, at America’s Health Insurance Plans’ Institute & Expo, held June 9-10 in Austin, Texas.

AJMCtv® interviews let you catch up with experts on what’s new and important about changes in healthcare. The interviews provide insights from key decision makers-from the clinician to the health plan leader to the regulator. When every minute in your day matters, AJMCtv® interviews keep you informed. You can access the video clips at www.ajmc.com/interviews.

A new report from CMS has shown that nearly 2 million people who selected an Affordable Care Act health plan on the exchanges did not pay their insurance premium to maintain health coverage just 2 months later.

With the sustainability and affordability of the US healthcare system in dire straits, now is the time for collaboration on new payment models, explained chief executive officers from a health plan and an insurer during a general session on the second day of America’s Health Insurance Plans’ Institute & Expo, held June 7-9 in Austin, Texas.

The United States is only slightly halfway through its healthcare transformation, claimed Mike Leavitt, founder and partner of Leavitt Partners and the former governor of Utah, during a general session on the first day of America’s Health Insurance Plans Institute & Expo, held June 7-9, in Austin, Texas.

During a general session at America’s Health Insurance Plans’ Institute & Expo, held June 7-9 in Austin, Texas, Eric Topol, MD, explained the buzz behind precision medicine and why it is needed to combat the harms of imprecision in medicine.

Bacteria in the gut microbiome is associated with disease progression or delay in patients with metastatic melanoma who were treated with immunotherapy, according to a study presented at the 2017 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting.

Healthcare costs for patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) are already far higher than for individuals without the disease, and a new study has found that total healthcare costs are also higher for older patients with DMD.

As Senate Republicans workshop their own healthcare reform bill, they are considering removing the tax exemption for employer-sponsored health insurance plans. Such a proposal would likely face stiff opposition. So what is the exemption and what would be the benefit of removing it?