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What We're Reading: Medicare for All Plan; Primary Care Payment Model; Tri-Agency Task Force for Public Health Emergencies
House Democrats are expected to introduce a Medicare for All bill today; CMS' Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation is planning to unveil a new payment model for primary care physicians; and CMS, CDC, and FDA have established a task force to improve future responses to public health emergencies.
House Democrats to Release Medicare for All Bill
House Democrats are expected to introduce a Medicare for All bill today that would create a new federally financed health system. According to The Wall Street Journal, under the Medicare for All Act of 2019, the federal government would provide health coverage for every American, expanding the Medicare program to include younger Americans and replacing Medicaid for low-income and disabled people and most employer-sponsored coverage. Employers and private insurers would be prohibited from providing benefits or selling coverage that duplicates benefits, but they would be allowed to offer supplemental coverage.
CMMI to Launch Payment Model for Primary Care
Adam Boehler, the director of CMS’ Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, is expected to unveil a new payment model for primary care physicians in the coming weeks, reported STAT News. The voluntary payment model may strongly encourage physicians to use more modern methods, including telehealth and online consultations, to care for patients in their home and keep them out of the hospital.
Tri-Agency Task Force Established for Public Health Emergencies
Members from CMS, CDC, and FDA have established the Tri-Agency Task Force to collaborate on future emergency diagnostic needs with the goal of improving responses to public health emergencies. During a public health emergency, the task force will convene to provide recommendations to laboratories for rapidly implementing in vitro diagnostic assays, according to an FDA press release.
Prices for care at hospital trauma centers vary across hospitals; drug shortages reached a record high during the first quarter of 2024; although 3 of the biggest makers of asthma inhalers pledged to cap out-of-pocket costs for some US patients at $35, these do not apply to daily inhalers used by the youngest kids with asthma.
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Navigating Health Policy in an Election Year: Insights From Dr Dennis Scanlon
April 2nd 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with Dennis Scanlon, PhD, the editor in chief of The American Journal of Accountable Care®, about prior authorization, price transparency, the impact of health policy on the upcoming election, and more.
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The Biden administration recently launched the Global Health Security Strategy, a new effort to combat the spread of infectious diseases; lawmakers zeroed in on the risks of massive consolidation in health care during the first congressional hearing on the Change Healthcare hack; the FDA recently announced the recall of a pair of heart devices linked to numerous deaths and injuries.
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Exploring Medicare Advantage Prior Authorization Variations
March 26th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the March 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on variations in prior authorization use across Medicare Advantage plans.
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