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Transamerica obtains 4-star Medicare Part D rating from CMS for 2014

Transamerica continues to provide exceptional value to Medicare customers by obtaining a 4-star Medicare Part D rating from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for 2014.

13 Mar 2014

First Edition: March 13, 2014

Today's headlines include details of Wednesday's Capitol Hill testimony by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.

13 Mar 2014

Viewpoints: Exploiting botched exchanges; falling number of uninsured; Medicare drug plan retreat

Now that the badly botched rollout of the federal government's health care website seems to be behind us, Republicans have shifted their criticisms to several states that are experiencing problems enrolling people on their state-run exchanges.

12 Mar 2014

Administration reverses course on proposed Medicare drug changes

After advancing a number of changes to the Medicare Part D program earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services withdrew its plan, which had drawn significant opposition from patients, drug companies and lawmakers in both parties.

11 Mar 2014

Kindred Healthcare intends to undertake refinancing of existing secured indebtedness

Kindred Healthcare, Inc. today announced that it intends to undertake a refinancing of its existing secured indebtedness. The proposed refinancing would extend the maturity profile of the Company's long-term debt, increase total availability under the Company's secured facilities, improve pricing and provide additional covenant flexibility.

11 Mar 2014

First Edition: March 11, 2014

Today's headlines include reports that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is stepping back from proposed changes to the Medicare drug program.

11 Mar 2014

Lawmakers ready minor changes to Obamacare amid bipartisan support

Also on Capitol Hill, doctor groups oppose tying a fix to how Medicare pays them to a repeal of the health law, and Republicans look to use the law -- as well as the law's changes to Medicare -- to their advantage in upcoming elections.

11 Mar 2014

Study examines impact of the elimination of preferred pharmacy networks on Medicare Part D program

A new actuarial study released by The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association examining the impact proposed changes to the Medicare prescription drug program finds that eliminating preferred pharmacy networks in Part D would increase premiums by approximately $63 annually for over 75 percent of Part D enrollees and raise overall program costs by an estimated $24 billion over the next ten years.

10 Mar 2014

First Edition: March 10, 2014

Today's headlines include reports about how the Virginia Assembly's impasse on Medicaid expansion is playing out.

10 Mar 2014

Longer looks: Health care in jail; preventing Medicare drug fraud; new medical codes

"Sheriff Ashe," [the waitress] began. "My daughter is in your jail." She then told me her daughter's story. "Laura," as I'll call her here, was a bright and sociable girl who, after graduating from high school, went on to community college.

10 Mar 2014

Costs for medications expected to rise by 3 – 5% in all health care settings in 2014

Costs for medications are expected to rise by three to five percent in all health care settings in 2014, according to a report published online ahead of print, by the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy (AJHP), the professional journal of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP).

6 Mar 2014

Medicare drug program falls short in tracking fraud

Medicare's massive drug program continues to be in the news, from a report finding that it fails to adequately track fraud, to continued opposition to an administration proposal that would revamp the program.

5 Mar 2014

Study finds significant reduction in hospital admissions with Medicare Part D prescription coverage

A new study by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the University of Illinois at Chicago finds that Medicare Part D prescription coverage significantly reduced hospital admissions and program expenditures totaling $1.5 billion annually.

4 Mar 2014

Plan to revamp Medicare drug plans meets resistance

A bipartisan group of senators are criticizing the Obama administration's efforts to make significant changes to Part D drug plans.

4 Mar 2014

First Edition: March 3, 2014

Today's headlins include stories detailing ongoing challenges with state-run exchanges as well as previews of what's next regarding the federal budget process.

3 Mar 2014

Research roundup: Medicaid peer support; doctor Jokes; ACA's asset rules for coverage

Since 2009, the eight states (Alabama, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin) participating in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Maximizing Enrollment program have worked to streamline and simplify enrollment systems, policies, and processes for children and those eligible for coverage in 2014. ... States [focused] on five key areas: 1) applications, 2) eligibility determinations, 3) renewals and transfers, 4) notices, and 5) business processes.

3 Mar 2014

Storytelling can help doctors recall opioid guidelines

In the fight against a nationwide prescription opioid abuse epidemic, Penn Medicine researchers are using storytelling to help doctors recall important, potentially lifesaving national guidelines on how to prescribe these medications.

3 Mar 2014

Medicare Part D cost-saving plan draws opposition on several fronts

Among other things, the proposal would limit the types of antidepressants -- and other kinds of drugs -- that are available to Medicare beneficiaries. Drug industry and insurer groups are lining up against the change.

27 Feb 2014

First Edition: February 27, 2014

Today's headlines include a number of stories about Obama past and present administration officials -- notably, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vice President Joe Biden -- who are stepping up to "sell" people on enrolling in new health law insurance coverage.

27 Feb 2014

Report: Spending on health care for children increased between 2009 and 2012

Spending on health care for children covered by employer-sponsored insurance (ESI) increased between 2009 and 2012, rising an average 5.5 percent a year, with more dollars spent on boys than girls, and higher spending on infants and toddlers (ages 0-3) than any other children's age group, finds a new report released today by the Health Care Cost Institute. Per capita spending on children reached $2,437 in 2012, a $363 increase from 2009. The study shows a growth in prescription use by children through age 18, as well as a rise in the number of teens being admitted for mental health and substance use (MHSU) treatment.

27 Feb 2014