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Read today’s Kaiser Health News
In other news:
White House unveils ‘MAHA’ report: 10 takeaways:The White House’s Make America Healthy Again Commission published its anticipated report on childhood chronic disease May 22.
Comment: Some true statements and some false (like vaccine skepticism). The report did not have any recommendations, which supposedly are forthcoming.
Proposed cuts to SAMHSA, AHRQ could further stress primary care system: The specific cuts to some of the major, more easily recognizable agencies include:
$17.965 billion cut to the NIH;
$3.588 billion cut to the CDC;
$1.732 billion cut to the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA); and
$674 million cut to CMS.
About health insurance/insurers
UnitedHealth’s former CEO resigns from board of directors: UnitedHealth Group’s former CEO Andrew Witty has resigned from the company’s board of directors, effective immediately.
Mr. Witty will not stand for re-election as a director during the company’s annual shareholder meeting scheduled for June 2, the company said in regulatory documents filed May 21.
Claim denials grew as prior authorization rejections fell in 2024: Health insurance companies initially declined to pay more than one dollar for every $10 providers submitted in claims last year, an increase from 2023.
About hospitals and healthcare systems
CMS updates hospital price transparency guidance following executive order: In the updated guidance, CMS said hospitals must display payer-specific standard charges as dollar amounts in their machine-readable files (MRFs) whenever calculable. This includes the amount negotiated for the item or service, the base rate negotiated for a service package and a dollar amount if the standard charge is based on a percentage of a known fee schedule.
CMS also said hospitals should discontinue encoding “999999999” (nine 9s) in the estimated allowed amount data element within the MRF, and instead encode an actual dollar amount.
About pharma
Unlike CVS, Walgreens Interested In Rite Aid Patient Files, Not Stores: Walgreens confirmed its only buying prescription files and not brick and mortar stores among the pharmacy assets being sold across the U.S. by Rite Aid.
A U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Jersey approved the sale of pharmacy assets from more than 800 Rite Aid stores to CVS Health, Walgreens as well as grocery store chains including Kroger and Albertsons.
But CVS appears to be the only major drugstore chain interested in brick-and-mortar stores, confirming plans to buy 64 Rite Aid stores in the pacific northwest U.S. CVS is also purchasing prescription files of 625 Rite Aid pharmacies across 15 states in markets already served by CVS pharmacies, the company said.
About the public’s health
‘World-first’ gonorrhoea vaccine to be rolled out in England and Wales: A vaccine for gonorrhoea will be rolled out in England and Wales as part of a world-first programme, officials have announced.
The move, hailed as a “landmark moment for sexual health”, will aim to tackle rising levels of the sexually transmitted infection (STI).
FDA vaccine panel recommends retaining JN.1 COVID-19 variant for new season jabs: The FDA’s vaccine advisory panel unanimously recommended maintaining JN.1 lineage variants for the forthcoming respiratory virus season's COVID-19 vaccines.
The agency’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC), which convened on Thursday, delivered its recommendation following an assessment of current variant circulation patterns and nonclinical vaccine performance data.
Priority Health Conditions and Global Life Expectancy Disparities: This cross-sectional study suggests that a limited number of causes account for most life expectancy disparities. Together with current information on risk factors, interventions, and morbidity not yet reflected in life expectancy, the varying contributions of these causes to gaps in life expectancy can help focus health policy and guide interventions to reduce risk factors and treat conditions.
Comment: See the graphics for more detailed information. Conditions’ importance vary by region.
Hold My Beer: The Linkage between Municipal Water and Brewing Location on PFAS in Popular Beverages: PFAS were detected in most beers, particularly from smaller scale breweries located near drinking water sources with known PFAS. Perfluorosulfonic acids, particularly PFOS, were frequently detected, with PFOA or PFOS above U.S. EPA’s Maximum Contaminant Limits in some beers. There was also a county–level correlation between the total PFAS, PFOA, and PFBS concentrations in drinking water and beers. Given that approximately 18% of U.S. breweries are located within zip codes with detectable PFAS in municipal drinking water, our findings, which link PFAS in beer to the brewery water source, are intended to help inform data-driven policies on PFAS in beverages for governmental agencies, provide insights for brewers and water utilities on treatment needs, and support informed decision-making for consumers.
Comment: Read the article for assessments of where these contaminants are high.
About healthcare IT
Health system kickback scheme involves Epic EHR: An alleged kickback scheme that a California health system settled for $31.5 million involved steering physicians to use its Epic EHR.