Read today’s Kaiser Health News
In other news:
About health insurance/insurers
DOJ and UnitedHealth reach settlement on $3.3 billion Amedisys deal: The Department of Justice and state officials have reached a proposed settlement agreement with UnitedHealth Group and Amedisys that would allow the companies to complete their $3.3 billion combination so long as they agree to sell 164 home health and hospice locations across 19 states.
The settlement, which still must be approved by a judge, would allow UnitedHealth to acquire Amedisys, a large home health and hospice provider, while avoiding a trial.
Payers ranked by digital experience-2025: FYI
8 payers recently fined by states FYI
ACA premiums set to spike: People who buy health insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are set to see a median premium increase of 18 percent, more than double last year’s 7 percent median proposed increase, according to an analysis of preliminary filings by KFF.
About hospitals and healthcare systems
Surgery becoming safer in hospitals: AHA, Vizient: Between 2019 and 2024, the mortality risk for hospitalized surgical patients declined nearly 20%, according to an analysis from Vizient and the American Hospital Association.
Several factors contributed to this improvement in surgical outcomes. Between the first quarter of 2019 and the fourth quarter of 2024, post-operative sepsis declined 9.2%, post-operative respiratory failure by 19% and post-operative hemorrhage by 22.3%.
The findings come at a time when acuity is projected to continue rising for hospitalized surgery patients, according to Sg2, a Vizient company.
About pharma
Appeals court upholds dismissal of US Chamber challenge to Medicare negotiation: The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday upheld a lower court’s ruling to dismiss a challenge to the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program brought by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, finding once again that the parties involved did not have standing to sue.
FDA unveils ‘PreCheck’ program for drug manufacturers: As the federal government pushes for lower drug prices and more domestic production, the FDA launched a “PreCheck” program Aug. 7 to expedite approval of new U.S. drug manufacturing facilities.
FDA PreCheck will provide drugmakers more frequent communication with the FDA at “critical development stages, including facility design, construction and pre-production,” the agency said.
The FDA will also encourage drug manufacturers to provide comprehensive, facility-specific information, which “can be incorporated by reference into a drug application as appropriate.”
Another phase of FDA PreCheck includes pre-application meetings and early feedback.