Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Study Finds Medicare Advantage Patients Experience Worse Home Care
Medicare Advantage patients were found to get skimpier home health care and worse outcomes than their counterparts in traditional Medicare in a study published in JAMA Health Forum. With more than half of Medicare beneficiaries in MA plans, there's growing concern about how the plans are run, including whether their guardrails around coverage are reducing access to care. (Reed, 3/4)
Health insurer laments about a recent string of bad Medicare Advantage news might give some people the idea that these companies are in trouble. Surprisingly high medical spending last year combined with a series of unfavorable policies from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, including a proposal to slightly reduce the benchmark payment rate next year, compelled top Medicare Advantage carriers such as UnitedHealth Group, Humana and Aetna to warn investors that earnings may not meet previous projections. (Berryman, 3/1)
Over the last few years, virtual mental health company Talkspace has been on a relentless quest to conquer the insurance market. The next step in that journey, Medicare, may prove the most challenging yet. (Aguilar, 3/4)
At first glance, the Coalition for Health AI looks like any technology lobbying group. Its membership — including Microsoft, Google, and many of the nation’s largest academic hospitals — forms a formidable presence in Washington. But on Monday, the coalition forged a different deal with federal regulators. It will work with them to develop quality and safety standards for artificial intelligence, an experiment that will test whether industry and government can effectively partner in the regulation of a fast-moving technology. (Ross, 3/4)
Penn Medicine plans to build a 195,000-square-foot cancer facility at its Princeton Medical Center in Plainsboro, New Jersey. The $401 million project is expected to include an outpatient imaging center and parking garage. The cancer center would have more than 40 exam rooms, about 30 infusion chairs and two radiation oncology linear accelerators, a spokesperson said Friday. (DeSilva, 3/1)
