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Three major government agencies are adding new officials to investigate price-gouging in health care — positions experts say will help the three agencies better coordinate across the government. The new jobs are part of the Biden White House’s new efforts to scrutinize what it calls “corporate greed” in health care. (Trang, 12/19)

Americans' satisfaction with almost every major part of the health care system has dropped since 2010, according to a new Gallup analysis. Drugmakers took the biggest reputational hit, and ratings for physicians fell sharply, too. (Goldman, 12/19)

�鶹Ů�� Health News: When A Quick Telehealth Visit Yields Multiple Surprises Beyond A Big Bill 

In September 2022, Elyse Greenblatt of Queens returned home from a trip to Rwanda with a rather unwelcome-back gift: persistent congestion. She felt a pain in her sinuses and sought a quick resolution. Covid-19 couldn’t be ruled out, so rather than risk passing on an unknown infection to others in a waiting room, the New Yorker booked a telehealth visit through her usual health system, Mount Sinai — a perennial on best-hospitals lists. (Tahir, 12/19)

Ballooning medical costs will feed into existing disillusionment with the healthcare industry, said Blue Shield of California President and CEO Paul Markovich. “There's going to be a reckoning about what to do about healthcare and it's going to happen in the face of most, if not all the players, in the healthcare value chain being deeply unpopular,” he said. To retain its 4.5 million members, the nonprofit insurer says it is prioritizing affordability. (Tepper, 12/18)

The Department of Justice has asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Humana, which alleged the government’s new audits of Medicare Advantage plans are unlawful. And if the lawsuit isn’t thrown out, the DOJ said in a new legal filing, at a minimum, it should be moved to a different federal court in Texas — away from a judge that has a track record of striking down federal health care laws. (Herman, 12/18)

The Federal Trade Commission said Monday it is dropping its lawsuit to block John Muir Health’s proposed acquisition of San Ramon Regional Medical Center, following the health system's decision to scrap the deal. ... For-profit Tenet, a 61-hospital system, holds a 51% stake in San Ramon Regional. John Muir, which holds a 49% non-operating stake, planned to acquire Tenet's interest. (Hudson, 12/18)

Molina Healthcare will cut to $425 million its payment for Bright Health Group's California Medicare Advantage plans. Molina did not specify in a news release Monday why it reduced the agreed-upon purchase price of $510 million by 16.7%. Molina will seek regulatory approval to consolidate the two plans, Brand New Day and Central Health Plan, as part of the acquisition, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Bright Health submitted Monday. (Tepper, 12/18)

Tampa General Hospital will rename its children’s hospital Muma Children’s Hospital at TGH after a major donation from longtime supporters Pam and Les Muma. The size of the gift was not specified, but in a news release, the Tampa General Hospital Foundation reported that “this marks the most significant contribution to TGH and the largest gift ever to any children’s hospital in our region.” (12/18)