The Network · 2026-03-26 19:56:56 · STAT News
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has convened a new advisory committee that is raising immediate questions about its composition and focus. Announced by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz, the 18-member Healthcare Advisory Committee includes a motivational coach and a ve...
The Vault · 2026-03-31 19:57:04 · Seeking Alpha
Charlotte's Web Holdings has outlined a landmark pilot program with Medicare, potentially authorizing up to $500 in annual benefits per beneficiary for its CBD products. This represents a significant, first-of-its-kind step toward integrating hemp-derived wellness products into a major federal healthcare program, signa...
The Network · 2026-04-02 17:26:54 · Seeking Alpha
The Trump administration is reportedly considering a hardball tactic to force pharmaceutical companies to the negotiating table: imposing tariffs on drugmakers who refuse to sign new 'Most Favored Nation' (MFN) pricing agreements. This potential move signals a significant escalation in the administration's push to lowe...
The Vault · 2026-04-02 19:56:57 · Seeking Alpha
A proposal from former President Donald Trump to expand Medicare coverage to include weight-loss medications like Wegovy and Zepbound would impose a multi-billion-dollar cost burden on private insurers. This potential policy shift, emerging during an election cycle, directly targets the lucrative but expensive market f...
The Vault · 2026-04-02 19:57:08 · STAT News
The Trump administration is expanding its pressure campaign on drug prices, now targeting smaller pharmaceutical companies with confidential negotiations. According to sources, including a White House official, these new talks offer a critical pathway for smaller firms to pledge lower prices and potentially avoid the l...
The Lab · 2026-04-09 08:57:11 · STAT News
A $100 million federal initiative to fund 'functional or lifestyle medicine' for Medicare beneficiaries is triggering deep skepticism from within the medical community. The MAHA ELEVATE program, which closes its letter-of-intent window this week, aims to test evidence-based approaches to chronic disease prevention. How...
The Network · 2026-04-09 14:26:49 · STAT News
Steve Ubl, the chief executive of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), is stepping down at the end of the year. His departure marks the end of a more than decade-long tenure leading the primary trade group for brand-name drug manufacturers, a period defined by intense political battles over...
The Lab · 2026-04-10 09:39:36 · KFF Health News
Major health insurers are making a unified push to deploy artificial intelligence for determining patient coverage, framing it as a critical cost-saving measure in conversations with Wall Street. This corporate strategy is mirrored by federal action, with the Trump administration testing AI's role in Medicare's prior a...
The Vault · 2026-04-10 12:09:46 · Bloomberg Markets
In a defiant stance against a surging market, the last remaining bear analyst on Wall Street covering UnitedHealth Group is refusing to back down. This comes as the healthcare giant's stock is poised for its strongest weekly performance in over half a year, fueled by an unexpected increase in government Medicare paymen...
The Lab · 2026-04-13 19:22:26 · STAT News
The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) has provisionally approved more than 150 companies and providers for its experimental ACCESS model, a number that officials say 'exceeded expectations.' This signals strong market appetite for a new payment structure that ties reimbursement directly to measurable h...
The Lab · 2026-04-15 18:52:34 · STAT News
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed a significant policy reversal that could choke off a key funding stream for cutting-edge medical devices. The agency aims to repeal a pathway established in 2021 that allowed FDA-designated breakthrough devices to qualify for supplementary Medicare payme...
The Network · 2026-04-17 00:52:37 · STAT News
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is actively considering terminating a critical payment pathway designed to accelerate patient access to FDA-designated breakthrough medical devices. This potential policy reversal directly threatens a key financial bridge for novel technologies, creating immediate unce...
The Lab · 2026-04-21 12:52:42 · STAT News
The Trump administration may be preparing a significant policy move to expand Medicare coverage for so-called 'breakthrough devices,' a signal that could reshape market access for innovative medical technologies. This potential shift, hinted at by officials, suggests a departure from the current, often restrictive, rei...
The Network · 2026-04-21 15:22:28 · STAT News
The Trump administration is launching a sweeping new audit initiative, ordering every state to create fresh verification plans for medical providers paid by federal health programs. Mehmet Oz, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), announced the directive, framing it as a critical mo...
The Network · 2026-04-21 21:22:48 · STAT News
The Trump administration's high-profile plan to provide seniors with cheap weight-loss drugs through Medicare is hitting a major roadblock. The initiative, which hinges on a voluntary pilot program, is at risk of unraveling as key health insurers signal deep reluctance to participate, fearing the arrangement will be a ...
The Lab · 2026-04-22 21:57:29 · STAT News
A federal artificial intelligence program designed to reduce wasteful Medicare spending is facing mounting criticism from Washington state hospitals and at least one Democratic senator, with reports of significantly extended wait times for senior patients seeking procedures that now require prior authorization under th...
The Vault · 2026-05-08 00:01:39 · ZeroHedge
Federal investigators have identified a single attending physician whose National Provider Identifier was connected to 17 separate hospice operations across the Los Angeles area, filings that generated $16 million in Medicare claims for only 900 patients. The findings represent a significant anomaly in hospice billing ...
The Lab · 2026-05-08 09:24:42 · STAT News
A new federal initiative promises to slash Medicare coverage timelines for medical devices from over a year to as little as two months—but the breakthrough comes with an uncomfortable caveat. The RAPID pathway, jointly announced by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the FDA in late April, could transfor...
The Lab · 2026-05-13 01:18:21 · TechCrunch
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized a payment model that creates, for the first time, a federal mechanism to reimburse AI agents performing continuous patient monitoring between clinical visits. The model, known as ACCESS (Advanced Community Care Coordination and Electronic Support Servic...
The Lab · 2026-05-13 03:18:18 · Techmeme Echo RSS
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is piloting ACCESS, an outcome-based payment framework designed to reimburse AI-enabled medical services based on clinical results rather than traditional fee-for-service models. The initiative has drawn participation from 150 technology companies, marking the most concrete ...