CMS Proposes Set Price For Treating Heart Attacks To Curb Spending, Boost Quality
If implemented, Medicare would set a fixed payment for all services provided during the treatment of a heart attack, instead of letting the hospital bill for each separately.
The Wall Street Journal:
Medicare Proposes Fixed Payments For Treating Heart Attacks
Medicare wants to pay hospitals fixed amounts for treating heart attacks, following a move to offer set reimbursements for hip and knee replacements rather than letting providers bill for every service provided to older Americans, the Obama administration said Monday. The proposal represents the most significant extension of the Obama administration’s efforts to curb costs and improve quality of care funded by Medicare. (Radnofsky and Evans, 7/25)
In other national health care news —
The Associated Press:
Doctors Urged To Check Pregnant Women For Zika At Each Visit
U.S. health officials are strongly urging doctors to ask all pregnant women about a possible Zika infection at every checkup. So far, there have been no confirmed cases of a Zika infection from a mosquito bite in the United States, although officials expect mosquitoes will start spreading it in Southern states. All U.S. illnesses have been connected to travel to areas with Zika outbreaks. (7/25)
Los Angeles Times:
Why The Rio Olympics Are Not Likely To Increase The Spread Of Zika Across The World
More than a dozen athletes have dropped out of the 2016 Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro citing fears of spreading the Zika virus, but a new study from researchers at Yale University finds that the international sporting event poses little risk of increasing the transfer of the virus around the world. “Yes, Zika is a serious disease, but transmission linked to the Olympics and ParaOlympic Games is not a substantial public health threat and policy should be guided by this fact,” said Gregg Gonsalves, co-director of the Yale Global Health Justice Partnership and an author on the paper. (Netburn, 7/25)
The Wall Street Journal:
Gilead Sales Of Hepatitis C Drugs Fall 19%
Gilead Sciences Inc. said its revenue from its hepatitis C drugs continued to fall, dropping 19% during the second quarter, with sales of Harvoni missing expectations as competition from rival drugs and pricing pressures intensified. Shares of the company slipped 3% to $85.90 after hours. The Foster City, Calif., biopharmaceutical company also lowered its 2016 product sales outlook to $29.5 billion to $30.5 billion, from its previous estimate for products sales of $30 billion to $31 billion. (Stynes, 7/25)
The New York Times:
Surgery Fixes A Ligament (If It Exists). Does It Fix The Knee?
For professional athletes and weekend warriors alike, it appeared to be welcome news: the discovery by researchers of a new knee ligament that, if repaired, might help tens of thousands of people with an injury from sports or an accident. In the fall of 2013, a study about the finding was published in a small medical journal, generating extensive press coverage in the United States and Europe. A Florida company quickly began marketing a repair procedure those researchers helped develop. And soon, patients were asking about the knee surgery, and doctors were performing it. (Meier, 7/25)