Medicare

WASHINGTON — The Department of Health and Human Services announced last week that it has reached an agreement with Pfizer to ensure continued patient access to the antiviral Paxlovid as it prepares to transition the COVID treatment to the commercial... Read More

WASHINGTON — The White House announced Tuesday that all 10 drug companies whose products were selected for price negotiations with Medicare have agreed to participate in those talks. The companies, which include Bristol Myers Squibb, the maker of Eliquis, Boehringer... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is trumpeting Medicare's new powers to negotiate directly with drugmakers on the cost of prescription medications — but a poll shows that any immediate political boost that Biden gets for enacting the overwhelmingly popular policy may be limited.... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is targeting the blood thinner Eliquis, diabetes treatment Jardiance and eight other medications for Medicare's first-ever drug price negotiations as it seeks to lower medical costs for Americans. The administration on Tuesday released a list... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday rolled out a new set of initiatives to reduce health care costs: a crackdown on scam insurance plans, new guidance to prevent surprise medical bills and an effort to reduce medical debt... Read More

WASHINGTON — As Congress considers proposals that would eliminate existing differences in Medicare payments for ambulatory services, a think tank is warning lawmakers to be on the lookout for unintended consequences. In a new paper published by the American Enterprise... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration has proposed using new tools to monitor costs associated with prescription drugs so it can hold pharma manufacturers accountable for what Medicaid programs pay for them. The Notice of Proposed Rule Making was made through... Read More

The United States grew older, faster, last decade. The share of residents 65 or older grew by more than a third from 2010 to 2020 and at the fastest rate of any decade in 130 years, while the share of... Read More

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan bill in the House aims to permanently expand access to emergency medical care for Medicare, Tricare and Medicaid beneficiaries.  Introduced by Reps. Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, and Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, the Emergency Care Improvement Act would head... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Social Security Trust Fund is projected to run short of cash by 2033, one year earlier than projected last year, according to a report released Friday. The report followed a meeting of the Social Security and Medicare... Read More

WASHINGTON — When the Inflation Reduction Act became law last year, it empowered the Health and Human Services secretary, for the first time ever, to begin negotiating certain prescription drug prices with drug manufacturers. The prices would go into effect... Read More

WASHINGTON — A proposed physician fee schedule for 2023 published this past week by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services aims to increase access to behavioral health care, cancer screening and dental care. The Calendar Year 2023 Physician Fee... Read More

WASHINGTON — Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, is urging his colleagues to take up legislation during the upcoming lame duck session of the 117th Congress to allow Medicare beneficiaries to more easily have virtual appointments with their doctors. Schatz has led... Read More

WASHINGTON — Medicare Open Enrollment begins on Saturday, Oct. 15, and officials with the Department of Health and Human Services are encouraging Medicare recipients to review and compare their options due to beneficial changes stemming from the passage of the... Read More

LOS ANGELES (AP) — President Joe Biden is set to highlight his administration’s efforts to lower prescription drug costs on Friday as part of his three-state Western tour this week, as he confronts a sobering inflation report in the waning... Read More

Health insurers will flood the Medicare Advantage market again this fall with enticing offers for plans that have no monthly price tag. The number of so-called zero-premium plans has been growing for years, and they can appeal to retirees who... Read More

WASHINGTON —A series of reports have revealed continued issues with Medicare Advantage Plans, a private-plan alternative to traditional Medicare, and now members from the House Committee on Energy and Commerce are focused on how to establish better protections for America’s... Read More

WASHINGTON — Though few likely noticed given the court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court also decided a highly technical case Friday regarding how the Department of Health and Human Services calculates a class of Medicare payments. The... Read More

WASHINGTON — Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan on Tuesday called on Congress to “fix” the Medicare Secondary Payer Act after a majority of her colleagues ruled a group health plan did not violate the act by providing only limited benefits... Read More

WASHINGTON — The Department of Health and Human Services extended the COVID-19 public health emergency this week beyond the July 15 expiration to October. The eventual expiration of the declaration will lead to changes in certain flexibilities granted to Medicare... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has passed a bill capping the monthly cost of insulin at $35 for insured patients, part of an election-year push by Democrats for price curbs on prescription drugs at a time of rising inflation. Experts... Read More

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is disbursing an initial amount of $2 million to four health care entities in four states to bolster access to their services in underserved communities. Funds will be distributed to participating hospitals in... Read More

WASHINGTON -- The Biden administration on Thursday offered the first detailed look at actions the White House may take in conjunction with congressional action to lower prescription drug prices. The 29-page plan, released through the Department of Health and Human... Read More

WASHINGTON — America's safety net programs are running out of money, and fast. All four major trust funds — Social Security Old-Age and Survivors Insurance, Social Security Disability Insurance, Medicare Hospital Insurance, and the Highway trust fund —are heading for... Read More

WASHINGTON -- A hearing held by the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging centered around whether to expand Medicare to cover eyes, ears, and teeth, a proposal from Senate Democrats that could possibly cost over $359 billion over a decade. ... Read More

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law AB 133, an expansion of Medi-Cal that will provide coverage to undocumented Californians age 50 and over, set to go into effect in May 2022.  “Accessing health coverage through Medicaid... Read More

WASHINGTON - Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, are urging their colleagues to pass the Ensuring Access to Primary Care for Women & Children Act. This legislation is intended to expand access to primary care but it languished in... Read More

WASHINGTON – Sens. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., and Tom Cotton, R-Ark., are urging their colleagues to support legislation that would address looming cuts to Medicare by redirecting a portion of the recently passed $1.9 trillion dollar COVID relief bill. The Protecting... Read More

DENVER, Colo. - Sens. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Tim Kaine, D-Va., on Wednesday reintroduced their Medicare-X Choice Act by urging their colleagues to embrace it as a way of expanding both the Affordable Care Act and Medicare.  During a late... Read More

WASHINGTON — Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Ill., and Rep. David McKinley, R-W. Va., introduced bipartisan legislation to prevent cuts to hospital payments through the duration of the COVID public health emergency.  The Medicare Sequester COVID Moratorium Act would delay the Medicare... Read More