AXIOS: Health Cost Regulator reprimands dominant Mass. hospital systems
By Bob Herman January 25th, 2022 Mass General Brigham must submit a plan to lower rising costs that stem from the hospital system’s expensive care, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission said today. Why it matters: This commission is viewed as a potential template for other states to regulate rising hospital and physician spending. This is […]
WSJ: High-Priced Hospitals in Indiana Press Their Political Luck
By Al Hubbard and Brian Blase February 4th, 2022 When most people hear the word “nonprofit” they think of a benevolent organization driven by a desire to serve the community. This is certainly true of the public’s perception of nonprofit hospitals, which—like charities and churches—don’t pay federal, state and local taxes. Yet many large nonprofit […]
Modern Healthcare: Certain specialty pharmacy drugs double in price at hospitals, study finds
By Mari Devereaux February 16th, 2022 Hospitals, on average, charge double the price for the same drugs sold by specialty pharmacies, according to research from America’s Health Insurance Plans. Upon analyzing the 10 drugs that amounted to the highest Medicare Part B spend from 2018-2020—and were purchased, stored and administered in a healthcare setting—an AHIP study published […]
AXIOS: 1 big thing: Hospitals’ old spending fights resurface
By Tina Reed March 18th, 2022 Forces in New York City, California and elsewhere are leading a new push to rein in hospital prices, reviving a fight that’s been on hold for most of the pandemic, Axios’ Adriel Bettelheim writes. Driving the news: A union health fund representing service workers in 11 states and Washington, D.C., is calling on New […]
AXIOS: New normal for health care spending
By Tina Reed March 29th, 2022 U.S. health care spending is likely to grow at about the rate of inflation over the rest of the decade after the pandemic fueled a nearly 10% jump between 2019 and 2020, federal experts said Monday. The big picture: The CMS actuaries’ projections in Health Affairs came with plenty of caveats. But […]
Lown Institute Hospital Index: FAIR SHARE SPENDING, How much are hospitals giving back to their communities?
By Lown Institute April 12, 2022 The Lown Institute Hospitals Index is the first ranking to examine meaningful community benefit spending for nonprofit hospital systems nationwide. The Institute calculated “fair share spending” for more than 1800 hospitals across 275 nonprofit hospital systems by comparing each system’s spending on charity care and community investment to the […]
AXIOS: Hospitals’ massive cancer drug markups
By Caitlin Owens April 19th, 2022 The prices that private insurers agree to pay hospitals for cancer drugs are often at least double what the hospital paid to acquire the drugs, according to a new study in JAMA Internal Medicine. Why it matters: The blame for high drug prices goes well beyond drug manufacturers, and is ultimately […]
Modern Healthcare: Johns Hopkins study names health systems that provide the most ‘unnecessary’ care
By Lisa Gillespie January 14, 2022 About 11% of the nation’s health systems are big-time over-utilizers of low-value services, according to a Johns Hopkins University study published in JAMA on Friday. Health systems that employ fewer primary care physicians, have higher bed counts or are investor-owned are associated with more unneeded care, researchers at Johns Hopkins’ medical […]
Becker’s Hospital Review: Hospital drug spending jumps 8.4% in 2021
By Katie Adams April 7th, 2022 The country’s total drug spending increased by 7.7 percent in 2021, growing to $576.9 billion, according to a study released April 6 by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Hospitals accounted for $39.6 billion of that spending, marking 8.4 percent growth from 2020. Clinics accounted for $105 billion, a 7.7 percent […]
AXIOS: Hospitals are back in the hot seat for their prices
By Adriel Bettelheim March 18th, 2022 Forces in New York City, California and elsewhere are leading a new push to rein in hospital prices, reviving a health cost fight that’s been on hold for most of the COVID-19 pandemic. Why it matters: Hospital prices vary considerably even in the same market, and rising prices for care […]