Week in review: 11 biggest healthcare stories this week

Stay in the know with Becker's Hospital Review's weekly roundup of the nation's biggest healthcare news. Here's what you need to know this week.

1. GOP proposes updated healthcare plan
About a month after the Republican ACA replacement plan failed in the House, the GOP has come up with a revised version, reports Politico. Negotiations have been underway to amend the GOP's American Health Care Act during the congressional recess. An overview of the proposal was published April 20, and the official text for the amendment was published Tuesday evening, according to Health Affairs Blog.

2. White House will continue paying cost-sharing reduction subsidies
The Trump administration will continue to pay cost-sharing reduction subsidies for now, according to Politico. The decision is a compromise between Democrats and Republicans as they negotiate a budget to avoid a partial government shutdown that would begin Saturday if no agreement is reached.

3. Trump creates VA accountability office with new executive order
President Trump on Thursday signed an executive order titled "Improving Accountability and Whistle-Blower Protection at the Department of Veterans Affairs," which will create the VA Office of Accountability and Whistle-blower Protection.

4. Trump appoints nurse to serve as acting surgeon general
Rear Adm. Sylvia Trent-Adams, PhD, RN, was installed as acting surgeon general April 21 after the Trump administration asked Vivek Murthy, MD, to resign, according to The New York Times.

5. Poll: Many Americans disagree with Republican method for healthcare reform
Many Americans are not on board with how President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers are working to repeal and replace the ACA, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll.

6. Brigham and Women's offers voluntary buyouts to 1,600 workers
Boston-based Brigham and Women's Hospital said Thursday it is offering voluntary buyouts to 1,600 employees as a means to cut costs, The Boston Globe reported.

7. NYC Health + Hospitals to undergo 'management restructuring'
Officials at NYC Health + Hospitals said the health system plans to redesign its management structure over the next couple of months.

8. Ex-WellCare CEO and CFO face deadline to repay $26M from fraud scheme
Former WellCare Health Plans CEO Todd Farha and the Tampa, Fla.-based company's former CFO Paul Behrens have until May 1 to pay a combined $26 million in civil payments and restitution for their involvement in a healthcare fraud scheme, according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

9. Ex-hospital CEO and SVP get prison time for failing to pay taxes
Two former executives of Hope (Ark.) Medical Park Hospital were sentenced to prison last week for failing to account for and pay the hospital's payroll taxes from 2009 through 2012, according to the Department of Justice.

10. Truven names 15 top health systems for 2017
Truven Health Analytics, a healthcare data and analytics solutions provider, released its ninth annual list of the nation's 15 top health systems.

11. University of Utah trustees vote to reinstate Huntsman Cancer Institute CEO
Trustees of the University of Utah voted Tuesday morning to reinstate Mary Beckerle, PhD, as CEO of the Huntsman Cancer Institute in Salt Lake City, according to STAT. The vote came in response to outrage among faculty of the university and institute upon Dr. Beckerle's abrupt dismissal last week.

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