Today's Top 20 Stories
  1. Mount Sinai, UnitedHealthcare reach multiyear agreement

    UnitedHealthcare and New York City-based Mount Sinai reached a multiyear contract agreement March 19, effective immediately, after a monthslong contract dispute. 
  2. The 10 best health insurance companies of 2024

    Kaiser Permanente is the best U.S. health insurance company in 2024, according to Insure.com's annual ranking.
  3. Highmark Health Plans posts $400M margin for 2023

    Highmark Health posted an operating income of $533 million on revenues of $27.1 billion in 2023, bolstered by membership growth in its health plans, the company said. 

The state of AI in healthcare

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  1. Regence BCBS of Utah names medical director

    Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah has named Mike Woodruff, MD, as executive medical director. 
  2. CMS adds new ACO model: 5 things to know

    CMS will introduce a new payment model designed to spur innovation in primary care for Medicare beneficiaries. 
  3. The succession strategy for a 20-year health insurance CEO

    UPMC Health Plan CEO Diane Holder has grown the insurer to 4-million plus members and built a strong team capable of a "seamless transition." 
  4. Elevance's CarelonRx to buy Kroger’s specialty pharmacy 

    Kroger is selling its specialty pharmacy business to CarelonRx, the PBM subsidiary of Elevance Health.

How one Midwest hospital is driving financial efficiency with interconnected systems

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  1. Change attack update: What 15 payers discussed with the Biden administration

    Fifteen insurers and trade groups met with Biden administration officials March 18 to discuss the industry's ongoing response to the cyberattack on Change Healthcare last month.
  2. Hospitals' Medicare Advantage market share is decreasing — how Geisinger is bucking the trend

    Health system-owned Medicare Advantage enrollment continues to grow overall, but providers' share of the national MA market currently sits at 13%, compared to 17% in 2019.
  3. Cigna's 5 highest-earning executives in 2023

    Cigna Group CEO David Cordani was paid $21 million in total compensation in 2023, up slightly from 2022. 
  4. Payers to meet with federal officials over Change attack 

    Federal health officials and payers are expected to meet March 18 to discuss how to support providers still struggling financially following the February cyberattack on UnitedHealth's Change Healthcare, according to a Bloomberg report.

How one Midwest hospital is driving financial efficiency with interconnected systems

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Major time savers can stem from single logins. That's how 1 hospital achieved a 50% reduction in month-end close time — read the short case study, here.
  1. 5 trends shaping the future of Medicare Advantage

    Higher medical spending could be the new normal in Medicare Advantage — and insurers will have to find a way to respond, McKinsey analysts wrote. 
  2. MedPAC: Medicare Advantage needs major overhaul — now

    The Medicare Payment and Advisory Commission called for a "major overhaul" of Medicare Advantage policies in its annual report to Congress. 
  3. Health insurance executive moves | 2024

    Payer executive moves reported by Becker's in 2024:
  4. Anthem loses out on Kentucky Medicaid contract after court ruling

    Elevance Health's Anthem BCBS subsidiary will not administer Medicaid benefits in Kentucky, the state's supreme court ruled March 14, the Kentucky Lantern reported.
  5. Optum receives green light for emergency purchase of Oregon clinic

    Oregon state regulators will allow UnitedHealth Group's Optum to bypass a state review of its planned purchase of Corvallis Clinic, citing an immediate need to maintain the provider's financial solvency.
  6. Hospital CEO blames Medicare Advantage for layoffs

    A lack of payments from Medicare Advantage plans is one reason a Connecticut hospital is laying off staff, the Hartford Courant reported March 14. 
  7. UnitedHealth Group in the headlines: 12 updates

    From the fallout of the Change Healthcare cyberattack to the Justice Department reportedly beginning an antitrust investigation into the company, here are 12 stories involving UnitedHealth Group that Becker's has covered since Feb. 22:  
  8. These 9 states cover Wegovy through Medicaid

    Five states offered unrestricted coverage of the weight loss drugs Wegovy and Saxenda, a study published March 14 in JAMA found. 
  9. Senators eye dual-eligible changes: 5 things to know

    A bipartisan group of senators is introducing legislation to require states to offer integrated Medicaid and Medicare plans to dual-eligible beneficiaries. 

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