CMS informed Medicare Advantage and Part D drug plans that it will begin to terminate their contracts if they consistently achieve poor Star Ratings, according to a Feb. 6 memorandum.

A top CMS official was silent when asked about an impending split between UPMC and Highmark at a recent forum, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's editorial board.

While American Indians represent about 8 percent of Montana's population, they reflect 16 percent of residents covered under the state's Medicaid expansion, according to the Independent Record.

Two judges with the Court of Federal Claims ruled Feb. 14-15 that health insurers should receive unpaid cost-sharing reduction payments, which were established under the ACA to help insurers subsidize the cost of coverage for low-income Americans, according to a Health Affairs blog post.

Georgia's governor is eyeing a federal Medicaid waiver under a new proposal, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota rejected claims in a lawsuit filed by a couple questioning the insurer's reimbursement policy for medical flights, according to Law 360.

Blue Cross Blue Shield Association CEO Scott Serota must testify in a legal battle over the failed $54 billion Anthem-Cigna merger, according to Law 360.

Thirty-seven states, including the District of Columbia, have expanded their Medicaid programs, with 14 states opting out of the expansion.

The U.S. Department of Justice said its settlement with CVS Health and Aetna that allowed the two to move forward with their $69 billion deal remedied any antitrust concerns, according to Law 360.

UnitedHealth Group now employs 300,000 workers across its health insurance and service lines, both nationally and globally, according to the Star Tribune.

Riverstone Capital, a insurance carrier based in Bakersfield, Calif., may file for bankruptcy after failing to pay medical claims for more than 100 employers, according to The Modesto Bee.

Here are five articles recently published by Becker's Hospital Review covering financial updates from UnitedHealth Group and other payers, a new program launched by Blue Cross Blue Shield, and more.

Fairfield, Calif.-based NorthBay Healthcare may recover $16 million-plus from Blue Shield of California after a federal jury in San Francisco found the health insurer underpaid the hospital system for emergency care.

First Choice Health is a provider-owned and provider-driven healthcare system in Seattle. The system represents the largest independent preferred provider network across eight states: Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota and South Dakota. More than 100,000 providers, 2,400 facilities and 362 hospitals are in the network, which covers more than 600,000 people.

Molina Healthcare saw improved net income in the fourth quarter of 2018, turning around a net loss in the same quarter a year prior.

The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit agreed to fast-track its deliberation over whether Optum can block its former executive David Smith from using confidential information he allegedly obtained before being hired by the Amazon-Berkshire-JPMorgan venture, according to Law 360.

State lawmakers in Kansas are considering a bill aimed at protecting individuals with pre-existing health conditions if the ACA is eliminated, according to The Hutchinson News.

Bridges Health Partners, an ACO comprising seven hospitals, inked a value-based agreement with Humana for Medicare Advantage members in western Pennsylvania.

The following five health insurers recently released their financial statements for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2018:

These seven contract resolutions and dissolutions occurred between payers and providers since mid-January, beginning with the most recent: