Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
In Unusual Twist, Medical Costs Rise Slower Than Inflation
In other health care industry news 鈥
The lawsuit alleges that from 2012 to 2019, Cigna hired health professionals to visit patients鈥 homes and falsely document medical conditions to increase the revenue it generated from taxpayers. (Tepper, 10/17)
KHN: Centene Gave Thousands To Georgia Leaders鈥 Campaigns While Facing Medicaid Overbilling Questions聽
A health insurance giant that has paid out more than $485 million in legal settlements with states over pharmacy billing allegations has also been a major donor to Georgia鈥檚 Republican Gov. Brian Kemp and Attorney General Chris Carr, according to campaign finance records. (Prabhu and Miller, 10/18)
Piedmont Atlanta Hospital reported Monday afternoon severe overcrowding in its emergency room requiring all ambulances to be diverted elsewhere. It also reported no room for new patients needing psychiatric care, emergency care, or critically ill ICU patients. (Thomas and Hart, 10/18)
In 2022, there were more data breaches through the end of September than for similar periods in all previous years. (Broderick, 10/17)
In news about rural health care 鈥
The Nevada Primary Care Association endorsed legislation that would allow community health centers to use federal funds to provide mobile health care units to better serve residents in rural areas of states where facilities are often hard to reach for elderly, disabled or poor patients. (Martin, 10/17)
Eyal Kedar didn鈥檛 start out in rural healthcare. He spent several years working in a big city before eventually realizing he wanted to become a generalized specialist in rheumatology, a branch of medicine that treats inflammatory or infectious conditions of the joints and other parts of the skeletal system. 鈥淚 felt that the best way to do that would be in a rural community,鈥 he said.聽Kedar is now the sole rheumatologist in St. Lawrence County in New York state. (Eaton, 10/17)