September 3, 2020 | Roughly 12M lost employer-sponsored insurance
INDUSTRY NEWS
The deadline for the final Stark Law overhaul has been pushed back to Aug. 31, 2021. The proposed rule would create new exceptions to the 1989 law that bans physicians from referring patients to facilities they have a financial stake in. Providers and others have argued that the current law hobbles value-based care payment agreements between hospitals and physicians. It’s not a delay, says CMS administrator Seema Verma. She tweeted that the agency is “not delaying the Stark rule and is working hard to finalize it.” (Fierce Healthcare)
Roughly 12M lost employer-sponsored insurance
As many as 12 million people have lost access to employer-sponsored coverage because of COVID-19, according to the Economic Policy Institute. Analysts estimate that 6.4 million workers have lost access to insurance through their employer amid job losses during the pandemic. The 12 million comes from including spouses and dependents in those plans. It takes into consideration that not every worker who loses employer coverage will become uninsured. (Fierce Healthcare; Economic Policy Institute)
INNOVATION & TRANSFORMATION
BCBS Minnesota, Allina, enter value-based agreement
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota and Allina Health formed a six-year value-based payment model. The goal is to reduce costs by 10% over five years by incentivizing more preventative and coordinated care, according to the organizations. This would boost doctor-patient relationships, limit administrative expense and ultimately improve outcomes for around 130,000 Blue Cross members who receive care at Allina each year, executives said. (Modern Healthcare)
Herzlinger: We need a health system SEC
What if the health care system could similarly gather and publish relevant data on health care prices and outcomes, asks Harvard’s Dr. Regina Herzlinger, “[C]onsumers could see which clinicians, hospitals, insurers and others provide the best value. The good ones would thrive, and the bad ones would have to either improve or go out of business.” What’s needed to make this happen? A health care Securities and Exchange Commission, she argues in an opinion piece for Bloomberg. (Bloomberg Opinion)
CONSUMERS & PROVIDERS
More reading, less in-person meeting
Nearly two-thirds of physicians worldwide report a significant increase in the consumption of online medical content since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and about a quarter predict that changes in the way they are accessing such content will be permanent, according to market research from Medscape. Respondents also expect that after the pandemic, there will be an extended shift away from traditional in-person means of communication and information exchange to entirely digital platforms through medical websites. For example, 59% expect a decrease in in-person conferences, and 67% expect an increase in virtual conferences. (Medscape)
Concierge medicine finds its pandemic niche
Concierge care has grown during the pandemic; one reason is that patients no longer want to sit in a waiting room with strangers, the New York Times reports. It’s also availing itself of telehealth; one physician therapist talks about how she’s “fixed people’s backs remotely.” Basic telemedicine often requires navigating insurance protocols and health care portals. Concierge care, because it isn’t typically covered by insurance, doesn’t face as many restrictions. However, prices are two to three times higher—in addition to an annual fee. (New York Times)
A brief mindfulness intervention appeared to reduce stress among health care professionals, according to results of a randomized clinical trial published in JAMA Network Open. “Reduced stress for health care workers not only enhances their own well-being, but it can translate into their work. Happier, healthier employees may provide better patient care, but of course more research is needed,” Rezvan Ameli, PhD, senior clinical psychologist of the NIMH, tells Healio Psychiatry. (JAMA Network Open; Healio Psychiatry)
NEW & NOTED
Amazon’s new tracker: Late last month, Amazon debuted Halo, a wrist wearable, as its entry into health tracking. It can track sleep, body temperature, physical activity and voice patterns and will also give users the option to link some health data to their EHRs. (STAT News)
Inadequate transitions for teens: Most teens with diagnosed mental, behavioral and developmental disorders fail to receive recommended health care transition planning, according to CDC. (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report)
Convalescent plasma, simplified: There’s considerable confusion around the use of convalescent plasma. To help clear things up, Kaiser Health News identified five things to know. (KHN)
MULTI-MEDIA
Podcast: How one HR director battles bogus bills
In this episode of the “An Arm and a Leg” podcast, Steve Benasso—a human resources director and a self-described bulldog—talks about how he fights bogus medical bills. He specializes in defending colleagues against bogus bills and unfair insurance denials. (Kaiser Health News)
MARKETVOICES...QUOTES WORTH READING
“President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the SEC as a ‘truth’ agency to disclose all material facts about the finance industry. Health care increasingly needs a truth agency, too, and the SEC is an excellent model.”—Dr. Regina Herzlinger, in an opinion piece for Bloomberg Opinion