Jun 28, 2019 | Managed Care Friday
1. 50: The percent of all lifetime cases of mental illness that begin by age 14. And 75% develop by age 24, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Talkspace, an online therapy company, now has a service for teens rather than just adults. With parental consent, teens can be connected with a licensed therapist in their state. By 2022 we think that the national telehealth community will get behind a change in policy to allow credentialed/licensed therapists to treat a patient outside their region. Full story here. 2. Surprising Episodes: There are some episodes that catch you by...
Jun 27, 2019 | Legislation/ Budgets/ Macro
The Congressional Budget Office has published their updated budget projections for 2019 to 2029. This is an annual publication that is likely to become increasingly relevant to the policy agenda as the deficit and debt position of the federal government worsens. Click to read more.
Jun 25, 2019 | Commercial Insurance, Exchanges, Payers
Employers will be able to offer employees Health Reimbursement Arrangements to pay for premiums and out-of-pocket costs associated with individual market health plans and Medicare private plans, based on a final rule issued by the Trump Administration. The rule is effective in 2020 and while the impact will depend on employer uptake, given the timing, few employers will elect this option in the first year. Click to read more.
Jun 21, 2019 | Managed Care Friday
1. 18 and Counting The number of ancillary contracting directors for insurers who have confirmed with me that they have had at least one conversation with Amazon in the last 2 years. 2. New #1: Orthopedics has moved past maternity as the #1 episodic payment contracting focus for payers. 3. 7 Wonders of the Lab World: Now that UnitedHealthcare has tapped 7 preferred clinical and anatomic path labs for its preferred network set to go live in July the question is can this mix of big chain and specialized genetic companies improve outcomes and satisfaction. UHC says it will work with the labs to...
