States Addressing High Drug Costs with Prescription Drug Affordability Review Boards Since 2017 at least 11 states have passed laws creating prescription drug affordability review boards, some of which have the authority to implement cost-cutting measures for...
SCOTUS Sets Date for Abortion Pill Case The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a case that could limit access to the abortion drug mifepristone on March 26. The FDA initially approved the drug for terminating pregnancies through seven weeks gestation...
We told you at the end of December that the nationwide healthcare workforce crisis would remain a top issue for state lawmakers in 2024 . And indeed it is, as evidenced by a spate of new bills addressing the issue pending in state capitols across the country...
CA Legislature Passes Bill Requiring Insurers to Cover PrEP California’s Legislature passed a bill ( SB 339 ) that would require health insurance companies to cover the cost of pharmacist-filled orders of PrEP medications, which prevent the transmission...
Medical debt is crushing Americans across the nation. Recent surveys have found that roughly a third of working-age Americans are struggling with medical debt , while more than half of Americans have been unable to pay medical bills on time or in full . Indeed...
FL Senate Passes Health Care Workforce Bills Florida’s Senate passed legislation ( SB 7016 and SB 7018 ) that would allocate $800 million for bolstering the state’s health care workforce, including by providing tuition assistance for medical and dental...
The political divide on “ gender-affirming care ” has contributed to a patchwork of state laws in recent years that has made the issue a challenging one for compliance officers in the health care sector. That state of affairs is set to continue in 2024...
Health Care Workforce and Mental Health Services Bills Advance in FL Florida Senate committees advanced a pair of bills ( SB 7016 and SB 7018 ) aimed at bolstering the state’s health care workforce and expanding access to mental health services. The measures...
NY Ends Reporting of Medical Debt New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) signed a bill ( SB 4907 ) prohibiting hospitals and health care providers from reporting medical debt to credit agencies, and barring credit agencies from collecting information about such debt...
FL Senate President Outlines Health Care Priorities for 2024 Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (R) unveiled her health care agenda for next year. It includes addressing workforce shortages, establishing new teaching hospitals for behavioral health and...
Bills to Overhaul Long-Term Care and Control Prescription Drug Costs on Move in MA The Massachusetts House unanimously passed a bill ( HB 4178 ) that would overhaul the long-term care industry, while the Senate unanimously approved a measure ( SB 2492 ) addressing...
MI Lawmakers Pass Bill to Repeal Pharma Immunity Shield The Michigan Legislature passed a bill ( SB 410 ) that would repeal a law passed in 1995 preventing lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies. Bloomberg Law reported that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) was “likely...
CMS Cutting Payments to Doctors, Hospitals Doctors will see a 1.25% reduction in Medicare reimbursements next year due to a final rule issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Some hospitals are also facing $7.8 billion in CMS cuts over 16 years...
MI Senate Passes Measure to Repeal Drug Immunity Law The Michigan Senate passed a bill ( SB 410 ) that would allow residents and state and local governments to sue drug manufacturers and sellers if their products cause injury. In 1995 the state passed the strongest...
After years of debate, medical marijuana is now fully legal in 37 states . The new frontier is psychedelics. Some researchers believe that psychedelic drugs like MDMA and psilocybin (the hallucinogen found in magic mushrooms) may be used to treat a litany of...