Hospitals charge commercial health plans two to three times more than what they charge the same insurer's Medicare Advantage plans for the same procedure, a new study in Health Affairs found.
Why it matters: While it's well established that private plans are typically charged more than Medicare, this study leverages the latest available pricing data to shed light on differing dynamics between the commercial and Medicare Advantage markets.
More gay and bisexual men will be able to donate blood beginning Monday as the Red Cross starts implementing a historic rule change approved by federal authorities earlier this year.
Why it matters: It helps close the chapter on the Food and Drug Administration's blood donor restrictions for men who have sex with men, which had been denounced as discriminatory by medical and LGBTQ organizations.
Hospitals and outpatient facilities in at least three states are still working to restore their computer systems after a cyberattack hit their parent company, forcing some locations to shut down for days.
Driving the news: Prospect Medical Holdings, a Los Angeles-based private equity company, which operates 16 hospitals and 165 outpatient facilities across California, Texas, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania, announced it sustained an attack on Thursday evening, the Associated Press reported.
An effort to limit a likely carcinogenic chemical used for sterilizing medical devices is at the center of a dogfight in Washington, with potentially big tradeoffs for public health.
Why it matters: A chemical helping to keep Americans alive may also be making people who live near sterilization plants sick — but how quickly an acceptable alternative can take its place is sparkinga high-stakes debate between powerful regulatory agencies.
As we celebrate the annual Twins Days festival in Twinsburg, Ohio, this weekend, it's a good time to talk about the declining rates of twins in the U.S.
Why it matters: After a major national twin birth boom or "twinflux," twinning rates (an actual science term) have been dropping.
