Private health insurers in the U.S. have increased prescription drug coverage rejections by 25% from 2016 to 2023, according to an analysis by Komodo Health. The analysis of over 4 billion claims found that insurers are denying more medical claims, highlighting a trend of increasing insurance denials in the U.S. healthcare system.
Hospitals are steadily buying small physician practices and, in the process, driving up the price of care, a new National Bureau of Economic Research study shows. It's the latest evidence of consolidation in health care that's left more than three-quarters of U.S. doctors employed by health systems or corporations. The pace has quickened in recent years, driven by factors like declining reimbursements for some specialties and expenses like electronic health record systems that have left small independent practices struggling. But that's brought a decline in competition that raises antitrust concerns.
Republicans are eyeing an opportunity to enact a bipartisan health package by the end of the year, but Democrats aren't exactly in a deal-making mood. With the dust barely settled after enacting their party-line domestic policy megabill, GOP lawmakers on the Senate Finance, House Ways and Means and House Energy and Commerce committees are hoping they'll have another shot this year at making policy changes to drug pricing long sought by both parties.
Elevance Health Inc. shares plummeted nearly 12% on Thursday after the health insurer reported second-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings that missed analyst expectations and significantly lowered its full-year guidance, overshadowing strong revenue growth. The company reported second-quarter 2025 revenues of $49.42 billion, up 14.3% year over year, higher than the consensus of $48.34 billion.
A coalition of 20 Democratic attorneys general sued the Trump administration Thursday to block implementation of a rule they argue will undermine the ACA. The complaint was co-led by California, Massachusetts and New Jersey and filed in federal court in Massachusetts. The lawsuit alleges that HHS illegally made changes to the health law, which will make it harder for people to enroll and will shift costs to states.
ICE officials will be given access to the personal data of the nation’s 79 million Medicaid enrollees, including home addresses and ethnicities, to track down immigrants who may not be living legally in the United States. The information will give ICE officials the ability to find 'the location of aliens' across the country, says the agreement signed Monday between CMS and the Department of Homeland Security. The agreement has not been announced publicly.