The Private Exchange Evaluation Collaborative releases survey findings regarding employer views of private health insurance exchanges.
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A study in Academic Emergency Medicine finds that BCBS of Massachusetts' global budget contracts with providers did not in themselves lead to a drop in ER visits. Both members covered by and not-covered by the contracts had decreased ER use. The at-risk provider arrangements also did not demonstrate that inappropriate ER use was reduced.
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Publications/In-Brief/2014/Jan/The-Effect-of-Bundled-Payment-on-Emergency-Department-Use.aspx?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheCommonwealthFund+%28The+Commonwealth+Fund%29Just showing how little areas in health care can have high value, Rexam is selling its division which makes inhalers, syringes and other packaging for medical devices and pharmaceuticals for an estimated $805 million to a private equity firm.
http://www.pehub.com/2014/02/rexam-to-sell-most-of-healthcare-business-to-montagu-for-805-mln-reuters/According to a Kaiser Foundation analysis the most expensive markets for "silver" plans sold on the public exchanges are the Colorado ski regions, at $483 a month for an individual plan, southwest Georgia at $461, rural Nevada at $456 and far west Wisconsin, adjacent to the Twin Cities in Minnesota, at $445.
http://medcitynews.com/2014/02/10-expensive-insurance-markets-u-s/?utm_source=MedCity+News+Subscribers&utm_campaign=790ccb7567-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c05cce483a-790ccb7567-67648197The Employee Benefits Research Institute puts out a brief on spousal health insurance coverage, which a number of employers are considering changing.
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Radisphere, a national radiology company, has announced plans to create a software company to sell its technology to other radiology and provider groups.
http://www.radisphereradiology.com/radisphere-to-launch-new-software-company-enabling-healthcare-providers-to-use-radiology-to-improve-patient-outcomes-and-lower-cost-of-care/Castlight, one of the early price transparency firms, is apparently planning an IPO which may value the company at as much as $2 billion, which seems simply absurd considering that these services which eventually be commoditized, if they aren't already, and offered free by insurers and the exchanges.
http://medcitynews.com/2014/02/whats-price-transparency-worth-healthcare-castlight-health-filing-ipo/?utm_source=MedCity+News+Subscribers&utm_campaign=790ccb7567-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c05cce483a-790ccb7567-67648197Wellpoint reported fourth quarter and full year earnings which were basically in line with expectations, not including a charge for the disposal of its vision business, and claims its risk pool from the public exchanges is about what it expected.
http://ir.wellpoint.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=130104&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1894561&highlight=Catalent, which provides clinical trial supply and related services, has filed for an initial public offering. Catalent was a subsidiary of Cardinal Health and had been sold to a private equity group.
http://www.catalent.com/index.php/news-events/news/Catalent-Files-Registration-Statement-For-Initial-Public-OfferingAbout this Blog
The Healthy Skeptic is a website about the health care system, and is written by Kevin Roche, who has many years of experience working in the health industry. Mr. Roche is available to assist health care companies through consulting arrangements through Roche Consulting, LLC and may be reached at khroche@healthy-skeptic.com.
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