Although the FTC estimates that the final rule will increase health care worker earnings by $300 million annually, the American Hospital Association highlighted retention difficulties in the for-profit portion of the hospital sector.
Kaiser Permanente, which operates 40 hospitals and 618 medical facilities, reported the breach, which stems from tracking technology that shared patient information with advertisers such as Microsoft and Google.
The new dispute resolution process is designed to use government officials to oversee disagreements, however, lobby group PhRMA said the new process "panders to 340B hospitals" while ignoring drugmakers' concerns.
In the first quarter of 2024, 323 drugs were in short supply, up from the previous high of 320 in 2014, says the University of Utah Drug Information Service, as policymakers propose giving the FDA more power over Big Pharma.
For the first time, UnitedHealth acknowledged that it paid ransom to "protect patient data," even though the feds have asked health-care organizations not to pay ransom so stealing patient data becomes less lucrative.
M&A activity among health care service providers likely will remain soft over the next 12 to 18 months, with only a modest rebound from recently depressed levels.