Consumer Driven Health Care

Three thoughts came to mind after I heard Walgreens is in talks with AmerisourceBergen.

The pending merger between CVS Health Corp. and Aetna Inc.their grand experimentstands to disrupt current health care models in more ways than one, experts say.

Amazon is aiming at becoming the go-to medical supply house not just for hospitals, but also for outpatient clinics, and it plans to dominate sales from gauze to hip implants.

A Maryland law, which took effect Jan. 1, mandates that insurers cover vasectomies without requiring patients to pay anything out-of-pocket just as they must do for more than a dozen birth control methods for women.

The conference was packed with insights that I've boiled down to a list of my four big takeaways.

A new report warns that we could very well be at the cusp of a return to a more typical pattern where increases in health-care prices outpace the broader inflation rate.

Most carriers in the workplace benefits space are looking to establish relationships with new brokers. While they have compelling reasons for leaning on their tenured advisors (especially those generating significant production), they need to find future revenue sources in order to ensure long-term success.

CVS's already costly deal looks even more expensive after its warning on Thursday of a possible profit decline this year, despite an expected $1.2 billion benefit from tax cuts. CVS shares fell though it reported positive quarterly results.