Senate considers bill to tackle Medicare Advantage upcoding costs

The U.S. Senate is considering a bipartisan bill that proponents say will improve the way Medicare Advantage (MA) plans evaluate patients’ health risks, reduce overpayments and eliminate incentives for overcharging. It could save the federal government and taxpayers millions of dollars. Opponents say that the bill amounts to a Medicare cut and will significantly damage the popular MA plans.

Why it matters

Study points to dangers of pure fentanyl overdose deaths for U.S. youth

Surprising new research suggests the danger of counterfeit drugs made purely of fentanyl is rising for the nation’s youth, even as the overall number of opioid overdose deaths has started to decline.

In a study recently published in the journal Pediatrics, New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine examined five years of data on fatal youth overdoses to better understand the mix of drugs that were to blame.

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FDA meeting reignites debate over fluoride in drinking water

What has long been known as the “fight over fluoride” has gained new steam, and federal action could be forthcoming to reduce certain products containing it.

A recent public meeting hosted by the Reagan-Udall Foundation and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) brought renewed national attention to the chemical added to drinking water across much of the United States.

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Deacon: Price transparency is necessary to bring down consumer and employer costs

Price opacity in healthcare is not a bug in the system — it is the system. The current structure relies on withholding critical pricing information from employers, patients and even policymakers. This lack of transparency enables dominant market participants to dictate prices, control access and avoid accountability. The justification often cited — that transparency would be anticompetitive or compromise proprietary information — simply doesn’t hold up. No other major consumer-facing industry is permitted to operate with such sustained, systemic price secrecy, especially when individual patients and public institutions are footing the bill.

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