- Recent study findings suggest that hospital consolidation is associated with a reduction of inpatient pediatric services during subsequent years, a new data point for policymakers weighing whether and how to rein in health systems’ consolidation of smaller provider facilities. The analysis by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers reviewed American Hospital Association annual survey reports from thousands of U.S. hospitals between 2011 and 2020. The researchers found that inpatient pediatric services provision had broadly decreased across the study period, having been offered at 41.5 percent of 4,876 hospitals in 2011 to 32.6 percent of 4,551 hospitals in 2020. The researchers wrote that their work is a jumping off point for future research exploring a potential link between inpatient service closures and reduced pediatric acute care access as well as whether the type of hospital consolidation, such as a merger or a buyout, impacts closures. (Article here)
- Bipartisan legislation that would give people with high-deductible health plans permanent access to telehealth services without having to meet a minimum deductible will cost $5 billion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The Telehealth Expansion Act would make permanent a provision from the pandemic-era CARES Act of 2020. The provision allowed employers and health plans to cover telehealth visits for individuals with high-deductible health plans coupled with health savings accounts without the individuals needing to meet a deductible first. (Article here)
July 12, 2023
Providers | Tea Leaves