4 Useful New Benefits Facts from the DOL

Today's blog highlights the new data surrounding the group benefits market. The new data confirms what brokers have been saying all along: the group benefits market is stable and new state and local laws have improved paid sick leave benefits.

Want to learn more about the four benefits from the market report? Click HERE!

HORIZON Health Ventures is a healthcare cost management solutions company used by insurance brokers, employee benefit consultants, third-party administrators, insurance companies, and associations, to bring proven thought leadership and strategy to the management of their clients healthcare costs. To learn more about HHV and their services, please visit http://horizonhealthventures.com/    

Strategies for a Well-Balanced Pharmacy Plan

Well-managed pharmacy plans don't just happen. There has to a be a plan set in place that includes the following 4 steps: formulary management, utilization management, channel management and clinical specialization. 

Express Scripts reports, "If all U.S. pharmacy plans had more tightly managed their benefit last year, the United States could have saved nearly $6 billion on its prescription drugs bill. Tightly managed plans don’t just happen. Instead, they are based on key strategies and solutions that complement each other to drive down costs and deliver better clinical value." 

Learn about these four steps in depth by reading the full Express Scripts article HERE! 

HORIZON Health Ventures is a healthcare cost management solutions company used by insurance brokers, employee benefit consultants, third-party administrators, insurance companies, and associations, to bring proven thought leadership and strategy to the management of their clients healthcare costs. To learn more about HHV and their services, please visit http://horizonhealthventures.com/    

The Peril Of Attempting Medicaid Reform Under The Guise Of Repealing Obamacare

As the revised Affordable Care Act takes another hit, Forbes Health reveals the underlying reason why this new bill has yet to pass. Without a known plan to replace Obamacare, there is no where near enough Senators confident enough to pass a bill that immediately leave millions without insurance.

John Osborn writes, "The House bill embodied this libertarian ideal by capping Medicaid spending going forward and eliminating the Obamacare tax increases and mandates. The only problem with this approach, and it’s a big one, is that there aren’t 50 conservatives in the Senate who truly believe that government should have nothing to do with providing or paying for healthcare." 

This article is a must-read. Check it out HERE! 

HORIZON Health Ventures is a healthcare cost management solutions company used by insurance brokers, employee benefit consultants, third-party administrators, insurance companies, and associations, to bring proven thought leadership and strategy to the management of their clients healthcare costs. To learn more about HHV and their services, please visit http://horizonhealthventures.com/    

Teladoc Completes Acquisition of Best Doctors

Just yesterday Teladoc confirmed its acquisition of Best Doctors, the world's leading medical consultation company that focuses on finding solutions for the most complex and costly health conditions.

Teladoc CEO, Jason Gorevic comments, “Today we take a tremendous step forward as we continue to deliver on our promise to transform the healthcare experience; to provide an unprecedented, single-point of access for resolution to the widest spectrum of medical conditions, delivered via a virtual platform."

To learn more about this new relationship, please read the full article HERE! 

HORIZON Health Ventures is a healthcare cost management solutions company used by insurance brokers, employee benefit consultants, third-party administrators, insurance companies, and associations, to bring proven thought leadership and strategy to the management of their clients healthcare costs. To learn more about HHV and their services, please visit http://horizonhealthventures.com/    

National Health Care Fraud Takedown

Today's blog highlights today's press release published by the United States Department of Justice. The press release reveals that there has just been the largest health care fraud enforcement action in department of justice history.

The release states, "Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tom Price, M.D., announced today the largest ever health care fraud enforcement action by the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, involving 412 charged defendants across 41 federal districts, including 115 doctors, nurses and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud schemes involving approximately $1.3 billion in false billings."

To find out more, read the full press release HERE! 

HORIZON Health Ventures is a healthcare cost management solutions company used by insurance brokers, employee benefit consultants, third-party administrators, insurance companies, and associations, to bring proven thought leadership and strategy to the management of their clients healthcare costs. To learn more about HHV and their services, please visit http://horizonhealthventures.com/    

Revised Health Care Plan Unveiled This Week

The Senate Republican leaders are planning to unveil the revised health care bill later this week after making little progress on winning over party hold-outs.

Laura Litvan of Benefits Pro writes, "Changes under consideration include ditching a repeal of Obamacare’s tax increases on the wealthy, revising Medicaid cuts and adding more spending to stabilize premium costs in the individual insurance market, according to a GOP aide who requested anonymity."

For the bill to pass Republicans can lose no more than than two GOP votes from their 52-48 majority amid unanimous Democratic opposition.

To read the full article please click HERE!

HORIZON Health Ventures is a healthcare cost management solutions company used by insurance brokers, employee benefit consultants, third-party administrators, insurance companies, and associations, to bring proven thought leadership and strategy to the management of their clients healthcare costs. To learn more about HHV and their services, please visit http://horizonhealthventures.com/    

FDA Commissioners Denounce Drug Importation

Today's blog is out of the Washington Post highlights four FDA commissioners pleas warning Congress that legalizing the importation of drugs from other countries could potentially endanger consumers by exposing them to fake, substandard and contaminated drugs.

"While acknowledging that drug importation is designed to give Americans access to less-expensive medicines, it also would likely harm patients and consumers and compromise the carefully constructed system that guards the safety of our nation's medical products." 

Check out the full article HERE! 

HORIZON Health Ventures is a healthcare cost management solutions company used by insurance brokers, employee benefit consultants, third-party administrators, insurance companies, and associations, to bring proven thought leadership and strategy to the management of their clients healthcare costs. To learn more about HHV and their services, please visit http://horizonhealthventures.com/