February 23, 2023
Providers | Tea Leaves
  • Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) leaders say the agency has handed out nearly 500 warnings to hospitals falling short on price transparency as of January and plans to streamline enforcement and standardize hospital reporting requirements. Enforcement of the transparency requirements has also included more than 230 requests for corrective action plans. Almost 300 of the hospitals have addressed the issues spotted by CMS and are now compliant with the price transparency requirements. (Articles here and here)
  • Most Americans feel “significant discomfort” about the idea of their doctors using artificial intelligence (AI) to help manage their health, according to a study from the Pew Research Center. Sixty percent of Americans who took part in the survey said that they would be uncomfortable with a health care provider who relied on artificial intelligence to do something like diagnose their disease or recommend a treatment. About 57 percent said that the use of artificial intelligence would make their relationship with their provider worse. Respondents generally acknowledged AI’s potential to reduce medical mistakes and eliminate some of the problems doctors may have with racial bias. (Article here)
  • The American Hospital Association (AHA) has come out against the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC’s) proposed Non-Compete Clause Rule, writing in a letter to the agency that it should be withdrawn due to insufficient congressional authority and the unforeseen impacts it could have on a volatile health care labor market. The rule proposed by the FTC in early January spans most of the nation’s industries and “would generally prohibit employers from using noncompete clauses” for independent contractors and paid or unpaid employees. The proposal was ordered and is supported by President Joe Biden and, per the FTC, is expected to increase workers’ earnings by almost $300 billion. (Article here)