Nick Hut
About the Author
Nick Hut
Latest Work
Congress seeks to keep the momentum going on improvements to prior authorization
Members of Congress are revitalizing efforts to pass legislation that would streamline prior authorization in Medicare Advantage (MA). A bipartisan, bicameral group of legislators reintroduced the Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act, a bill that unanimously passed the House in September 2022 but did not receive a vote in the Senate. One obstacle at…
Hospitals can bring their case on disproportionate share hospital payments to the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court granted hospitals’ request that it hear their appeal about the formula for determining Medicare disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments, landing the case on the docket for the 2024-25 term. More than 200 hospitals are plaintiffs in the case. A federal district court ruled for HHS and against the hospitals in 2022, and…
Health system CEO tells Congress proposed 340B changes would be harmful to organizations like his
A health system executive visited Capitol Hill recently to provide the hospital perspective on the 340B Drug Pricing Program — a viewpoint that increasingly is coming under fire among policymakers. Matthew Perry, president and CEO of Genesis HealthCare System in Zanesville, Ohio, appeared at a House subcommittee hearing June 4 to give insight on why…
News Briefs: A second appeals court rules against providers in the 340B contract-pharmacy dispute
A decision issued by an appeals court represents the latest setback for 340B providers seeking to secure price discounts on Medicare Part B drugs. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on May 21 upheld a district-court ruling that drug manufacturers can impose restrictions on the 340B discounts they provide for drugs dispensed at contract pharmacies.…
For providers, application of the 2-midnight rule to Medicare Advantage appears to bring a revenue influx
Hospitals appear to have gained a significant, albeit likely short-term, revenue boost from CMS’s 2023 directive to Medicare Advantage (MA) health plans regarding the two-midnight rule. The rule first was instituted in 2013 for Medicare fee-for-service (FFS), requiring the program to cover hospital stays as inpatient admissions if the admitting physician expects the stay to…
A new DOJ task force is the latest example of intensified federal oversight of healthcare antitrust issues
A new task force at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is likely to bring additional scrutiny on whether healthcare transactions adversely affect competition. The department’s Antitrust Division announced the formation of a group to “consider widespread competition concerns shared by patients, healthcare professionals, businesses and entrepreneurs, including issues regarding payer-provider consolidation, serial acquisitions, labor…
340B providers are at a disadvantage after the latest court ruling on contract pharmacies
A decision issued by an appeals court represents the latest setback for 340B providers hoping to secure widespread access to price discounts on Medicare Part B drugs. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on May 21 upheld a district-court ruling that drug manufacturers can impose restrictions on the 340B discounts…
Hospital payments have been substantially affected by the Change Healthcare cyberattack, report finds
Newly published data reflect the extent of the payment loss experienced by hospitals and health systems during the first month or so after the Change Healthcare cyberattack. A report (registration required) published in mid-May by Strata finds that gaps in expected revenue ranged from 16.5% to 17.9% per hospital for Q1. The insights were culled…
HHS issues regulations to strengthen anti-discriminatory protections in healthcare (updated)
July 3 update A judge with the Southern District of Mississippi federal court granted an injunction preventing the Biden administration from enforcing regulations expanding anti-discrimination protections in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Issued two days before the new rule was to take effect, the order applies to the provisions concerning gender identity. The move came…
Annual report on Medicare financing could reduce the immediate impetus to address longstanding issues
New data on the state of Medicare funding show short-term improvement while keeping the stakes high for ensuing decades. The annual report from Medicare’s trustees shows the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund (i.e., Medicare Part A) has enough money to keep beneficiaries covered and providers paid through 2036. That’s an increase of five years from the…