Friday Five: Top 5 healthcare business news items from the MCOL Weekend edition

Every business day, MCOL posts feature stories making news on the business of health care. Here are five we think are particularly important for this week: Trump Administration Sharply Cuts Spending on Health Law Enrollment The Trump administration is slashing spending on advertising and promotion for enrollment under the Affordable Care Act, a move some critics charged was a blatant attempt to sabotage the law. New York Times Thursday, August 31, 2017 5 Outside-The-Box Ideas For Fixing The Individual Insurance Market With Republican efforts to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act stalled, tentative bipartisan initiatives are in the works to shore up the fragile individual insurance market that serves roughly 17 million Americans. Kaiser Health News Wednesday, August 30, 2017 Pioneering Cancer Gene Therapy Gets Green Light — And $475,000 Price Tag The country’s first approved gene therapy — approved Wednesday to fight leukemia that resists standard therapies — will cost $475,000 for a one-time treatment, its manufacturer announced. Kaiser Health News Wednesday, August 30, 2017 Advisory Board to sell healthcare, education units in $2.58 billion deal Advisory Board Co said it would sell its healthcare business to UnitedHealth Group Inc’s Optum unit and education business to private equity firm Vista Equity Partners, for a total deal value of $2.58 billion. Reuters Tuesday, August 29, 2017 Majority of Voters Support Medicaid Work Requirements A majority of voters back the idea of tying Medicaid eligibility to employment status as the Trump administration weighs whether to give more states the power to impose work requirements on the government health program. Morning Consult Monday, August 28, 2017 These and more weekly news items on the business of healthcare are featured in the MCOL Weekend edition, along with the MCOL Tidbits, and more, for MCOL Premium level members.