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:

As ER Wait Times Grow, More Patients Leave Against Medical Advice

Emergency room patients increasingly leave California hospitals against medical advice, and experts say crowded ERs are likely to blame.

Kaiser Health News

Friday, May 17, 2019

CMS takes aim at spread pricing in Medicaid managed care

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued an information bulletin (PDF) on the calculations for a Medicaid managed care plan’s medical loss ratio, as the agency is concerned insurers aren’t accurately including pharmacy benefit manager spread pricing in those calculations.

Fierce Healthcare

Wednesday, May 15, 2019

Will Washington State's New 'Public Option' Plan Reduce Health Care Costs? 

Millions of Americans who buy individual health insurance, and don't qualify for a federal subsidy, have been hit with sticker shock in recent years.

NPR

Friday, May 17, 2019

Low-rated US hospitals are deadlier due to mistakes, botched surgery, infections 

Patients' risk of dying from medical mistakes, deadly infections and safety lapses have gotten much worse at the lowest ranked U.S. hospitals, underscoring Americans' need to check ratings of their local hospitals, new research released Wednesday shows.

USA Today

Thursday, May 16, 2019

Walmart Charts New Course By Steering Workers To High-Quality Imaging Centers 

Walmart Inc., the nation’s largest private employer, is worried that too many of its workers are having health conditions misdiagnosed, leading to unnecessary surgery and wasted health spending.

Kaiser Health News

Wednesday, May 15, 2019

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.