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35+ min ago (690+ words) The owners of two New Jersey nursing homes owe the government $124 million after diverting tens of millions of dollars in Medicaid funding to themselves and their associates while intentionally understaffing the facilities, according to a report that the Office of the State Comptroller released Wednesday. Conditions were grim at the nursing homes owned by Daryl Hagler and Kenneth Rozenberg, friends who have collaborated on business deals for more than two decades, according to the report. "People who were in their care, many of them in their final days of life, suffered unnecessarily because Hagler and Rozenberg decided to put money in their pockets instead of paying for staff to care for the residents," Comptroller Kevin Walsh said at a news conference on Wednesday. "All indications are that what we have identified in this and in earlier reports is just the…...

1+ hour, 44+ min ago (687+ words) (TNND) " Health insurance premiums have grown three times faster than wages over the past 25 years, according to new research from Rice University experts. They found employer-sponsored health insurance premiums ballooned by 342% from 1999 to 2024, while wages grew 119% and overall inflation was 64%. "The increase is absolutely astonishing," said Vivian Ho, a health economist at Rice who co-authored the report published this week in the journal JAMA Network Open. Ho said American workers are trying to make ends meet, and they don't realize how much health insurance premiums are cutting into their income. Folks feel the pain of higher prices when they go to the grocery store or pay their monthly household bills. The higher costs of health insurance for the 160 million Americans on an employer-sponsored plan are out of sight, out of mind. Ho said people blame insurance companies for the skyrocketing…...

1+ hour, 52+ min ago (33+ words) Chris Snowbeck, a reporter with the Minnesota Star Tribune, joined Cathy Wurzer on Morning Edition Wednesday to unravel UCare's fate, and what it might mean for customers after four decades of business....

2+ hour, 12+ min ago (151+ words) ST. LOUIS " Stalled negotiations between UnitedHealthcare and SSM Health are threatening in-network medical coverage for thousands of people in the insurer's commercial insurance and Medicaid plans, say officials for both companies, while blaming each other for the impasse." The update comes within days of the Sunday open enrollment deadline for Medicare Advantage plans. Without a new agreement, BJC Health will be out of Aetna's coverage network employer-sponsored commercial plans, starting Jan. 1. The former Homer G. Phillips Memorial Hospital closed after less than a year. A company affiliated with publicly-traded Nutex Health says it w" This year, 41% of physicians and other providers said their claims are denied more than 10% of the time, up from 30% of providers who said tha" BJC joins Mercy and SSM Health in announcing major Wentzville projects. SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital in St. Louis on Jan. 2, 2025....

2+ hour, 20+ min ago (375+ words) For the 1.9 million Californians enrolled in Covered California, monthly insurance premiums could nearly double in 2026 if enhanced federal subsidies expire." Covered California is the state's official health insurance marketplace. Established after the federal Affordable Care Act in 2010, qualifying California residents can compare plans and purchase private health insurance through Covered California that, until the end of 2025, have been significantly subsidized by the enhanced federal tax credits." "While everyone will feel the impact of rising costs, communities of color throughout California will be disproportionately impacted if Enhanced Premium Tax Credits expire," Glick said in an email. "We estimate that Latino Californians will see a 122% increase in monthly premiums, and Black Californians will see a 106% increase in monthly premiums." NPR reported Monday that the Senate is expected to vote soon on a Democratic proposal to extend existing Affordable Care Act tax credits…...

2+ hour, 43+ min ago (988+ words) About 100 million people in the U.S. have some form of health care debt " and most are insured. Sarah Monroe once had a relatively comfortable middle-class life. She and her family lived in a neatly landscaped neighborhood near Cleveland. They had a six-figure income and health insurance. Then, four years ago, when Monroe was pregnant with twin girls, something started to feel off. "I kept having to come into the emergency room for fainting and other symptoms," recalled Monroe, 43, who works for an insurance company. The babies were fine. But after months of tests and hospital trips, Monroe was diagnosed with a potentially dangerous heart condition. It would be costly. Within a year, as she juggled a serious illness and a pair of newborns, Monroe was buried under more than $13,000 in medical debt. Part of the reason: Like tens of millions of…...

3+ hour, 16+ min ago (668+ words) Construction scaffolding at the southeast corner of 22nd St. and Seventh Ave. in Manhattan in 2023. Credit: ED QUINN A controversial 140-year-old, only-in-New York law that holds property owners and contractors responsible for all falls on construction site, even in instances of worker negligence, has'caused insurance costs to skyrocket up to 500% higher than other states, a'report released Wednesday shows. The study, released by the Buildings and Trade Employers" Association, found that insurance premiums now consume 8-10% of development budgets, in large part because of the Scaffold Law"s standard of "absolute liability," in which property owners and employers are held financially liable for injuries caused by "gravity," regardless of who is at fault. Newsday has investigated the impact of the Scaffold Law for nearly a year, with a particular focus on allegations that the measure has prompted a wave of staged accidents and…...

3+ hour, 28+ min ago (825+ words) Rising healthcare costs have been a slow burn for years, but experts warn that 2026 could deliver a financial shock many households aren't prepared for. Families may face higher insurance bills next year at a time when budgets are already stretched thin and medical costs keep rising. Learn More: 9 Downsizing Tips for the Middle Class To Save on Monthly Expenses The good news: There are practical moves you can make now to cushion the blow. Financial and healthcare experts shared the most effective ways to prepare before premiums climb. Premiums are projected to rise sharply in 2026 due to a mix of expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, rising medical costs and insurer pricing pressures. Middle-income households are most likely to feel the strain. Kiara DeWitt, a registered nurse, certified pediatric nurse and head of clinical operations at Medical Director Co., fears…...

3+ hour, 43+ min ago (757+ words) By Dr. Ayesha Khan, MD, MBA 2025 will likely be remembered as one of the most transformative years for dental insurance policy in the U.S. " not because of one sweeping federal mandate, but because of a steady cascade of state-level laws and federal regulatory shifts that collectively reshape how dental practices operate. For dental health professionals, these changes touch nearly every aspect of practice management: documentation, billing, patient communication, and even how we coordinate care with the medical side of the healthcare system. Below is a breakdown of what changed and what it means for your practice moving forward. Meanwhile, at the federal level, CMS rolled out new rules that directly affect clinical documentation for medically necessary dental services, expanding the expectation for ICD-10linked diagnoses and procedure modifiers when dental treatment is tied to medical care (including oncology, cardiac care, infectious disease management,…...

3+ hour, 49+ min ago (1118+ words) As a Medicare recipient, you gain access to these 13 essential services at no additional cost. Medicare can help pay your bills during retirement, and it also offers several free services that come as a pleasant surprise to many. Here are 13 freebies included with Original Medicare plans that can help you keep more cash in your pocket and eliminate some money stress." Note that these perks may not apply to those who have Medicare Advantage coverage. Learn the strategies wealthy retirees use to fund their retirement with $1,000,000 " and how you can, too " with this new guide: The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income from Fisher Investments. Fisher Investments has helped tens of thousands of investors retire comfortably since 1979. With over $332 billion under management, they provide tailored money management to help achieve long-term goals. Get your guide here Unlike an annual checkup, your…...