As a combined entity, Virgin Pulse and HealthComp will serve more than 1,000 self-insured employers and more than 20 million members. New Mountain Capital will be the majority owner.

Evvy’s $14 million funding round was led by Left Lane Capital and included participation from General Catalyst, LabCorp Venture Fund, RH Capital, Ingeborg Investments, G9 Ventures, Virtue and Amboy Street Ventures. In total, Evvy has raised $19 million. 

The average monthly plan premium for Medicare Advantage is expected to increase only slightly in 2024 from 2023, CMS said. About 73% of beneficiaries will see no increase at all.

Costco is partnering with Sesame to offer Costco Members discounted pricing on virtual health services, including primary care and mental health. But the move is a little different from other retailers like CVS Health and Walgreens.

A new study found that MA beneficiaries have more than 50% fewer inpatient stays and 22% fewer emergency department visits than traditional Medicare enrollees.

Issues around healthcare affordability, mental health challenges and worsening chronic conditions are all top of mind for Ellen Kelsay, president and CEO of Business Group on Health.

There are concerns that Medicare Advantage TV ads are misleading patients. A new KFF analysis of Medicare Advantage TV ads found that the ads often rely on celebrity endorsements and suggest that seniors are missing out on benefits that they’re entitled to.

San Diego-based Equip, which was founded in 2019, previously focused on those ages 6 to 24. The startup is now expanding to serve people of all ages, it announced Tuesday.

Thirty states have been conducting Medicaid and CHIP automatic renewals incorrectly, leading to many individuals being wrongly removed from coverage. Because of this, nearly 500,000 children and other individuals will have their coverage reinstated.

Americans are getting older, and some healthcare leaders expect this to be a challenge for the healthcare industry. Others, however, think this is an opportunity for the industry to make improvements, such as engaging adults in their care before they turn 65.

The commercial market has struggled to adopt value-based care, but HealthPartners has had some success, according to Mark Hansberry, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of the company. During a conference, he shared five rules for scaling value-based care, including creating trust and providing real-time data.

The Federal Trade Commission only gets notified when a merger/acquisition deal value is above $100-$110 million, so smaller deals nonetheless lead to a slow consolidation of the market. In conference remarks, FTC Chair Lina Khan outlined the ways in which the agency is trying to counter this phenomenon.

CardioOne, a startup built at Redesign Health, partners with independent cardiology practices to help them transition to value-based care. On Monday, the company announced it has raised $8 million in seed funding and has three new partners.

MedCity News is launching a new podcast called MedCity FemFwd, which will discuss the breakthroughs and challenges in the women’s health space. In the inaugural episode, Michelle Long of KFF examines whether Opill — the first daily oral contraceptive approved for nonprescription use in the U.S. — will be covered by insurance.

More than a dozen civil rights organizations alleged in a new complaint that Florida uses administrative practices that are preventing underserved communities from renewing their Medicaid coverage.

MedImpact and GoodRx are teaming up to lower costs for MedImpact members. When eligible MedImpact members refill a generic prescription, the companies’ savings solution will compare the member’s benefit to GoodRx’s price and will automatically apply the lowest one.

When Medicaid expansion was first enacted, it was a hot topic debate between Democrats and Republicans. But more and more states are starting to expand Medicaid, including several conservative states.

Solera Health recently launched a program that aims to help patients who are interested in GLP-1s gain access to lifestyle change support. It also provides educational materials on GLP-1s.

Through a new partnership with Walgreens, Pearl Health will work with primary care providers by offering its technology and data insights to help them better their care and transition to value-based payment models. Walgreens is then providing prescription fulfillment, medication adherence, immunization and diagnostic testing services.

Talkiatry, Array Behavioral Care, Iris Telehealth and Quartet Health sent a letter to the DEA asking for a special registration process that would allow for the prescribing of certain controlled medications via telemedicine.

Pumpspotting’s funding round was led by Sincere Corporation and Maine Venture Fund and included participation from Unum Business Ventures and Maine Technology Institute. In total, pumpspotting has raised more than $3.3 million.

In rural areas, the share of eligible beneficiaries enrolled in MA plans nearly quadrupled from 11% in 2010 to 40% in 2023, according to new research from KFF. This represents 400,000 rural MA beneficiaries in 2010 and 1.8 million in 2023.

Employers expect health benefit costs to increase 5.4% per employee on average in 2024, new data from Mercer shows. This is due to inflationary pressures and health system consolidation.

A new survey from Alignment Health found that economic instability, food insecurity, lack of support and transportation access are the biggest social barriers for seniors.

Medicare Advantage beneficiaries with a cancer diagnosis spend $3,996 on out-of-pocket costs and premiums annually, versus $6,091 for traditional Medicare beneficiaries with cancer, a new report found.

After five years of enrolling in a Medicare Advantage plan, 48.3% of non-dually enrolled beneficiaries left their contract and 53.4% of dually enrolled beneficiaries did, a new study found.

Through a new partnership, Bicycle Health providers can prescribe patients buprenorphine extended release injections (otherwise known as Sublocade), which can be administered by a pharmacist at an Albertsons pharmacy.

Through a new partnership, Castell will be able to refer members of its Utah health plan customers to Headspace for behavioral health coaching and therapy.

Mental health company Two Chairs launched two new solutions Tuesday: group therapy and care navigation. The offerings will help improve access to mental health care and lead to better clinical outcomes, said Alex Katz, CEO and founder of the company

Some states may not be following federal requirements for the Medicaid renewal process, resulting in many individuals being wrongly removed from coverage, CMS said. Children may especially be affected.