DEA attempts to reign in telehealth prescriptions
DEA attempts to reign in telehealth prescriptions
Plus: BCBS Association sues TX company
Good morning and happy Friday. This is the Friday Pulse Check from Fulcrum Strategies and FLATLINING.net; your weekly digest of healthcare news and information.
In the news:
BCBS Association sues Texas company over copyright infringement
The BlueCross BlueShield Association is suing Texas company Wound Sync over its use of a multi-toned blue cross logo claiming it infringes upon and dilutes the BCBS brand. They argue in their suit that Wound Sync was aware that it would infringe upon the BCBS brand and that it would confuse patients into thinking that the two organizations are affiliated. I’ll let you decide:
Read more in Becker’s Payer Issues.
DEA attempts to reign in on online prescriptions
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Drug Enforcement Administration relaxed some of the rules for prescribing drugs during online telehealth visits. Now they want to go back to the norm of seeing a physician in person before obtaining a prescription. The new proposed rules would require physicians to see a patient once in person before prescribing them medications during a telehealth visit. The current rules will remain in effect until at least November 11. Read more in KFF Health News.
Other articles of interest:
Who is buying the most physician groups? - Becker’s Hospital Review
Mayo Clinic using AI to test kidney stones - KIMT3 News
This is why state health plans struggle to control costs - Becker’s Payer Issues
Half the world is at risk of dengue - Vox
Opinion: The post-Ozempic gold rush - The American Prospect
California Watch: Molina to buy Bright Health Group’s CA Medicare Advantage plan - Morningstar
(MOH 0.00%↑)
The FLATLINING Podcast
I continued my conversation with our own Ron Howrigon this week on the podcast and we talked more about his new book CLEAR!: Reforming Healthcare to Save the US Economy.
In this book, Ron breaks down:
What the COVID-19 pandemic taught us about the U.S. healthcare system
What worked, what didn't, and how to use this knowledge to improve
Either side of the healthcare debate could work, but only if each addresses the fundamental issues causing the problem
The key factors contributing to the rising cost of healthcare, and how they can be addressed
What goals can be set to reduce the cost of healthcare and provide the level of care expected from the wealthiest nation in the world?
Subscribe to the FLATLINING Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the iHeartRadio app, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Pandora, TuneIn, and Audible.
Next week…
We have our second edition of Pulse Check on the Candidates. I'll be breaking down Michigan businessman Perry Johnson’s Two Cents to Save America Plan. Subscribe now wherever you listen to podcasts.
Ukraine
If Ukraine’s health system is to ever recover, the world needs to step up now - says a World Health Organization representative in Ukraine. Dr. Jarno Habicht wrote in Euronews this week that billions of dollars are needed to fund the effort and detailed how successful rebuilding has already benefited the health of local communities. Read more in Euronews.
Final Thought
As the Supreme Court hands down decisions this week on weighty issues that many Americans care about, I am waiting to see about the free speech case with the web designer. She refused to make wedding websites for same-sex marriages on the grounds that it violated her religious beliefs. This could have consequences in the healthcare world. As religious doctors, nurses, and hospitals push back against regulations requiring them to perform certain procedures, they may get a leg up in their defense if the web designer wins her case.
To be clear, I am not talking about objecting to COVID-19 vaccines or anything of that sort; I’m talking about conscientious objections to abortions or treating gender dysphoria with “identity affirming care.” I believe that religious individuals and institutions that morally object to that kind of care ought to be able to tell patients to go elsewhere in situations short of a medical emergency.
However, there is a legitimate legal argument to say that if you aren’t going to do those services for one person, don’t do them at all. That is a possible outcome of the web designer case. But in the medical world, those who morally object to certain procedures will not be performing or procuring them for anyone. It is less of a case of discrimination and more of that those services are not offered.
In other SCOTUS news: the court this week unanimously agreed that employers cannot force employees to work on their religious holy days and a majority overturned the ability of colleges and universities to make race-based decisions in the admissions processes.
Have a good weekend,
Matthew