Trending News Today: Medicare Reimbursement Plan Raises Concerns

Physicians operating small practices have expressed significant concern regarding the way Medicare proposes to change reimbursement for services. Physicians must choose whether they will receive bonuses in accordance with their ability to reach and exceed benchmarks. They are also required to join large organizations and practices responsible for quality of care. Physicians feel that this new payment model will force those in small practices to join large organizations or incur high penalties, according to Kaiser Health News.

States have started to announce the approved 2017 premium increases for health insurance purchases through Affordable Care Act exchanges. The rates significantly increased this coming year as many have expected, and some rates increased as much as 62%, according to The Wall Street Journal. The US federal government is reassuring individuals that there will be additional financial help offered.

A recent report found that maternal mortality is significantly increasing in Georgia, while the national rate has been declining. The last reported maternal mortality rate was 28.7 per 100,000 live births in 2011, which is considerably higher than the national rate, according to Kaiser Health News. State officials said they plan to do something to prevent this rate from rising any further.