Payer

Half of private businesses surveyed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics furloughed workers to respond to financial stress from the COVID-19 pandemic — and most of those companies stopped paying health insurance premiums for furloughed workers, too, according to…

Health insurers can expect some volatility in their quarterly earnings next year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, ratings agency Fitch Ratings said Dec. 7. 

A U.S. district judge gave preliminary approval for a $2.7 billion settlement from Blue Cross Blue Shield insurers. The settlement is for an antitrust lawsuit that accuses the companies of conspiring to divide markets and avoid directly competing with each…

Centene named Brent Layton executive vice president of markets, products and international, as well as chief business development officer, effective Jan. 1.

Aetna joined a growing number of payers updating their coverage policies to include noninvasive prenatal testing for all pregnancies, according to GenomeWeb.

The Supreme Court will decide if Medicaid work requirements supported by the White House should be upheld, according to The New York Times. 

As more Americans age into eligibility for Medicare, for-profit Medicare Advantage health plans are growing their enrollment much quicker than their nonprofit counterparts, according to a new report from The Chartis Group, a healthcare advisory group.

St. Luke's Health Partners, a 3,400-member provider group affiliated with St. Luke's Health System in Boise, Idaho, struck a value-based payment arrangement with Humana, the organizations said Dec. 2. 

Humana will acquire full ownership of iCare, a Wisconsin Medicaid health plan, the insurer said Dec. 3.

UnitedHealth Group is working with Eli Lilly on a clinical trial that will study at-home infusions of the drugmaker's COVID-19 antibody treatment.