Insider Intelligence

A bipartisan package of bills was reported by the House Ways and Means Committee this week making changes to telemedicine in the state. Under current law, telemedicine visits between patients and health care providers must be done in real time. These reforms would change the law to allow patient data in the form of video […]

A package of bills was introduced in the Senate that would eliminate certain medical care certificate of need (CON) requirements. A CON is a legal document that enables the establishment or expansion of health care facilities or services. A commission governs the standards for Michigan’s CON and the Department of Health and Human Services reviews […]

Members of the House Democratic Caucus announced a proposal they believe will lower out-of-pocket costs for prescription medications and doctor visits. The plan has several aspects to it that members believe will help reduce costs, including creating the Prescription Drug Consumer Protection Board, capping the cost of co-pays for primary care and behavioral health visits […]

As the need for healthcare providers in certain areas continues to grow, the Senate passed legislation that would provide incentives in the hopes of increasing access. Introduced by Senator Curt VanderWall (R-Ludington), if a health provider agrees to a term of service of 10 years or more in a health resource shortage area, the maximum […]

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has awarded Michigan a $4 million grant to improve monitoring of residents’ toxic chemical exposure.  Biomonitoring is the measurement of environmental chemicals in body tissues or fluids to determine the amount of chemical that actually enters the body. Data collected from biomonitoring helps identify at-risk population groups and […]

Kate Massey has been appointed as the new Medicaid director by Robert Gordon, director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Most recently, Ms. Massey was chief executive officer for Magellan Complete Care of Virginia. She previously served as vice president for Medicaid and Medicare for Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States. Ms. […]

The Federal Government has approved the final year of the State Innovation Model, which works to create a person-centered health system in Michigan. This is the fourth year and final year the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services’ (CMS) will provide funding for the State Innovation Model (SIM) Initiative.  During this final year, the Michigan […]

I learned a hard reality when I lost a close friend at the young age of 30.  She battled a blood disease for years and I watched her fight for her life in every way possible.  At the end, the sad reality was there was not a bone marrow match for her on the bone […]