Maria Castellucci
Modern Healthcare
Chicago, IL, United States
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Past articles by Maria:
Cigna to stop contributions to some lawmakers following Capitol riots
In an email, Cigna said its political action committee will "discontinue support of any elected official who encouraged or supported violence, or otherwise hindered a peaceful transition of power." → Read More
Safety-net hospitals still hit with penalty in readmissions program
Hospitals with the highest proportion of dual-eligible patients were more likely this fiscal year to receive a penalty in CMS' readmissions program compared to hospitals with the smallest percentage of such patients. → Read More
Insurers deny 25% of medication claims for infant respiratory illness
A drug used to reduce severity of a common respiratory illness among infants is sometimes denied by both Medicaid and commercial insurers even if patients qualify for it use. → Read More
Hospitals redeploy specialists to COVID-19 front lines
Specialists like anesthesiologists, orthopedic surgeons and cardiologists, who don't typically treat infectious disease patients, are heeding calls from overwhelmed hospitals to help treat the rising number of COVID-19 patients. → Read More
Surviving Sepsis Campaign creates treatment guidelines for children
Clinicians have mostly focused on identifying and treating sepsis in adults because it occurs more often and is generally more dangerous. But there's growing recognition that children are also at risk. → Read More
Spectrum Health leverages telehealth to treat patients with the flu
Spectrum Health is seeing an uptick in patients using its telehealth services this flu season. The system says the flu is an ideal way to use virtual visits, freeing up the ED and physician offices. → Read More
Joint Commission imposes maternal safety standards for hospital accreditation
The 13 new standards are in response to widespread adoption of evidence-based practices to prevent maternal mortality due to hemorrhage and hypertension. → Read More
CMS delays requirement for ACOs to notify beneficiaries
After failing to provide ACOs with materials about how to comply with the requirement ahead of the effective date, the CMS said it will push back the policy's implementation. → Read More
Hospitals want CMS to remove star ratings ahead of overhaul
While hospitals are pleased the CMS plans to change the star ratings in 2021, they are disappointed a ratings update is coming before then and that the agency will continue working with its current contractors. → Read More
Incorporating pharmacists into the ICU team
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton trains general pharmacists in critical-care medicine so they can better treat patients in the intensive-care unit. → Read More
CMS will change hospital star ratings methodology in 2021
The agency didn't disclose specific details about what the changes will entail but it will propose them through public rulemaking next year. → Read More
Alliance for Better Health forms IPA with insurer to address social risks
Alliance for Better Health has partnered with insurer MVP Health Care to help not-for-profit social service organizations provide services to those in the surrounding Albany, N.Y., area. → Read More
Medicare’s Verma promises more healthcare price transparency
Requiring hospitals to post online their prices negotiated with insurers likely won’t lower spending immediately, but experts call it a worthwhile experiment. → Read More
CMS delays funding renewal for quality improvement organizations
The five-year $960 million contract ended in mid-July and the CMS doesn't plan to renew it until September at the earliest. Some quality improvement organizations are laying off staff as a result. → Read More
NYC Health & Hospitals reduces clinic wait times with open access scheduling
The health system made changes to scripting at its call center and adopted new scheduling templates to improve primary-care clinic wait times. → Read More
Addressing patient experience without a CXO
While some health systems hire and rely on chief experience officers, there are plenty that have never had such a position and instead localize the work at specific care sites or regions. → Read More
Major hospital groups recommend changes to HCAHPS survey
The AHA, the Federation of American Hospitals and three other major hospital groups outlined major changes they would like to see to the patient survey mandated by the CMS. → Read More
MedPAC: Overhaul inflated MA star ratings to save $6 billion annually
MedPAC claims that the Medicare Advantage star-rating system needs a revamp, considering its design enables health plans to fluff up their performance and adds about $6 billion a year to Medicare spending. → Read More
Most hospitals fail to meet Leapfrog's surgery volume standards
The overwhelming majority of hospitals fail to meet the Leapfrog Group's minimum volume standards for eight high-risk surgeries. → Read More
Fewer ACOs joining Medicare Shared Savings Program
Just 66 new accountable care organizations joined the Medicare Shared Savings Program for the July 1 start date, a significant drop in new participants compared to previous years. → Read More