Trending News Today: Health Care Service Provider Merger in Advanced Discussions

On Wednesday, the Department of Health and Human Services released a proposed rule seeking to limit short-term health policies, reported The Wall Street Journal. The proposed rule would allow insurers to only offer short term health policies that last less than 3 months. Furthermore, the coverage would not be eligible to be renewed at the end of the period. The initiatives look to close the gap and reduce the pressure placed on health insurance premiums for Affordable Care Act plans by strengthening the presence of less expensive and healthier consumers in marketplace insurance plans.

Envision Healthcare Holdings Inc and AmSurg Corp are in advanced discussions about a possible merger, with a deal that could be announced as early as next week, reported The Wall Street Journal. The merger would have a combined value of $9 billion, with 2 huge providers of physician and other health care services. As of now, it’s unclear how the deal will be structured and it could still potentially fall through.

A Maryland physician pleaded guilty to a federal charge of health care fraud. Nicola Tauraso, 81, fled to Panama amid allegations of overprescribing painkillers and faces up to 10 years in prison. The plea was entered into the US District Court in Baltimore on Wednesday and his sentencing is set to take place August 8. As part of the plea deal, prosecutors have agreed to dismiss 23 additional counts, which included narcotics conspiracy, reported The New York Times.