Verma, UnitedHealth Set Sights On Decreasing Overall Hospital Spend

CMS Administrator Seema Verma told hospitals on Tuesday (Sept. 10) that the agency will have to tackle the high costs of hospital care in order to drive down total health care costs, even though she previously told reporters the agency was not planning to target hospital spending. Shortly after Verma’s speech, UnitedHealth on Thursday suggested that while the first two Democratic presidential primary debates did not focus on hospital spending, “the spotlight is shifting toward hospitals’ role in driving health...