To determine its initial offer for a maximum fair price for a selected drug, CMS: (1) identifies therapeutic alternative(s) for the selected drug; (2) determines pricing information about the therapeutic alternatives to determine the starting point for the initial offer; (3) adjusts the initial offer based on information about the clinical benefit of the selected drug compared to its therapeutic alternatives; and (4) makes further adjustments to the offer price as needed based on manufacturer-specific data to determine the initial offer price. (The IRA does not include international drug price data as a benchmark to be used in CMS’s initial…
Author: Awais
A Virginia boater is suing a Washington water utility for negligence in the collapse of a pipe that leaked millions of gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River. The class action lawsuit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland, comes weeks after a January sewage pipe collapse, shooting wastewater out of the ground and into the river in an area just north of Washington, D.C. The spill is seen as a serious environmental blight and became the focus of political bickering between President Donald Trump and Democratic-led Maryland, where the leak occurred. Dr. Nicholas Lailas, M.D., the…
The insurer will act as lead underwriter for a DFC reinsurance scheme backing as much as $20 billion in war-related losses
New report reveals a ‘different story’ about AI’s impact on collaboration
Multiple government agencies and the U.S. Coast Guard have been responding to a barge fire in the Delaware Bay since 8:20 a..m. yesterday. The barge is carrying salvage metal and has been moved to shallow water where it can be secured to allow responders on-scene to extinguish the fire and complete salvage operations, according to state officials. No injuries have been reported and the cause of the fire is under investigation. The Coast Guard reported that the barge is being towed to approximately two miles off Maurice River Cove, New Jersey, to remove the threat from the main ship channel,…
UBS urged a U.S. judge on Tuesday to shield it from new Holocaust-related litigation arising from an investigation of the former Credit Suisse’s activities during World War II. A lawyer for UBS asked U.S. District Judge Edward Korman in Brooklyn to issue a “clarifying order” that the $1.25 billion settlement reached in 1999 covered “all claims, past, present and future” related to the Holocaust, World War II, and their prelude and aftermath. Credit Suisse, which UBS bought in a Swiss government-arranged rescue in 2023, distributed the $1.25 billion to more than 458,000 Nazi victims and their families, according to court…
Britain’s banking stability watchdog has fined U K Insurance Ltd., now part of Aviva, 10.6 million pounds ($14.2 million) over a miscalculation in its Solvency II balance sheet for 2023 and 2024. The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), part of the Bank of England, said on Wednesday that U K Insurance is a subsidiary and principal underwriter of Direct Line Group (DLG), which is now part of Aviva. Aviva said in a statement that the miscalculation happened before its acquisition of DLG in July 2025, adding that it had taken extensive action to enhance financial reporting controls in the part of…
The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a March 31 hearing to determine the probable cause of two fatal crashes involving Ford Motor’s hands-free advanced driver assistance system BlueCruise. Both crashes in 2024 involved 2022 model year Ford Mustang Mach-Es operating in the company’s partial automation mode in 2024 rear-end crashes in which the Ford SUVs struck stationary vehicles at highway speeds in San Antonio and Philadelphia. The crashes pose serious questions the limitations of the system. The NTSB plans to vote on “safety recommendations designed to prevent similar crashes in the future.” Since 2025, both the NTSB and National…
Relation Insurance Services acquired the assets of Rummel Associates, Inc. The transaction went into effect on January 31, 2025; terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Specializing in both commercial and personal insurance, Rummel is based in Chicago, Illinois. Jared Rummel, owner of Rummel Associates, will continue managing that office as a valuable part of the Relation family. Rummel was established in 1948. Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Was this article valuable? Yes No Here are more articles you may enjoy. Interested in Mergers? Get automatic alerts for this topic.
Federal policy changes that decrease risk pooling will lead to higher insurance premiums for less-healthy populations and greater numbers of uninsured AmericansFunding cuts and policy changes by the Trump administration affect which Americans are eligible for low-cost health care coverage through Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces. These will have consequences for the health insurance “risk pool”: with fewer people likely to be enrolled in Medicaid or in ACA plans, expected health care costs (risk) will be spread (pooled) across a smaller population.This explainer describes how these policy choices affect risk pooling and what the implications are for…
The assistant launched for members of the technology giant’s One Medical primary care chain in January. Now, the tool will be available to all U.S. customers.
An unusually early heat wave is set to grip Los Angeles and much of the Southwest, putting California’s already fragile snowpack, and therefore its water supplies, at risk. Temperatures in downtown Los Angeles on Friday are forecast to reach 98F (37C), coming within a degree of highest reading for the month set on March 29, 1879, according to the National Weather Service. Across the region, temperatures are expected to rise 20F to 30F above normal, with several daily records likely to fall and some areas potentially breaking all-time March highs, the agency said. “Brutal heatwaves are not just a summertime…
A Thai-flagged cargo vessel was struck in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday shortly after departing from the United Arab Emirates, as regional tensions continue to disrupt one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes. Three people are missing. The ship, Mayuree Naree, a 30,000 deadweight-ton bulk carrier owned by Precious Shipping Pcl, was attacked while transiting the strategic waterway. Oman’s navy has rescued 20 crew members, who abandoned ship and evacuated in a lifeboat, and brought them ashore in Khasab, Thai navy spokesman Paraj Ratanajaipan said in a statement. International efforts are underway to recover three remaining crew members…
Plymouth Rock, the northeast US regional insurer, has successfully secured its targeted $100 million in named storm reinsurance protection through its debut catastrophe bond, as the Tremont Re Ltd. (Series 2026-1) notes have now been priced approximately 16% below the mid-point of initial guidance, Artemis has learned.Plymouth Rock underwrites auto and home insurance products throughout northeastern US states, with the company having underwritten over $2 billion in premiums across the region. The regionally focused insurer entered the catastrophe bond market for its debut sponsorship back in February, with a target to secure $100 million of collateralized and multi-year named storm…