Hospitals/health care systems and clinicians shoulder most of the responsibility for reducing health care costs, according to a survey of NEJM Catalyst Insights Council members. Patients can also help but sometimes lack the necessary information or are hampered by reimbursement policies, the survey found.

All new employer-sponsored UnitedHealth Group insurance plans will feature point-of-sale drug rebates, which are usually used to reduce all subscribers' premiums. The option will be offered to existing clients when contracts are renewed.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota CEO Craig Samitt says he wants to be "more forceful" in changing the health care payment structure to value-based from volume-based and suggested setting deadlines to accelerate the process. He also wants to share more data, technology, tools and expertise with health care providers to transform clinical practices and improve outcomes.

Researchers at the University of California system warned that many implementations of HL7 standards carry encryption and authentication vulnerabilities, which could leave health care organizations open to cyberattacks. The researchers suggested implementing proper network configuration, security-conscious protocols and network access protections to step up data security.

ECRI Institute's annual safety report revealed that improper management of diagnostic tools and test results within EHRs was the top patient safety concern this year, with physician burnout and mobile health-related patient safety also at the top of the list. "Organizations across the continuum of care are striving to become high-reliability organizations, and part of being highly reliable means staying vigilant and identifying problems proactively," the report stated.

A report from the Health Care Cost Institute showed median health care prices in US metro areas climbed 13% from 2012 to 2016 amid a 17% decline in utilization. The findings, based on an analysis of more than 1.8 billion commercial health insurance claims in 112 metro areas, showed areas with high utilization rates tended to have lower prices, while areas with low use had higher prices.

Wage & Hour claims represent over 90% of the employment class actions filed every year, and the Department of Labor has noted that over 80% of employers are in violation to some degree. 2018 represented one of the highest levels of Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) case filings, but more importantly, state laws and court doctrine at the federal and state levels are changing so rapidly in this space that it is virtually impossible for employers to keep up.

With this in mind, join leaders from Aon, Markel and Jackson Lewis to discuss how these constantly changing rules, increasing claims frequency and severity, and the 2019 Wage & Hour insurance marketplace trends may impact your company; as well as proactive steps you can take to help address this exposure. Register here.

With projected spending power of $18 trillion, women are an increasingly powerful force in today's global economy. Some studies have found that if women enter -- and stay -- in the U.S. workforce at the same rate as Norway, the U.S. economy could grow by $1.6 trillion. Even as their financial power strengthens and their role in the workforce expands, female workers face retirement savings challenges that their male counterparts do not. In the U.S. for example, only three in 10 U.S. women workers are financially on track to retire by the age of 67. How Are Employers Addressing the Female Retirement Savings Gap? Read more.