Giving full prescription drug coverage to patients in the U.S. who experienced a first MI could save almost $2 billion annually over their lifetime, an analysis of MI FREEE found. Although only one carrier served patients in the trial, the results could apply to other payers as well, the lead researcher said.

More than 76 percent of people who survived an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest returned to work in a median of four months, according to an analysis of a Danish registry. Among that population, the salaries remained similar one year before and one year after the cardiac arrest.

An accountable care organization (ACO) model saved Medicare approximately $385 million in its first two years, according to an independent report released on May 4.

In 2013, the federal government spent $103 billion on prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries, the New York Times reports.

Statins are cost-effective for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease in adults who are at least 75 years old, according to a simulation model.

Fewer than 10 percent of people used price and quality comparison data when choosing doctors, hospitals or health insurance plans in the past 12 months, according to the Kaiser Health Tracking poll released on April 21.

Since the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in March 2010, projected federal healthcare spending has decreased each year as factors such as a weak economy, high deductible health plans and reduced provider payment rates have led to historically low rates of spending growth. Researchers from the Urban Institute released a report online on April 8 that examined the changing forecasts.

It turns out the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) can’t turn itself on a dime, and as a result, some doctors will see reimbursement cut by 21.1 percent temporarily. The Senate’s 10 p.m. vote on April 15 to repeal the sustainable growth rate formula came too late for CMS to pull the switch on cuts fully, The Hill reported. CMS promised to reprocess Medicare claims for shortchanged physicians after it updates the system.