Congress remains in session this week on Capitol Hill. The continuing resolution funding the federal government is scheduled to expire on Thursday November 21. Early this week, Congress is expected to extend the continuing resolution at least for another thirty days.

Here are links to the American Hospital Association, American’s Health Insurance Plans, and the Galen Institute on the hospital and insurer price transparency rules released on Friday.

Modern Healthcare reports that

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Illinois is teaming up with other Blue plans to help large employers control rising medical costs and improve care for employees.

Known as the Blue high-performance network, the program aims to direct patients toward healthcare providers that consistently offer high-quality care at a lower cost. It’s the first program in 25 years to be driven by the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association—a federation of 36 independent Blue companies—rather than the plans themselves, said Jennifer Atkins, vice president of network solutions for the association.

The Blue high-performance network, or HPN, will launch January 2021 in 55 markets reaching more than 185 million people nationwide. It was designed for large national and regional employers, who Atkins said wanted more consistent quality measurements and prices across the markets in which they operate.

A smattering of medical news that caught the FEHBlog’s eye:

•  The Wall Street Journal reports that “Stents and coronary artery bypass surgery are no more effective than intensive drug treatment and better health habits in preventing millions of Americans from heart attacks and death, a large study found, shedding new light on a major controversy in cardiology.” * * *

“You won’t prolong life,” said Judith Hochman, chair of the study and senior associate dean for clinical sciences at the New York University Grossman School of Medicine. But stents or bypass surgery work better than medicine and lifestyle changes alone in relieving symptoms for people who have frequent angina, or chest pain, the researchers found. The findings, released Saturday at the American Heart Association’s annual scientific conference, should prompt more discussion between patients and their doctors about treatment, she said. 

• On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) announced its approval of a bio-similar version of the blockbuster specialty drug Humira, which is used to rest inflammatory conditions. Humira is produced by Abbie Vie and the biosimilar is produced by Pfizer. This FDA “approval is one of nine new biosimilar products the FDA has taken action on in 2019, bringing the overall total of biosimilar approvals to 25.”