Compliance May 29, 2025

Government Agencies Continue Push for Increased Health Care Pricing Transparency

The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Treasury sought information and released updated guidance aimed at creating nationwide cost consistency for medical services and prescription drugs.

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In an effort to improve price transparency in health care, the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Treasury announced new steps aimed at ensuring Americans have access to clearer cost information about medical services and prescription drugs.

The agencies jointly issued a request for public input on enhancing prescription drug price disclosure, according to a DOL release last week. The request seeks insights into data accessibility for health plans, the usability of current pricing formats and state-led innovations.

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The departments also released updated guidance for health plans and health insurance issuers, setting timelines for publishing disclosures. The change aims to eliminate the potential for trivial or duplicated data and to clarify cost information for consumers.

“Transparency empowers individuals to make well-informed health care decisions for themselves and their families,” said Deputy Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling in a statement. “The departments’ actions today execute President [Donald] Trump’s mission to address rising health care costs by promoting competition in the marketplace.”

In a separate move, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued new guidance that requires hospitals to post the real price of items and services instead of price estimates. The centers also issued a request for information seeking feedback on how to improve hospitals’ ability to supply “accurate and complete” data.

“Transparency in health care is essential, not optional,” Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Chief of Staff and Deputy Administrator Stephanie Carlton said in a statement.

The efforts follow a February executive order from Trump that directed the agencies to ensure health insurers improve their pricing practices and a July 2024 executive order from former President Joe Biden directing HHS to support the January 2021 Hospital Price Transparency Rule.

Data & Research May 29, 2025

Most Americans Still Skip Basic Cyber Protections

According to a survey by digital security company Iris, 91% of Americans worry about AI threats to their personal data, Iris survey reveals

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When questioned about their online security habits, consumers surveyed show a clear disconnect about feelings of safety. Although the vast majority (87%) of consumers reported feeling secure using their internet-connected devices, 85% said they are concerned about their personal devices being hacked, and 88% said they worry about their passwords being compromised.

Iris, powered by Generali Global Assistance Inc., a provider of identity and cyber protection solutions, released the results of its Identity & Cybersecurity Concerns Survey exploring consumer habits and experiences related to digital security. The survey of 1,010 U.S. adults covered how respondents say they manage online safety, their biggest concerns about identity theft and experiences resolving fraud if they have already been victims.

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More than 90% of consumers surveyed said they employ only a handful of recommended identity protection practices, leaving them vulnerable to scammers and fraudsters. The contradiction in these findings, according to Iris, suggests that while people may feel secure, they still recognize significant risks and fall short on prevention.

Respondents to the Iris survey overwhelmingly identified artificial intelligence as a threat to their personal information, with 91% listing it as a concern and 67% extremely or very concerned. Women were disproportionately more likely to see AI as a threat, with 41% of females responding that they are extremely concerned, compared with 32% of male participants.

“While many respondents feel secure using their devices, most only feel ‘somewhat secure,’ revealing an underlying uncertainty. At the same time, most aren’t doing all they can to protect themselves from these threats, reinforcing the urgent need for comprehensive identity theft protection services,” said Paige Schaffer, CEO of Iris, in a statement. “This gap between perception and preparedness leaves consumers increasingly vulnerable in a rapidly evolving threat landscape—particularly with AI enabling cybercriminals to launch more sophisticated, convincing, and large-scale attacks. At the end of the day, consumers really shouldn’t be navigating these risks alone.”

AI is now the third-most-frequently-used technology in financial firms’ operations and processes, according to a Broadridge Financial Solutions report, based on a survey of more than 500 technology and operations professionals in wealth management, capital markets and asset management firms.

Although investment in AI is growing sharply, Broadridge found that cybersecurity technology is still where financial firms are making their biggest tech investments, named by 87% of respondents

The Iris survey of 1,010 U.S. adults was conducted from March 12 through 14, using data weighted to the U.S. census.

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