Telemedicine and Retail Clinics Popularity Grows. "Americans are beginning to change the way they access healthcare, according to new research by management consulting firm Oliver Wyman. Disappointed with their current level of care and frustrated by the high costs, the Wyman study indicates that consumers are increasingly turning away from traditional delivery models in favor of alternatives, such as telemedicine and retail clinics like those operated by Walmart and CVS. From 2010 to 2015, telemedicine spending increased from $540 million to $1.9 billion, per the Wyman study. Retail clinic usage climbed 176% to 19 million visits and urgent care center usage increased by 5.8% annually. In 2013, 15% of the survey respondents used a retail clinic compared with 26% in 2015." (Employee Benefit News, 4/28) 

PA. Insurance News Net reports that "the nearly 440,000 PA residents who bought health insurance through the federal marketplace experienced a bit of sticker shock this year. Their premiums rose 12 percent, or three times the national average of 4 percent, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services...... The report shows that this year, 76 percent of Pennsylvania enrollees qualified for federal subsidies averaging $251 a month, which brought their out-of-pocket premium cost down to $145 a month. Nationwide, the average out-of-pocket premiums for subsidized enrollees rose from $102 to $106 per month..... Initial rate requests for 2017 plans offered in Pennsylvania will be unveiled May 25, but the final approved rates won't be available until mid-October. (5/2)