Donald Trump, Medicare payments to doctors, and more: Our most well-read stories on politics in 2024

Donald Trump is on his way back to the White House, securing an improbable re-election after losing to Joe Biden four years ago.

These are our five most well-read articles on politics and government over the past 12 months.

Trump almost lost his life in an assassination attempt at a rally in western Pennsylvania in July. He survived that attack, and was treated at a hospital near Pittsburgh. That story garnered the highest readership of any of our stories on politics and government in 2024.

The former and future president makes another appearance in our most well-read political stories over the past 12 months, but other stories about federal policies and legislation gained strong readership as well.

Here are the five political stories published by Chief Healthcare Executive® that received the most attention over the past year.

1. Donald Trump, victims treated at hospitals after shooting at Pa. rally

The assassination attempt of a former president and presidential candidate commanded worldwide attention. Our coverage on that grim day focused on the healthcare facilities where Donald Trump and other victims were treated.

Trump appeared at a rally in Butler, a community about 33 miles north of Pittsburgh, when a gunman opened fire. Trump was taken to Butler Memorial Hospital and later released that day.

Two other people at the rally suffered serious injuries and were treated at Allegheny General Hospital.

Corey Comperatore, a retired fire chief in western Pennsylvania, was fatally shot. The U.S. Secret Service said the shooter was killed by Secret Service agents.

In a follow-up story, we spoke to Tom Chakurda of Butler Memorial, a 294-bed hospital that’s part of the Independence Health System. Chakurda said the hospital was well-prepared, partly since Trump had held a rally in the area several years ago.

“It's a period of intense focus to do your job and realize that this is what you train for. This is what we prepared for, and this is what people are depending on you to do now,” Chakurda said.

2. Medicare 2025 payment cuts are finalized, and physicians are fuming

Doctors and healthcare leaders have bemoaned Medicare’s cuts in payments to physicians for years.

When the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced plans to cut payments again for 2025, physicians and healthcare advocacy groups slammed the move.

Bruce A. Scott, MD, president of the American Medical Association, juxtaposed the 2.8% cut in Medicare payments with the expected 3.5% increase in the Medicare Economic Index, which tracks the higher costs for physician practices.

“To put it bluntly, Medicare plans to pay us less while costs go up,” Scott said after the payments were finalized. “You don’t have to be an economist to know that is an unsustainable trend, though one that has been going on for decades.”

Healthcare leaders said the continued cuts will prompt physicians to stop taking Medicare patients and is putting practices at risk.

Among other health leaders, Anders Gilberg, senior vice president of government affairs for the Medical Group Management Association, called for a lasting solution. Gilbert said lawmakers must craft “a more permanent, sustainable solution to the Medicare physician payment system.”

3. Hospitals, doctors clash over FTC rule barring non-compete contracts

The Federal Trade Commission sought to put an end to most non-compete agreements, saying it would boost the economy and offer more opportunities for talented people to find better jobs with higher pay.

The FTC rule had big implications for hospitals and the healthcare industry. Hospitals warned that the FTC’s plan would hurt healthcare systems and significantly alter the labor market.

Chad Golder, general counsel for the American Hospital Association, said the FTC’s ban of non-compete agreements is “bad law, bad policy, and a clear sign of an agency run amok.”

Conversely, physicians welcomed the FTC’s rule, saying it would help them secure better positions and enable them to earn more. Doctors said the pacts have kept doctors from pursuing better positions. Supporters of the FTC’s efforts say non-compete agreements may have a place for high-ranking executives, but shouldn’t extend broadly to physicians and other workers.

Hospitals and health systems expressed relief when a federal judge blocked the FTC's plans to prohibit non-compete agreements.

4. Republicans in Congress push to ban DEI in medical schools

House Republicans backed legislation aimed at wiping out efforts to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion at medical schools.

U.S. Rep. Greg Murphy, a Republican from North Carolina and a physician, is the prime sponsor of the bill.

Murphy’s office said the bill is intended to cut off federal funding to medical schools that have diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) offices. If enacted, the measure would also cut off funding to schools that discriminate based on race or ethnicity, his office said

Medical colleges have denounced such measures and argue that improving diversity in enrollment improves healthcare.

The Association of American Medical Colleges issued a statement backing DEI efforts. “The presence of diversity, equity, and inclusion in medical school curricula is intended to train the next generation of physicians to respond most appropriately to the rapidly diversifying populations that they will serve,” the AAMC said.

5. Kamala Harris-Donald Trump debate: What they said about healthcare

Healthcare didn’t emerge as a dominant theme in the presidential election, garnering less attention than the economy, consumer prices and immigration.

But when Vice President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump squared off in their only debate, healthcare issues provided some of the most contentious and memorable exchanges.

Harris sought to defend abortion rights and women’s rights to make their own choices. She also argued that abortion laws in some states were endangering women, tying the hands of doctors who would normally provide emergency care. She also pointed to women who wanted to have babies suffering severe complications because of murky state laws making it difficult for doctors to provide appropriate care.

Trump said he would leave abortion as an issue to be decided at the state level, but he didn’t answer when asked what he would do if Congress sent him legislation barring abortion nationwide.

Harris also said she would ensure that the Affordable Care Act would be preserved, and pointed to Trump’s efforts to abolish the law in his first term.

Trump said he isn’t looking to get rid of the law often called Obamacare, but said he’d look to make it better.

“If we can come up with a plan that's going to cost our people, our population, less money and be better healthcare than Obamacare, then I would absolutely do it, but until then, I'd run it as good as it can be run,” Trump said.

When asked if he had a specific plan to improve the Affordable Care Act, Trump said he had “concepts of a plan.”