Starting January 1, 2026, Anthem BCBS will introduce a 10% reimbursement penalty for hospitals in 11 states when out-of-network physicians treat their members. Driven by the No Surprises Act’s impact on insurer costs, the policy applies to non-emergent OON care at in-network hospitals, with rural and safety-net facilities carved out for now.
Top Paid Specialties – NPs PAs
Becker's Hospital Review recently highlighted the highest-paying specialties for nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs), based on data from the 2025 SullivanCotter compensation survey. While Urgent Care didn’t make the NP top specialties list, UCA’s 2024 Clinician Compensation Report shows median UC salaries are competitive—placing NPs at \$148,720 and PAs at \$156,000, which would rank higher than several specialties in Becker’s list.