While medical students are busy learning how to provide care, their education does not seem to include much about the big picture of health care policy. A University of Minnesota doctor surveyed the state's medical students last year and found fewer than half could say they understood the basics of the country's new health care overhaul.

The Minnetonka-based health insurer has agreed to share more information with federal regulators to root out illicit Medicare billings. UnitedHealth EVP Richard Migliori said, “There are mutual interests here in doing a better job at detecting what’s probably some $80 billion-plus per year in fraudulent payments across private and public sectors." WellPoint Inc and Humana Inc are also participating in the partnership.

The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue its decision on the constitutionality of the 2010 Affordable Care Act this week. Democratic Congressman Keith Ellison, who represents Minnesota's 5th District, is among those concerned that the court will rule that the mandate is unconstitutional, MPR reports. Republican U.S. Rep. John Kline of Minnesota's 2nd District says that if the court rules against any part of the bill, the GOP will try to scrap the entire thing.

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will be in the Twin Cities on the two-year anniversary of the landmark health care legislation. Sebelius will highlight insurance policies that she says discriminate against women. Meanwhile, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann is using the law's anniversary in a fundraising appeal built around her goal of repealing it.

Several companies have put their prototypes online for the public to test. The health insurance exchange is a cornerstone of the federal health reform law and is meant to give people looking to enroll an easy way to compare and purchase plans.

The Minnetonka-based health insurer will provide military health insurance coverage for 21 western states. UnitedHealth lost a separate contract for the southern region in June.

The Minnetonka-based health insurer brought in more than $100 billion last year. The Star Tribune reports UnitedHealth is among just 22 publicly traded companies and the first in Minnesota to reach that milestone. Read more ...

The federal health care overhaul was aimed at providing affordable health insurance to millions of Americans who lack it. But a low-income group falls into a kind of no-man's land for affordable coverage, and Minnesota officials are considering an optional program to help fill this gap. But there is a huge unknown: cost.