Medicare
Commentary
Government is Fighting Covid-19 on Tape Delay
To great fanfare, the Biden administration just launched a website where Americans can request at-home COVID-19 tests, delivered by the U.S. Postal Service free of charge. It’s a sad commentary on the competence of the federal government that the successful launch of a website counts as a big win these ...
Commentary
At the ‘Pharmer’s’ Market, Patients Suffer While Middlemen Profit
Imagine a visit to the local farmer’s market. When you’re about to pay the farmer for some fruit, a man in a suit and sunglasses interrupts the exchange and offers to negotiate a discount with the farmer. Cool, right? Not so fast. The man in the suit didn’t tell you ...
Commentary
Will the independent medical practice become extinct in America?
Upon facing declining revenue prospects, physicians are shuttering their private, independent practices to partner up with larger hospitals that have near-monopolies on care in the regions they serve. This trend is depressing news for most Americans. Further concentration of market power in these health systems ultimately results in less personalized ...
Commentary
It’s time for hospitals to be transparent about their prices
More than a year after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services enacted a rule requiring hospitals to disclose prices for routine procedures, most still aren’t complying. That’s according to a new study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. As of last month, CMS had issued 335 warnings ...
Commentary
Don’t Fall for the ‘Certificate of Need’ Laws Con Game
Last week, the South Carolina state Senate voted overwhelmingly to end the state’s certificate of need program, which requires healthcare providers to seek government approval before building or expanding a hospital or purchasing pricey medical equipment. Such policies have long been justified as tools for avoiding duplicative or wasteful healthcare expenditures. Their only real ...
Commentary
Drug discount program padding hospital profits
Improving vulnerable populations’ access to medicines is clearly important. But something is amiss when a program that is supposed to improve access to healthcare has turned into a cash cow for hospitals. Yet, that is what has happened to the obscure 340B drug discount program. Too many hospitals across Massachusetts ...
Commentary
Medicare Advantage Gives Seniors An Advantage
More than 28.5 million patients are now enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, according to new federal data. That’s up nearly 9% compared with the same time last year. More than 40% of the more than 63 million people enrolled in Medicare are now in an MA plan. Enrollment in MA has been surging for some ...
Commentary
Oregon wants to ration health care in new proposal
One of the most important health care protections for low-income Americans is the requirement that state Medicaid programs cover nearly all medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This directive prevents states from balancing their books on the backs of the poor by excluding expensive drugs from Medicaid. Last ...
Commentary
Democrats Eye Canada’s Failed Healthcare System – Why?
Democrats in Congress are working to resurrect the Build Back Better Act, their massive social spending proposal that stalled in the Senate last month. To be certain, there’s plenty of disagreement across the party’s moderate and progressive wings. Yet, they’re largely aligned on healthcare. Indeed, Democrats are determined to increase the number ...
Blog
Three Legislative Reforms So Physicians Can Open Hospitals
It is rare to find an issue that unites both political parties. Finding such an issue within healthcare policy is even rarer. However, the worrisome trend of medical care provider consolidation – both individual practitioners and hospitals – concerns everyone. A well-researched fact, consolidation in medical care can dramatically drive ...
Government is Fighting Covid-19 on Tape Delay
To great fanfare, the Biden administration just launched a website where Americans can request at-home COVID-19 tests, delivered by the U.S. Postal Service free of charge. It’s a sad commentary on the competence of the federal government that the successful launch of a website counts as a big win these ...
At the ‘Pharmer’s’ Market, Patients Suffer While Middlemen Profit
Imagine a visit to the local farmer’s market. When you’re about to pay the farmer for some fruit, a man in a suit and sunglasses interrupts the exchange and offers to negotiate a discount with the farmer. Cool, right? Not so fast. The man in the suit didn’t tell you ...
Will the independent medical practice become extinct in America?
Upon facing declining revenue prospects, physicians are shuttering their private, independent practices to partner up with larger hospitals that have near-monopolies on care in the regions they serve. This trend is depressing news for most Americans. Further concentration of market power in these health systems ultimately results in less personalized ...
It’s time for hospitals to be transparent about their prices
More than a year after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services enacted a rule requiring hospitals to disclose prices for routine procedures, most still aren’t complying. That’s according to a new study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. As of last month, CMS had issued 335 warnings ...
Don’t Fall for the ‘Certificate of Need’ Laws Con Game
Last week, the South Carolina state Senate voted overwhelmingly to end the state’s certificate of need program, which requires healthcare providers to seek government approval before building or expanding a hospital or purchasing pricey medical equipment. Such policies have long been justified as tools for avoiding duplicative or wasteful healthcare expenditures. Their only real ...
Drug discount program padding hospital profits
Improving vulnerable populations’ access to medicines is clearly important. But something is amiss when a program that is supposed to improve access to healthcare has turned into a cash cow for hospitals. Yet, that is what has happened to the obscure 340B drug discount program. Too many hospitals across Massachusetts ...
Medicare Advantage Gives Seniors An Advantage
More than 28.5 million patients are now enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans, according to new federal data. That’s up nearly 9% compared with the same time last year. More than 40% of the more than 63 million people enrolled in Medicare are now in an MA plan. Enrollment in MA has been surging for some ...
Oregon wants to ration health care in new proposal
One of the most important health care protections for low-income Americans is the requirement that state Medicaid programs cover nearly all medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This directive prevents states from balancing their books on the backs of the poor by excluding expensive drugs from Medicaid. Last ...
Democrats Eye Canada’s Failed Healthcare System – Why?
Democrats in Congress are working to resurrect the Build Back Better Act, their massive social spending proposal that stalled in the Senate last month. To be certain, there’s plenty of disagreement across the party’s moderate and progressive wings. Yet, they’re largely aligned on healthcare. Indeed, Democrats are determined to increase the number ...
Three Legislative Reforms So Physicians Can Open Hospitals
It is rare to find an issue that unites both political parties. Finding such an issue within healthcare policy is even rarer. However, the worrisome trend of medical care provider consolidation – both individual practitioners and hospitals – concerns everyone. A well-researched fact, consolidation in medical care can dramatically drive ...
