Medicare
Commentary
Heed the cautionary tale of Canadian health care
It’s a good thing Canadians are so polite; they spend an unbelievable amount of time waiting in line. In 2018, the typical Canadian patient faced a median wait of almost 20 weeks for treatment from a specialist after referral from a general practitioner, according to a new report from the ...
Commentary
Imposing price controls on prescription drugs
President Donald Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders don’t agree on much. But they both believe in price controls. Both men recently introduced separate proposals to impose price controls on prescription drugs. Though both men are likely well-intentioned, their plans are deeply misguided. Both proposals would discourage drug research and reduce ...
Commentary
Health spending in US is finally slowing: Here’s why
America’s health bill appears to be moderating, and market forces deserve the credit for this good news. National health expenditures grew more slowly in 2017 than in 2016, according to a report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The CMS statistics break down cost increases by category. Private health insurance spending grew ...
Commentary
The NHS’s Winter Crisis Is a Red Flag for Americans Enticed by Single-Payer
The winter flu season has plunged Britain’s government-run National Health Service into a full-blown crisis. Medical professionals are struggling to cope with an influx of patients. One doctor described his workplace as “an absolute war zone” and the “worst hospital conditions in my memory.” This is hardly the first time that flu ...
Commentary
Partial Medicaid expansion isn’t the solution
Some Trump administration officials, and even President Trump himself, reportedly favor allowing states to partially expand Medicaid, the program for low-income Americans jointly funded by the federal and state governments. Any expansion is a bad idea, for both fiscal and moral reasons. Obamacare enabled states to enroll able-bodied, childless adults ...
California
Governor Newsom’s troubling first act on medications
In one of his first acts, Governor Newsom signed an executive order that will change how medicines are purchased in California. With visions of big-box store discounts dancing in his head, Governor Newsom has established a bulk program that will now purchase drugs for the state’s Medicaid program (Medi-Cal). The ...
Commentary
Why Britons are sick of single-payer health care
The British National Health Service (NHS) is unraveling. This month, authorities said they’d consider relaxing official targets for waits in the country’s emergency rooms. At present, the system aims to see and admit, discharge or transfer 95 percent of patients within four hours. The NHS hasn’t been able to hit that target in years. ...
Commentary
Electronic records are driving doctor burnout
Doctors are being driven daffy by electronic health records, or EHRs. That’s the takeaway from a recent report in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association. Seven in 10 Rhode Island doctors surveyed who used electronic health records said that the technology stressed them out. Those who reported health ...
Blog
Democratic Socialists Are Painting the Roses Red
We’re painting the roses red, Painting the roses red, And many a tear we shed, Because we know, They’ll cease to grow, In fact, they’ll soon be dead. And yet we go ahead, Painting the roses red Just like the characters in Alice in Wonderland, Representative Ocasio-Cortez apparently knows that ...
Health Care
Sally Pipes Talks Affordable Health Care Options on “The David Webb Show”
PRI President, CEO, and Thomas W. Smith Fellow in Health Care Policy Sally C. Pipes discusses a new Trump insurance rule that could help small business employees afford health insurance, and the push by Democrats to enact a “Medicare For All” health care scheme on “The David Webb Show” on ...
Heed the cautionary tale of Canadian health care
It’s a good thing Canadians are so polite; they spend an unbelievable amount of time waiting in line. In 2018, the typical Canadian patient faced a median wait of almost 20 weeks for treatment from a specialist after referral from a general practitioner, according to a new report from the ...
Imposing price controls on prescription drugs
President Donald Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders don’t agree on much. But they both believe in price controls. Both men recently introduced separate proposals to impose price controls on prescription drugs. Though both men are likely well-intentioned, their plans are deeply misguided. Both proposals would discourage drug research and reduce ...
Health spending in US is finally slowing: Here’s why
America’s health bill appears to be moderating, and market forces deserve the credit for this good news. National health expenditures grew more slowly in 2017 than in 2016, according to a report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The CMS statistics break down cost increases by category. Private health insurance spending grew ...
The NHS’s Winter Crisis Is a Red Flag for Americans Enticed by Single-Payer
The winter flu season has plunged Britain’s government-run National Health Service into a full-blown crisis. Medical professionals are struggling to cope with an influx of patients. One doctor described his workplace as “an absolute war zone” and the “worst hospital conditions in my memory.” This is hardly the first time that flu ...
Partial Medicaid expansion isn’t the solution
Some Trump administration officials, and even President Trump himself, reportedly favor allowing states to partially expand Medicaid, the program for low-income Americans jointly funded by the federal and state governments. Any expansion is a bad idea, for both fiscal and moral reasons. Obamacare enabled states to enroll able-bodied, childless adults ...
Governor Newsom’s troubling first act on medications
In one of his first acts, Governor Newsom signed an executive order that will change how medicines are purchased in California. With visions of big-box store discounts dancing in his head, Governor Newsom has established a bulk program that will now purchase drugs for the state’s Medicaid program (Medi-Cal). The ...
Why Britons are sick of single-payer health care
The British National Health Service (NHS) is unraveling. This month, authorities said they’d consider relaxing official targets for waits in the country’s emergency rooms. At present, the system aims to see and admit, discharge or transfer 95 percent of patients within four hours. The NHS hasn’t been able to hit that target in years. ...
Electronic records are driving doctor burnout
Doctors are being driven daffy by electronic health records, or EHRs. That’s the takeaway from a recent report in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association. Seven in 10 Rhode Island doctors surveyed who used electronic health records said that the technology stressed them out. Those who reported health ...
Democratic Socialists Are Painting the Roses Red
We’re painting the roses red, Painting the roses red, And many a tear we shed, Because we know, They’ll cease to grow, In fact, they’ll soon be dead. And yet we go ahead, Painting the roses red Just like the characters in Alice in Wonderland, Representative Ocasio-Cortez apparently knows that ...
Sally Pipes Talks Affordable Health Care Options on “The David Webb Show”
PRI President, CEO, and Thomas W. Smith Fellow in Health Care Policy Sally C. Pipes discusses a new Trump insurance rule that could help small business employees afford health insurance, and the push by Democrats to enact a “Medicare For All” health care scheme on “The David Webb Show” on ...
