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Consumer-directed health plans have been useful in controlling the rise of health costs over the last several years, but the survival of these plans is threatened by the new health overhaul law.
The number of people hospitalized or killed by serious heart attacks each year is down sharply, new studies show. The overall rate of hospitalization for heart disease is down, too. Experts attribute improving heart health to the decline in smoking, more people getting treated for high blood pressure and high cholesterol, and the greater attention many people now give to eating healthier foods and getting exercise. Prevention clearly pays off for those who pay attention.
Experts say states can employ a variety of strategies to identify and enroll eligible children in the Medicaid and CHIP programs this year
Federally funded initiatives to enroll kids in Medicaid and CHIP hold lessons for enrolling adults once health overhaul goes into effect in 2014.
The “Walkers/Talkers” program in New Orleans sends workers into the poorest neighborhoods to find uninsured children and then helps sign them up for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
The Walkers/Talkers program in New Orleans sends workers into the poorest neighborhoods to help sign uninsured children up for government health insurance programs.
Doctors across the country find themselves
The Senate is debating ways to reverse a 21 percent cut in Medicare physician payments that began on June 1.
When it comes to “social mission,” traditionally high-ranked private medical schools are not as successful as public universities and historically black colleges.
Florida hospital administrators for years have said the state’s high rate of preterm births — and the infant health problems that result — are beyond their control. But that’s not true, as Tallahassee Memorial Hospital has proved.
The Senate is debating ways to reverse a 21 percent cut in Medicare physician payments that began on June 1. The legislation would also include additional Medicaid money for states.
After the bitter battle to get the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act passed, Democrats are on the defensive amid an expected increase in Americans’ health care costs.
A few years ago, federal officials began rating Medicare Advantage plans – using a scale of one to five stars – but seniors’ advocates, policy analysts, insurers and some top Medicare officials agree the ratings are flawed. Even so, the star system is about to become more significant.
Chart depicts percentage of beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans by rating.
A new Obama administration regulation lays out how employers and insurers can revise their health plans
The overall health care plan remains unpopular, and Republicans are campaigning on a promise to repeal the law and replace it with something less costly. But when it comes to repeal – well, Democrats think that could help them, too.
A bill before Congress that would extend richer federal Medicaid assistance to states has now become an issue in the Kansas governor’s race.
In the long run, there’s no getting around the fact that Advantage plans will shrink in generosity and availability. Anything else would defy a fundamental law of economics that also happens to be a fundamental law of politics: you get what you pay for. And that might not be a bad thing.
Administration officials tout the Medicare drug rebate as an early and tangible benefit of health reform while Senate Democrats continue trying to advance a legislative package that includes the Medicare physician payment fix and, potentially, an extension of enhanced Medicaid funding for states.
Now that health reform is law, reporters covering this topic are shifting from political angles to the issues and questions surrounding how the law is implemented. This briefing for reporters discussed story ideas and approaches for reporting on health reform going forward.
