Medicare coverage for people with diabetes
More than nine million people over 65 have diabetes. Whether you are enrolled in traditional Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan, Medicare covers a range of services and supplies for people with...
View ArticleMedicare is the solution to out of control health care costs, everyone should...
In a new two-minute video for MoveOn, Robert Reich makes the case for why Medicare is part of the solution to fixing our economy. We should be expanding it and offering it to everyone in America...
View ArticleDriving hospital prices down through reference pricing
Until we have an all-payer system with uniform health care rates, we will have wildly varying and out-of-control hospital and doctor rates. Some purchasers, however, are innovating to rein in or...
View ArticleThree big differences between a private Medicare fee-for-service plan and...
Today, just as 50 years ago, when President Johnson signed Medicare into law, traditional Medicare is a fee-for-service program that allows older adults and people with disabilities to use almost any...
View ArticleFour things to think about when choosing a plan to fill gaps in Medicare, a...
Traditional Medicare provides you coverage from doctors and hospitals throughout the U.S. But, you could have significant out-of-pocket costs–deductibles and coinsurance–if you need a lot of care....
View Article7 questions you should answer before you turn 65
Everyone has lots of questions about their health and financial security as they age. Here are seven questions you should answer before you turn 65 with links to simple information to help you decide...
View ArticleOut-of-network coverage harder to come by
If you’re shopping for health insurance in a state health exchange, you may be hard-pressed to find a plan that covers your out-of-network care. And, that could mean huge out-of-pocket costs for some...
View ArticleDon’t trust your health plan’s provider directory
Unlike commercial insurance, traditional Medicare’s “one size fits all” approach offers a very wide choice of doctors and hospitals at a predictable cost, for which you can budget. With commercial...
View ArticleHealth plan networks limit access to care
One of the biggest problems with health insurance companies is that they generally offer health plans that limit coverage to doctors and hospitals in their networks. And, too often their networks of...
View ArticleFixing democracy: Addressing big money in politics
What can we do to fix our democracy? We need to be out there advocating for reform. Among other things, we need to get big money out of politics and health care. It’s corrosive. In Deadly Spin, my...
View ArticleFour things to think about when choosing between traditional Medicare and...
There are four important factors to consider when choosing between traditional Medicare, which is a public plan administered by the federal government, and Medicare Advantage plans, which are...
View ArticleMedicare Part D drug costs rising
The private Medicare plan bait and switch continues. It wasn’t that long ago that copays in private plans were reasonable, affordable even, without Medicare supplemental insurance to pick up the cost....
View ArticleWhy traditional Medicare remains so popular
Uwe Reinhardt, PhD, writes Why Many Medicare Beneficiaries Cling to an Allegedly Worse Deal in JAMA Forum earlier this month. In a nutshell, he argues that traditional Medicare remains so popular...
View ArticlePeople with traditional Medicare live longer
Thirty percent of Medicare spending happens on end-of-life care. How much care and what kind of care do people with Medicare receive? A new study by researchers at the University of Michigan Medical...
View ArticleHow to prepare for your doctor’s visit
Whether you’re in good health or poor health, in a separate post I explained why it’s important to have a good primary care doctor. And, I’ve provided four questions to help you know whether your...
View ArticleValue-based insurance design coming to Medicare
In January 2017, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS, will launch a new initiative for some older adults and people with disabilities enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans. People in...
View ArticleInsurers denying some costly treatments patients need
Bob Tedeschi reports in Stat news on a growing trend by health insurers to deny some costly treatments doctors say patients need and require them to try less costly treatments first. It’s called “step...
View ArticleSupport grows for Medicare buy-in and public health insurance option
Secretary Clinton is proposing a Medicare buy-in for people between 55 and 64 and a public health insurance option in the state health insurance exchanges. The public health insurance option was...
View ArticleMedicare Open Enrollment: Consider changing health plans
Medicare Open Enrollment begins on October 15 and runs through December 7. During this time, older adults and people with disabilities can switch Medicare health plans. They can also switch from one...
View ArticleFour ways Congress could weaken Medicare
Much like Social Security, Americans across the political spectrum prize Medicare. Medicare provides the anchor for their health security if they are over 65 or have a disability and offers peace of...
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