Traditional Medicare is changing
The New York Times reports that Medicare has finalized a new rule under which traditional Medicare is changing its provider payment system. The goal is to improve care for patients while reducing...
View ArticlePaying less for hospital care through reference pricing
Only an an all-payer system with uniform health care rates, will keep us from wildly varying and out-of-control hospital and doctor rates. But, since Congress is not likely to go that route any time...
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 ArticleMedicare is more efficient than private insurance
Contrary to claims made by John Goodman and Thomas Saving in a Health Affairs Blog post, non-partisan data from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services...
View ArticleTurning 65? Make sure you’re not involuntary enrolled in a Medicare Advantage...
An increasing number of people first going on Medicare are being involuntarily enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans when they turn 65. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS, has given...
View ArticleOverwhelming majority of people newly eligible for Medicare enroll in...
A January 2015 Kaiser Family Foundation study shows that the overwhelming majority of people newly eligible for Medicare enroll in traditional Medicare. About 70 percent of people with Medicare are...
View ArticleInsurers limiting drug coverage to keep people with costly conditions from...
When was the last time you heard of a health insurer advertising its first class cancer care, its impressive slew of specialists or its low costs to people with complex conditions? In fact, you’ve...
View ArticleThankful for traditional Medicare? Call Paul Ryan
Of all the health care plans in America, traditional Medicare does the most to ensure people get needed care. Unlike private insurance, which increasingly rations care based on people’s ability to...
View ArticleGovernment still overpays commercial Medicare plans
At a recent meeting of the Medicare Payment Advisory Committee (MedPAC), commissioners learned that, all things being equal, Medicare Advantage plans–commercial health plans offering Medicare...
View ArticleDo we really need commercial health insurance?
For anyone who questions the value of commercial health insurance and wants to understand how to fix our health care system, Fix It: Healthcare at the Tipping Point is a must-see 58-minute film. It...
View ArticleFour things to think about when choosing a plan to fill gaps in Medicare, a...
While people with Medicare have the choice of the government administered traditional Medicare or a commercial Medicare Advantage plan that provides Medicare benefits, most people opt for traditional...
View ArticleWhat is improved Medicare for all and why do we need it
Responding to a piece in The Nation, Margaret Flowers explains explains improved Medicare for all and why we need it in Nationofchange.org. Improved Medicare for all, detailed in U.S. House bill 676,...
View ArticleWhat are Accountable Care Organizations?
Medicare has been experimenting with new payment models to bring down health care costs, improve health care quality and promote healthy communities. One payment model launched in 2013 is a...
View ArticlePeople shouldn’t need to comparison shop for health care
Kaiser Health News reports on recent findings in Health Affairs revealing that most people do not try to lower their health care costs by comparison shopping. While comparison shopping could lower your...
View ArticleHHS proposals would drive up Medicare costs
A recent StatPlus story reports that the Trump administration is considering proposals that could drive up Medicare costs significantly for 58 million older adults and people with disabilities. The...
View ArticleMedicare Open Enrollment: Consider changing health plans
Medicare Open Enrollment begins on October 15 and runs through December 7. During this time, it’s wise to take a hard look at your Medicare options for next year. Your health coverage may be changing...
View ArticleIf you want easy health care access and good quality care, you probably want...
When you’re considering your Medicare health plan options, if you want easy health care access and good quality care, you should seriously consider traditional Medicare. It is likely your only option...
View Article“Premium support” undermines Medicare
Speaker Paul Ryan and former HHS Secretary Tom Price, among others, have called for redesigning Medicare from a program that covers all medically necessary services for a fixed premium to one in which...
View ArticleAmazon, Berkshire Hathaway alliance could lead to Medicare for all
What should we think about the new alliance among Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JP Morgan to address ever increasing health care costs? We still do not know what they will do or try to do. But, their...
View ArticleSeven reasons commercial insurance cannot meet our health care needs
As policymakers, pundits and the public consider the path to universal health care coverage in the US, it is helpful to remind ourselves of the key reasons that commercial health insurance cannot and...
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