Ever since Obamacare became law, my colleagues and I have been writing about a race to the bottom in the exchanges – where health plans try to attract the healthy and avoid the sick. The result: people with serious health problems are being denied access to the doctors and hospitals they desperately need.
Category: Cost of Healthcare
Does Medicare Advantage Save the Government Money?
Matthew Holt at The Health Care Blog writes:
Critics (notably ex CMS veterans Berwick & Gilfillan) claim that risk adjustment games played by the private plans who run Medicare Advantage have cost up to $200bn over 10 years. Medpac (the independent body that advises Congress) estimates that “Medicare spends 4 percent more for MA enrollees than it would have spent if those enrollees remained in FFS Medicare” …. However data from the Medicare Trustees and other research from ACHP & the trade group Better Medicare Alliance suggests that Medpac’s analysis is incorrect and that Medicare Advantage saves the government about 9% per enrollee.
George Halvorson says the Medpac report is “fake news”.
Should the FDA Require Proof that High-Priced Drugs Actually Work?
An advisory committee at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently voted against fast-track approval for an experimental drug to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). ALS is also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. You can watch the committee meeting, and learn more, in this post.
April 2022 Health Care News
In this post you will find the latest topics from The Health Care News publication.