Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

Hospital Monopolies Driving Up the Costs of Healthcare

A good article on hospital increasing healthcare costs, due to consolidations, supplies, and the associated hospital operational management. The article also engages in a book review of Big Med by David Dranove and Lawton Robert Burns (“Megaproviders and the High Cost of Health Care in America“). I will have to check the book out and […]

Republicans Plan to Use Debt Limit Leverage to Cut Social Security and Medicare

Introduction: FFS Medicare Overhead costs are ~2%. Medicare Advantage overhead costs are far higher. The same can be said for commercial healthcare costs paid by insurance companies. Neither MA administered healthcare or commercial insurance plans can compete with FFS Medicare for costs and care. I will touch on a few reasons why on Medicare at […]

Value-Based Payment Is the New For-Profit Health Care Industry

Before I get started on the main text of Kip’s expert article, I wish to point out something which is happening nationally. There is a plan afoot of forcing people into Value-Based Payment plans from traditional Medicare. The players include Iora Health (subsidiary of One Medical), Privia, General Catalyst, agilon health, Caravan Health, Signify (CVS […]

“Finally, Some Accountability for Medicare Advantage Ads”

This was sent to me by Dale Coberly. I was wondering why Dale was sending me trash advertisements. Skimmed it and then it dawned on me. Much of this advertising is made to sway people’s minds to do something. It is the type of advertising I sometimes wish to throw a shoe at the 65-inch […]

Medicare Drug price control in the Inflation Reduction Act Moves Forward Except for Insulin

JAMA Network “How Do Commercial Insurance Plans Fare Under Proposed Prescription Drug Price Regulation?” Rena M. Conti, Richard G. Frank, Len M. Nichols December 2021, this article came out detailing Medicare negotiating directly with pharmaceutical companies and the impact of the negotiation on people insured by commercial plans. That is if commercial insurance plans were […]

SCOTUS Rebuffs United Healthcare Medicare Advantage

This is an interesting result I ran across in MSN as taken from Reuters. Both Kip Sullivan and I have written about Medicare Advantage plans over coding patients, resulting in overcharges to CMS Medicare. “Why is CMS Overpaying United Healthcare Medicare Advantage Plans?” – Angry Bear, “Medicare Advantage and Medicare Issues” – Angry Bear, “Kip […]

Your Subsidy Expires? What You Will Pay for Healthcare Insurance

As is typical, Charles Gaba at ACA Signups.net has the answers to the question. Charles does a lot more of this type of analysis such as the Healthcare’s Three – Legged Stool, ACA Enrollment, Risk Pools, etc. All three of these are at Angry Bear. I am not sure why Michigan state and federal legislators […]

Medicaid Estate Recovery imposed on Medicaid enrollees

  Andrew writes on healthcare, mostly the PPACA plan and the various metal plans, and the latest gig (ARPA) resulting in lower costs for anyone under 250% FPL and lower costs for anyone higher than 400% FPL. All made possible due to Biden and Democrat’s American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. It will expire EOY 2022 […]

Medicare vs Commercial Insurance Pricing 2012 – 2019

Copy and Paste for now until I can get into the Health Affairs article. Hospitalization averages a third of all healthcare costs. The pricing (Pricing equals costs in this instance) varies by region which kind of tells me there “may” be variation due to the strength of ACOs in regions. Trends in Hospital Prices Varied […]

Healthcare Sector Indicators and Insights

This is mostly a C&P with editing involved. Taken from Altarum Health Sector Economic Indicators, and “Insights from Monthly National Health Spending Data through December 2021.” I have added the link Altarum to return to the original article. Without the additional government spending covering Covid costs and a recession during 2020 -2021, overall healthcare spending […]