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

Health Care Reform and the 2024 Elections

Health Care Reform and the 2024 U.S. Elections — Low Visibility, High Stakes. by Jonathan Oberlander, Ph.D. New England Journal of Medicine Exploring the what-ifs in healthcare and the ACA in an election year. What if Trump wins the presidency and Repubs control the House and the Senate. The author discusses the alternatives also. Abortion and reproductive […]

The key to longevity

You may have read about “blue zones,” certain communities that have an unusually large number of centenarians: Loma Linda in California, Okinawa in Japan, Sardinia in Italy, Nicoya in Costa Rica, and Ikaria in Greece. Since we can’t all move there, the next best thing would be to discover the key to longevity in these […]

Drug prices improved under Biden-Harris and Trump –

but not enough for everyone.” A partial taken from The Conversation on Drug Prices The impact of the drug negotiations has been modest at best. There is a lot of talk and hurrahs. The results are not there yet. When I go to the outside for care, the VA pays the doctors at a minimum. […]

The Role of Pharmacy Benefit Managers – Executive Summary

I wanted to put up the entire report. It is just too long. However, the link is there for addition reading to back up the Executive Summary. Angry Bear has been reporting on the rising costs of pharmaceuticals. Hopefully, the Executive Summary will add to Angry Bears knowledge base. PBM Report Final with Redactions House.gov […]

Exposure to Air Pollution May Increase Antibiotic Use for Respirator Symptoms

by Chris Dall University Minnesota.edu “ambient air pollution and heightened antibiotic use” A new study by Spanish researchers suggests that short-term exposure to air pollution may be tied to increased antibiotic use in people experiencing respiratory symptoms. The study, was published in JAMA Network Open, found that increases of daily ambient air pollution in 11 Spanish cities over […]

Drugs that cost money and save money

Big Pharma has become a familiar whipping boy in the debate over healthcare costs. CAR-T therapies to treat certain cancers, for example, can cost between half a million and a million dollars for a single treatment course. What’s the prospect of a cancer cure worth to you? GLP-1 receptor agonists like semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and […]

Turning a corner on Medicare Advantage?

As I posted yesterday, Medicare Advantage, which now covers more than half of the Medicare-eligible population, is a rip-off for taxpayers and for policy holders. Apparently, this is finally sinking in for hospitals and health systems across the country: “In 2023, Becker’s began reporting on hospitals and health systems nationwide that dropped some or all […]

Finally . . . the FTC Sues PBMs for Jacking Up Insulin Prices

Previouly . . . As Dr. Perry Wilson explains; “Different chronic diseases have different patterns of price increases. The biggest increase was seen in diabetes care (1993 – 2013) and driven largely by the rising prices of pharmaceuticals” of which the cost of manufacturing did not increase. Now Secretary of HHS, Alex Azar as the CEO of Eli […]