How absurd can a law be, to force nuns (who have taken vows of both poverty and celibacy) to explain to the state why they don’t want to pay for contraception? That requirement was too much for Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who issued a temporary injunction against ObamaCare’s mandate that health plans must cover contraception.
Nevertheless, some of the law’s opponents are engaged in a disproportionate response to the contraceptive mandate.
Read the entire column at The Independent Institute's Beacon blog or John Goodman's Health Policy Blog.
Research and commentary from a former senior executive in the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Thursday, January 9, 2014
Hooray! The Medicare "Doc Fix" is Fixed Until March 31!
Once again, Congress pretends to have fixed the unfixable: The way Medicare pays doctors. An earlier blog entry describes how Medicare pays physicians by using a method that puts the old Soviet Gosplan to shame.
However, Congress is not able to correct this, because of the “cake and eat it too” approach of organized medicine’s lobbyists. They want effectively unlimited access to taxpayers’ money without political control.
Read the entire column at John Goodman's Health Policy Blog or the Independent Institute's Beacon blog.
However, Congress is not able to correct this, because of the “cake and eat it too” approach of organized medicine’s lobbyists. They want effectively unlimited access to taxpayers’ money without political control.
Read the entire column at John Goodman's Health Policy Blog or the Independent Institute's Beacon blog.
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Obamacare Has Narrow Networks. But Why Are There Any Networks At All?
According to recent research, about two-thirds of hospital networks on the Obamacare exchanges are “narrow” or “ultra-narrow”; This was defined by surveying 20 urban areas and identifying the 20 biggest hospitals in each area; An insurer with at least 15 hospitals in network have a “broad” network; those with 7 to 14 hospitals have a “narrow” network; and those with 6 or fewer hospitals have an “ultra-narrow” network.
But why do health insurers have networks at all?
Read the entire column at the Independent Institute's Beacon blog or John Goodman's Health Policy Blog.
But why do health insurers have networks at all?
Read the entire column at the Independent Institute's Beacon blog or John Goodman's Health Policy Blog.
Monday, January 6, 2014
Private Exchanges: Getting Ready For Individual Health Insurance To Be The Standard
The Holy Grail of free-market health reform is changing the tax code so that individuals can buy individual health insurance on the same tax-advantaged basis as they get employer-based health benefits.
How can we get there, in a world where everyone who promotes the idea will be accused of “taking away” citizens’ employer-based benefits? The ground is being prepared with a relatively recent innovation: Private health-benefit exchanges.
According to a recent survey sponsored by a coalition of employers’ groups, 45 percent of employers have or are considering using private exchanges to offer health benefits to their employees before 2018. A November survey by David Franklin of the independent equity research firm Blueshift reported similarly high interest in private exchanges.
Read the entire column at John Goodman's Health Policy Blog or The Independent Institute's Beacon blog.
How can we get there, in a world where everyone who promotes the idea will be accused of “taking away” citizens’ employer-based benefits? The ground is being prepared with a relatively recent innovation: Private health-benefit exchanges.
According to a recent survey sponsored by a coalition of employers’ groups, 45 percent of employers have or are considering using private exchanges to offer health benefits to their employees before 2018. A November survey by David Franklin of the independent equity research firm Blueshift reported similarly high interest in private exchanges.
Read the entire column at John Goodman's Health Policy Blog or The Independent Institute's Beacon blog.
Friday, January 3, 2014
Obamacare Will Not Stop Hospitals Overcharging the Uninsured
In two recent posts I discussed out-of-control prices for hospital services, especially emergency-room care. In the first, I argued that sky-high hospital prices are the result of government interference. In the second, I cheered the fact that consumer-driven health plans are inducing hospitals (ever so gradually) to be more upfront with patients (at least, those coming in for scheduled surgeries) about how much they will have to pay out of pocket, and agreeing on payment plans before admission.
Obamacare promises to come to the rescue of uninsured patients who are charged outrageous prices by hospitals. Statutory language purports to limit hospital charges to uninsured patients in the ER to “not more than the lowest amounts charged to individuals who have insurance covering such care.” Hospitals that fail to adhere to this policy risk losing their non-profit status. (The relevant text is on page 739 of the enrolled version of the bill here.)
Hospitals take threats to their non-profit status very seriously. So, since the Affordable Care Act was passed in 2010, you might expect that the overcharging of uninsured patients has long since stopped. You would be wrong. Like everything else in Obamacare, this has malfunctioned.
Read the entire article at The Independent Institute's Beacon blog or John Goodman's Health Policy Blog.
Obamacare promises to come to the rescue of uninsured patients who are charged outrageous prices by hospitals. Statutory language purports to limit hospital charges to uninsured patients in the ER to “not more than the lowest amounts charged to individuals who have insurance covering such care.” Hospitals that fail to adhere to this policy risk losing their non-profit status. (The relevant text is on page 739 of the enrolled version of the bill here.)
Hospitals take threats to their non-profit status very seriously. So, since the Affordable Care Act was passed in 2010, you might expect that the overcharging of uninsured patients has long since stopped. You would be wrong. Like everything else in Obamacare, this has malfunctioned.
Read the entire article at The Independent Institute's Beacon blog or John Goodman's Health Policy Blog.
Medical-Device Connectivity to Grow 800 % in 7 Years
Transparency Market Research recently published a report anticipating a 38 percent compound annual growth rate in the market for medical-device connectivity through 2019, from $3.4 billion worldwide in 2012. If this comes to pass, it is good news, because it will cause health costs to drop and quality to increase.
Read the entire article at Forbes.com: The Apothecary.
Read the entire article at Forbes.com: The Apothecary.
Thursday, January 2, 2014
California's Consumer Hotline for Obamacare Will Not Fix Its Problems
Nationwide, many (including New York Times columnist Paul Krugman) seem to think that California got Obamacare right. Given the fiasco of the Obamacare launch in other states, that's a low bar. At least, the Covered California website works.
Nevertheless, the relative success of the California exchange cannot compensate for Obamacare's fundamental flaws.
Read my entire article at the Orange County Register.
Nevertheless, the relative success of the California exchange cannot compensate for Obamacare's fundamental flaws.
Read my entire article at the Orange County Register.
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