To contain health care costs, US must reduce error, modernize administration
...ad-scale demonstration of new approaches to health insurance coverage, science-based benefits, use of modern information technology, and establishment of quality standards. Paying for high performance in the delivery of health services under Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance. Investment in research...Trends in private Medicare+Choice plans provide warnings for Medicare debate
...s that would shift more beneficiaries into private insurance plans, legislators may first want to examine the often tumultuous history of the six-year-old Medicare+Choice program, Medicare's managed care alternative to its traditional fee-for-service program. According to a new policy brief from The Commonweal...UCLA report shows disparities in children's health
...e the gap for children who are eligible for health insurance but not enrolled. Approximately 202,000 children u... and retention efforts are needed to extend health insurance to more children and develop policies and programs to fill existing gaps. The study also found that ...A global strategy for reducing catastrophic health-care payments
...lds, has affected the design of health systems and insurance mechanisms in countries as diverse as the USA, Aus...financially disastrous for poor households with no insurance cover. Christopher Murray, Ke Xu, and colleagues from WHO, Geneva, Switzerland used data from househ...Taking control: Lab testing you order for yourself
...owest ranking incentive for using DAT. Having insurance that pays for a laboratory tests was the overwhelming reason that consumers would not use DAT. Approximately 32 percent stated they would prefer physician administration of a test, although quality did not seem to be a key disincentive. Suggested...AAS praises President's Commission for emphasizing suicide prevention
...iscrimination against mental health care in health insurance programs, and the establishment of parity between mental and physical health. AAS also supports the Commission's call for increased use of evidence-based treatment in a transformed mental health system. AAS President Rudd commented, "It's important ...July/August 2003 Annals of Family Medicine tip sheet
... Americans with a usual source of care and health insurance are more likely to receive health care services th...sual source of care. The study found that lack of insurance is associated with less care in all settings except the emergency department and that not having a "...Study shows pharmacist-physician partnership reduces health care costs, bad drug interactions
...regardless of their ability to pay or their health insurance status. Pharmacists complete a 120-hour, eight-week, 50-patient certificate preparation program in pharmaceutical care provided by the Peters Institute of Pharmaceutical Care at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy. The program focuses o...Medicare+Choice enrollees face continued cost increases in 2003, costs have doubled since 1999
...e in good health rose from $836 to $1,564. "Health insurance is designed to protect individuals from high health care costs that could inflict financial hardship," said Karen Davis, president of The Commonwealth Fund. "The steadily increasing financial burden on sicker beneficiaries is of notable concern." Ave...JAMA study: Medicare coverage boosts cancer, cholesterol screening for previously uninsured adults
...ns have great difficulty finding affordable health insurance coverage, or even any coverage at all," said Karen Davis, president of The Commonwealth Fund, which supported the study. "An early Medicare buy-in option for these adults would ensure greater access to potentially life-saving preventive tests, which ...UI Researchers urge advances in meth abuse treatment
... take advantage of outpatient care. Most state and insurance programs will not pay for treatment beyond two weeks, so even if a medical need is confirmed, funding needs also must be addressed, Hall said. In addition, there are few prison treatment programs for substance abuse. "The emphasis on dealing with met...Many low income Medicare beneficiaries will still face high drug bills under proposals in Congress
...services, Part B premiums, and supplemental health insurance premiums. About 10.2 million elderly and disabled Medicare beneficiaries fall in the $10,000$20,000 income bracket. Beneficiaries in this near-poor group spend more out-of-pocket on prescription drugs than those in other income groups, despite the f...Physicians and patients rarely discuss costs
...s study. Although 90 percent of study patients had insurance that covered at least part of the costs of prescription drugs, 25 percent complained that out-of-pocket costs were a burden, and 16 percent reported that they had skipped or stretched a medicine during the previous 12 months due to costs. Patients se...Children with sickle cell anemia often don't receive antibiotics to prevent deadly infections
...hington. The study of children covered by Medicaid insurance in two states found that pharmacies only provided ...quests for refills and visits to a pharmacy. "Many insurance groups, including Medicaid, place limits on the length of prescriptions. While this makes sense for ...Health insurance scams leave thousands with large medical debts and no coverage
...dented increase in unauthorized and illegal health insurance plans, spurred by rising health care costs and inc...rom The Commonwealth Fund. Companies selling phony insurance collect premiums from enrollees but fail to pay health care providers. With no safety net, such as a...Progress shown in death rates from four leading cancers decline in overall mortality has slowed
...ccess to care, often among women who lacked health insurance and among recent immigrants. Prostate cancer death rates have been declining since 1994, while incidence rates have been rising since 1995, with a 3.0 percent per year increase in white men and a 2.3 percent per year increase in black men. Clarifica...High cost of life-saving childrens vaccine may be keeping some doctors from giving it
...-- especially if many children they see don't have insurance that covers their shots. The results are published...n smaller practices or who see many children whose insurance doesn't cover Prevnar -- are reluctant to treat it like any other vaccine. Ironically, Davis notes, ...Study suggests life insurance should cover people treated for HIV
... for cancer--calling into question the decision of insurance companies in many developed countries to not offer life insurance for people with HIV/AIDS. People with HIV-1 infection can not obtain life insurance because of their...Poor health affects business bottom line, says HHS
...cost U.S. businesses billions of dollars in health insurance costs and lost productivity, according to a report released Tuesday by the Department of Health and Human Services. In 1994, obesity-related problems cost businesses an estimated $13 billion, and diabetes contributed to more than 14 million disabilit...New Commonwealth Fund analysis compares candidtes' health care reform proposals
...tes reveals a range of strategies to extend health insurance coverage to millions of uninsured Americans. Most ...rograms to strengthen employer coverage, new group insurance options, and public program expansions. The report recommends questions the public might pose to can...