In this 21st century digital world, it seems like every day a new word or expression surfaces and goes viral. Badass, lit, basic, I can’t keep up. But, when it comes to health care, I try my...
Diane Archer
New FDA rules let companies decide what food is safe
The FDA just issued a new rule on foods “generally recognized as safe” or GRAS. And, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the rule does not deliver on protecting...
Value-based insurance design coming to Medicare
In January 2017, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS, will launch a new initiative for some older adults and people with disabilities enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans. People in...
PhRMA fights states on drug pricing
Drug prices are rising at crazy rates; in 2015, almost one in three brand-name drugs saw a price increase of 20 percent. In response, more than a dozen states are considering legislation that would...
Is your toothpaste safe?
A new report and scorecard from the Cornucopia Institute finds that many toothpastes, including Colgate and Crest, contain all kinds of ingredients you might not want to be putting in your mouth. In...
Telehealth on the rise
Telehealth or telemedicine–the provision of care through telephone or digitally, including video visits and online care–originally was designed to meet the needs of patients otherwise...
Why has AARP been supporting ALEC?
It appears that AARP has been supporting ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council at least since 2014. ALEC is the Koch-based lobbying group that has been calling for the privatization of...
Having good friends promotes better health, longer life
A meta-analysis in PLOS Medicine reveals that having good friends promotes better health, longer life. Yet, over the last several generations we have become more socially isolated, increasingly less...
Justice Department sues to block health insurer mergers
Last July, Just Care reported the merger of Anthem and Cigna and of Humana and Aetna and their potential threat to the public good.. One year later, July 2016, the Justice Department filed two...
Health spending in U.S. will top $10,000 a person in 2016
Health spending in the U.S. will top $10,000 a person in 2016, according to new projections from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS. What’s responsible for this rise:...