Yale University Professor, Jacob Hacker, argues in a recent New York Times opinion piece that a public option is key to driving competition and reining in health care costs in the state health...
Diane Archer
Cranberry juice won’t treat urinary tract infections
Did your mother ever advise you drink cranberry juice to treat a urinary tract infection(UTI)? It turns out that it doesn’t work. A new study reported in JAMA finds that cranberries and...
Turning 65? Make sure you’re not involuntary enrolled in a...
An increasing number of people first going on Medicare are being involuntarily enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans when they turn 65. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS, has given...
Exercise may help memory and attention
There has been considerable research to show that exercise can reduce the likelihood of disability in older adults, lower your risk of stroke and improve bone health. It’s good for your...
Pharma’s role in our opioid crisis
By some accounts, 2.6 millions Americans are addicted to painkiller medications–opioids–and nearly 30,000 people have died from them as we have written about on Just Care. Last Week...
How can we rely on paid caregivers?
Many older adults who want to age in their communities must rely on paid caregivers to provide long-term care services. But, the two million home care workers in the U.S. have little financial...
Paying less for hospital care through reference pricing
Only an an all-payer system with uniform health care rates, will keep us from wildly varying and out-of-control hospital and doctor rates. But, since Congress is not likely to go that route any...
Social Security benefits barely rising in 2017
Social Security just announced the cost-of-living adjustment, COLA, for Social Security, and the news is bleak. Social Security benefits are barely rising. The typical older adult receiving benefits...
A medical device may make heart surgery even riskier
Every year, more than half a million Americans have heart bypass surgery to get blood flowing to the heart. As we all know, heart surgery can be risky. What most of us don’t know is that a new...
Traditional Medicare is changing
The New York Times reports that Medicare has finalized a new rule under which traditional Medicare is changing its provider payment system. The goal is to improve care for patients while reducing...