After enactment of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), people in Medicare Part D filled more prescriptions because their costs were lower, according to a new study published in JAMA. Put differently...
Diane Archer
Five exercises to improve balance for safety and health
As we age, it becomes more likely that we will fall and break a hip or a shoulder. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that falls are the top cause of injury and death from injury for...
2026: Scrap the Social Security cap
Today, people earning $1,000,000 this year received a late Valentine. They stopped paying into Social Security for the rest of 2026 because they had hit the $184,500 cap on payroll contributions...
Medicare for those who choose it, a first step to guaranteed...
With health care becoming increasingly unaffordable, “Medicare for all,” the proposal to improve and expand Medicare to all Americans, is gaining support. In the words of Public Citizen...
Social Security substantially reduces poverty in US
A new study by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities finds that Social Security contributes heavily–more than any other program–to reducing poverty in the US, particularly for older women...
Why can’t we know the cost of health care before we get it?
Elisabeth Rosenthal reports for The Washington Post on a patient with psoriatic arthritis who was misled about the true cost of his medications in advance of starting them. Even with more than $9,000...
2026: Medicare Advantage enrollment declines in seven states and...
Health insurers offering Medicare Advantage plans are pulling out of several low-margin markets with the goal of boosting profits, reports Jakob Emerson for Becker’s. Overall, Medicare Advantage...
People with medical debt are likely to face housing insecurity
Even with health insurance, health care costs are so high in the US and so out of sync with wages that some 100 million Americans currently have medical debt totalling $220 billion. But, that’s not...
Insurers are expanding the role of AI to deny care and boost...
Health insurers are looking to AI as a means to boost profits, as health care costs rise and profit margins fall, reports Casey Ross for Stat News. Enrollees should expect AI to second-guess their...
Should drug companies advertise to Americans?
It wasn’t until 1997 that the FDA opened the door for drug companies to advertise directly to Americans. Until then, the thinking was that patients should learn about medications from their...