Democrats in Congress are determined to bring down prices for at least some prescription drugs as part of the budget reconciliation bill. The question is how will it do so. Will members talk the talk...
Diane Archer
Don’t let your supermarket choose your health plan
Nona Tepper reports for Modern Healthcare on a new health insurer strategy to enroll more Medicare Advantage members. Anthem is partnering with Kroger to offer Medicare Advantage plans in several...
Avoid opioids to treat dental pain
Teresa Carr writes for Consumer Reports on the best drugs to treat dental pain. Hint: Avoid opioids. Percocet, Oxycontin, Codeine, and Vicodin are highly addictive and, for the most part, not as good...
Vermont Medicare experiment improves health and lowers costs
Modern Healthcare reports on a Vermont Medicare experiment that has been found to improve patient health and reduce costs. The experiment relies on an all-payer model of health care or, put...
Coronavirus: Social Security stands on solid ground
Eric Kingson and Nancy Altman write for the Daily News on the Social Security Trustees Report, which confirms the solid ground upon which Social Security sits. Notwithstanding the pandemic, Social...
What will a new Medicare dental benefit cover?
The budget reconciliation bill working its way through Congress includes a Medicare dental benefit. If a dental benefit makes it into the final budget legislation, what will it cover? Margot Sanger...
Costa Rica’s investment in public health extends life
Atul Gawande writes for the New Yorker on Costa Rica’s secret to longevity–government investment in public health. Gawande reports on the value of the Costa Rican health care model, which...
Caregiving has become increasingly common, challenging and costly
We are an aging population. And, caring for older adults is costly. Not surprisingly, family caregiving is becoming increasingly common and challenging. It is unreasonable to assume that most older...
Grandfamily housing: A means to support multigenerational...
Grandparents are increasingly caregiving for grandchildren and other young relatives. Carly Stern reports for The New York Times on a growing trend of multigenerational caregiving and housing that...
Confirmed: Private insurance is full of ugly surprises
Thank god that Medicare regulates provider rates for older and disabled Americans and gives people a meaningful choice of public insurance–traditional Medicare–that covers virtually all...