Author Frequently asked questions. 531 items Posts pagination Newer 1 … 35 36 37 38 39 … 54 Older Insurers and hospitals fight while patients suffer December 27, 2019 California Medical Association, December 23, 2019 Cottage Hospital System has initiated a contract termination with Anthem Blue Cross that affects three hospitals in the central Santa Barbara area. If the two parties fail to come to an agreement by the end of the year, the contract will terminate effective January 1, 2020. The California Medical […] Quote of the Day William Greider’s message for us December 26, 2019 The End of New Deal Liberalism By William Greider The Nation, January 5, 2011 We have reached a pivotal moment in government and politics, and it feels like the last, groaning spasms of New Deal liberalism. When the party of activist government, faced with an epic crisis, will not use government’s extensive powers to reverse […] Quote of the Day Forget moral hazard; let’s achieve health care justice for all December 24, 2019 By Thomas C. Buchmueller, Helen G. Levy, Robert G. Valletta National Bureau of Economic Research, December 2019 Abstract We examine how a key provision of the Affordable Care Act–the expansion of Medicaid eligibility–affected health insurance coverage, access to care, and labor market transitions of unemployed workers. Comparing trends in states that implemented the Medicaid expansion […] Quote of the Day ‘Centrist bias’ smothers much needed reform December 23, 2019 The political establishment loves the center. But it’s the radicals who end up writing history. By John F. Harris Politico Magazine, November 7, 2019 Washington journalists these days are having many conversations with Democratic operatives and veterans of previous administrations that go something like this: This is insane. Our party has a death wish. We […] Quote of the Day Jim Hightower knocks fraidy-cat Democrats December 20, 2019 Not ordinary Democrats or independents — just insurance companies, lobbyists, and old-line politicians. By Jim Hightower Other Words, December 11, 2019 We might expect that corporate billionaires and Koch-funded Republican right-wingers would be howl-at-the-moon opponents of a wealth tax, Medicare-for-All, and other big progressive ideas to help improve the circumstances of America’s workaday majority. But […] Quote of the Day CBO report on the distribution of household income December 19, 2019 Congressional Budget Office, December 2019 Share of Total Income Received by Each Income Group To assess the direct distributional effects of federal fiscal policies, CBO projected each quintile’s share of total income both before and after means-tested transfers and taxes. Income shares are one measure of income inequality: When the share of income received by […] Quote of the Day Unions fight for better health plans, but… December 18, 2019 By Noam N. Levey Los Angeles Times, December 17, 2019 Even as soaring insurance deductibles wreak financial havoc on millions of American families, some workers have managed to dodge the affordability crisis. In Boston, a labor union representing the city’s hotel workers offers its members health coverage with no deductible and family premiums just a […] Quote of the Day Wendell Potter pulls Choice of Care out of ‘My Care, My Choice’ December 17, 2019 By Wendell Potter Twitter, December 16, 2019 Lately I’ve noticed some Democratic politicians defending the current healthcare system by saying it preserves “choice” for Americans. As a former health insurance exec who helped draft this talking point, I need to come clean on its back story, and why it’s wrong and a trap. 1/11 When […] Quote of the Day It’s the private insurers, stupid December 16, 2019 By Drew Altman, Kaiser Family Foundation Axios, December 16, 2019 The cost of private health insurance is out of control, compared to Medicare and Medicaid. You see that clearly if you take a long-term view of recently released federal data on health spending. Why it matters: This is why the health care industry — not […] Quote of the Day Private Medicare Advantage plans use chart review to bilk the taxpayers out of billions December 13, 2019 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, December 2019 The risk adjustment program is an important Medicare Advantage (MA) payment mechanism. It levels the playing field for MA organizations (MAOs) that enroll sicker beneficiaries who need a more costly level of care. This helps to ensure that sicker beneficiaries have continued […] Quote of the Day Posts pagination Newer 1 … 35 36 37 38 39 … 54 Older