June 19, 2014
So, about all those subsidies for health insurance that fueled approximately 8 million sign-ups for coverage under the Affordable Care Act. They are on track to cost us billions of dollars this year, a new federal report indicates.
Nearly nine in 10 Americans who bought healthcare coverage on the federal government’s healthcare marketplaces received government assistance to offset their premiums.
June 6, 2014
Thanks to Brian McTavish for covering Atlas MD at 1 Million Cups.
“Healthcare’s broken, and we’re here to fix it,” Umbehr said. Instead of taking insurance, Atlas MD charges patients a monthly membership fee—$10 for children and $50 to $100 for adults based on their age. Patients in return get unlimited visits, no co-pays, a variety of free procedures and wholesale pricing on prescriptions and lab work with discounts of up to 95 percent. In addition, Atlas MD works with employers to provide less expensive health care coverage for their employees.
June 4, 2014
In Sonoma County, a man is battling more than a dozen tumors in his body.
Oh, and now he is fighting a different battle, says CBS News, with his insurance carrier, Anthem Blue Cross.
May 19, 2014
You call for an appointment and are told it will be about 20 days.
You arrive on time only to sit in the apt named waiting room for 40 minutes.
You see your primary care doctor (PCP).
You start to explain why you came in.
May 7, 2014
In the fee-for-service world, like the real world, there is an annual cycle. And, of course, there are seasons.
You know “flu season,” “poison ivy season,” and maybe even “Lyme disease season”.
But there is also a season that has little to do with medicine and everything to do with a broken payment system.
April 23, 2014
About 8 million people have signed up for Year 1 of Obamacare, but millions of others are still falling into the law’s “coverage gap.” They earn too much money to qualify for Medicaid, but they don’t make enough to get federal subsidies to buy private insurance on an Affordable Care Act exchange.
The human toll of the coverage gap can be found all too easily in Hidalgo County, Texas, where less than half of non-senior adults had health insurance in 2012.
April 2, 2014
Yes, it’s true. More and more primary-care and family physicians are launching concierge practices for middle- and lower-income patients. It’s not an April Fools jokes. We literally saw 5 more docs enter the field just this week!
And yes, we’re limited in scope now. But we are radically reshaping how American families get their medicine.
January 14, 2014
The Washington Examiner played Obamacare watchdogs recently and came back with some shocking figures. You know we’re not insurance people per se, but we are free market enthusiasts. And to be clear, these numbers might be a little misleading (no one in support of Obamacare was willing to provide data to the Examiner). That said, scroll down and check out these infographics comparing Obamacare and Walmart’s health plans.
Some highlights: Walmart employees in Chicago can find way more options for way less cash. And plans/deductibles nationwide are far cheaper for Walmart employees. Plans granting access to prestigious hospitals like the Mayo Clinic are even included. And some plans offer up to $1,000 cash for flex-spending, perfect for a family to enroll in a direct care clinic.
June 12, 2013