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.
March 2, 2014
Kevin Pho knows how to craft a headline. He says on Kevin MD, that patient satisfaction is all the rage, and that it might actually kill.
November 6, 2013
Michael Hiltzik from The Los Angeles Times wrote last week, “Obamacare’s critics are going to town on the cancellation letters millions of Americans are receiving from their health insurers…” This of course because of “healthcare reform” mandating that insurance plans meet certain requirements or be dissolved come Jan. 1.
Being as the President himself assured everyone that if they liked their insurance they’d be able to keep it, there’s obvious cause for alarm. Evidently, some people are especially bummed that they won’t get to keep their health plans that cost as little as $50 a month. Great price, right?
July 24, 2013
Eryn Brown of the LA Times posted an article yesterday claiming that physicians are concerned about skyrocketing healthcare costs. However, according to survey results released earlier in the week, most doctors don’t believe they have a “major responsibility” for reducing those costs.
June 21, 2013
The byline of last year’s LA Times article reads as follows: “Some physicians in solo practice, frustrated by long hours and less time with patients, opt for so-called concierge medicine. Critics say it could reduce access to care.” We’ve heard this argument before, and although it’s not entirely invalid, it does require a sweeping generalization, something theorists in academia do, or a teacher does when illuminating students to a mathematical law. And in doing so, it positions our field as more of a problem than a solution. They summarize direct primary care as follows: “The model is simple: Doctors charge their patients an annual fee and in turn, give them more time and attention.” While true, this overview is suspect, making us sound like we’re advocating a two-tiered system.
June 11, 2013
Dark Daily published an article saying a community hospital charged Kathy Meinhardt inpatient prices for clinical laboratory testing when she was a walk-up customer. As a result, Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa Valley has found itself centered within a media flare-up.