Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Specialty Medicines Injected By Doctors Straining Budgets Of Medicare And Patients
The Fiscal Times: How Injectable 'Biologic' Drugs Are Busting Medicare’s Budget
Many of the new specialty drugs that have come on the market in recent years have provided breakthrough treatments for seriously ill Americans, even as they have strained the budgets of Medicare and other health insurance programs. ... A new Government Accountability Office study found that by 2013 Medicare was spending a staggering $20.9 billion a year on doctor-administered drugs, and a quarter of those drugs cost $51,000 to $536,000 per person. (Pianin, 11/23)
Kaiser Health News: End Of Medicare Bonus Program Will Cut Pay To Primary Care Doctors
Many primary care practitioners will be a little poorer next year because of the expiration of a health law program that has been paying them a 10 percent bonus for caring for Medicare patients. Some say the loss may trickle down to the patients, who could have a harder time finding a doctor or have to wait longer for appointments. But others say the program has had little impact on their practices, if they were aware of it at all. (Andrews, 11/24)
Reuters: How To Care For Two Parents At Once Without Going Broke
For years, Madeleine Smithberg has been at the forefront of American comedy as co-creator of "The Daily Show" and a talent coordinator for "Late Show with David Letterman." That sense of humor was especially handy during the last few years. That is because Smithberg had to cope with not one, but two elderly parents in rapid decline. "It's heartbreaking," says Smithberg, 56, who heads a production company in Los Angeles. "And yet it's invisible, because nobody talks about it." (Taylor, 11/23)
