Insurers, Providers, Spar For Bigger Profits
As insurers ratchet down payments to physicians and hospitals, these providers are pushing back by imposing a host of new charges on consumers.
The New York Times:
As Insurers Try to Limit Costs, Providers Hit Patients With More Separate Fees
Leo Boudreau of Massachusetts was thrilled to find a psychologist in his insurance network to treat his teenage daughter for emotional stress related to a medical condition. ... But he was surprised when the bill for each visit contained two charges: the approximately $100 he expected to see for the therapist — and a similar fee for the room, which was not covered. ... As insurers ratchet down payments to physicians and hospitals, these providers are pushing back with a host of new charges. ... as insurers and providers fight over revenue in an era of cost control, patients often find themselves caught in the middle, nickel-and-dimed. (Rosenthal, 10/25)
Kaiser Health News:
Family Doctors Push For A Bigger Piece Of The Health Care Pie
Family medicine doctors are joining forces to win a bigger role in health care – and be paid for it. Eight family-physician-related groups, including the American Academy of Family Physicians, have formed Family Medicine for America’s Health, a coalition to sweeten the public perception of what they do and advance their interests through state and federal policies. (Gillespie, 10/24)
Meanwhile, an analysis of new cancer drugs finds that many are approved without proving that they extend life -
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel:
FDA Approves Cancer Drugs Without Proof They're Extending Lives
For decades, researchers have focused on developing new cancer drugs that save lives or improve the quality of life. But when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allowed Inlyta, a $10,000 a month drug, on the market in 2012, there was no proof that it did either. Inlyta is not an exception to the rule. A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MedPage Today analysis of 54 new cancer drugs found that over the last decade the FDA allowed 74% of them on the market without proof that they extended life. Seldom was there proof of improved quality of life, either. (Fauber, 10/26)
And court delays hinder an SEC probe into insider trading -
The Wall Street Journal:
SEC Says House Trading Probe Hindered By Court Delays
Prosecutors gathering evidence into whether congressional staff helped tip Wall Street traders to a change in health-care policy have hit a snag: a sluggish court system. A Securities and Exchange Commission attorney said Friday that delays by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York have “impeded” its investigation. (Ackerman, 10/24)
