Young Adults Use ER Less Often After Health Law Allowed Them To Stay On Parents’ Plans
That conclusion is from one study of the expanded coverage. Another study finds young adults don't see themselves as healthier and many still find health care expensive.
Modern Healthcare: Young Adults May Be Less Likely To Use ED When Insured
Having access to health insurance is slowing the rate of young adults who head to the emergency department for care, a new study suggests. Relative use of the ED decreased among 19- to-25-year-olds after the healthcare reform law allowed them to stay on their parents' policies. The authors say the results show insurance can reduce ED overuse by removing the economic barriers to preventive care (Rice, 9/8).
The Washington Post’s Wonkblog: Obamacare Lets Young Adults Stay On Their Parents' Insurance Longer. Has That Made Them Better Off?
Allowing young adults to stay on their parents' health plans is one of the most popular elements of the president's health-care law, but a pair of new studies out today raises questions about the overall impact of the coverage expansion to an estimated 3 million people. ... As expected, it increased the rate of health insurance among young adults, who historically had the highest uninsured rates of any age group. But the provision didn't change whether the age group perceived themselves as healthier or whether they thought health care was any more affordable, according to a new study in JAMA Pediatrics (Millman, 9/8).
Also, Politico examines the issue of hospital consolidation -
Politico Pro: Hospital Consolidation Motif: 'The ACA Made Me Do It.'
The FTC is charged with enforcing anti-trust laws, and nothing has kept it busier recently than a surge of hospital consolidations. From 2009 to 2013, over a third of all cases investigated by the FTC were hospital-related. That doesn’t even include other health care mergers, including the pharmaceutical industry (Norman, 9/8).
