Are Rising Hospice Costs A Concern?
KHN’s story on concerns about the rising costs of hospice to Medicare, which ran Tuesday in The New York Times, has stirred up passionate debate among palliative care blogs and advocates. The story reported that the fourfold increase in hospice costs over the last decade has heightened worries that Medicare’s flat fee method of payment […]
Public Willing To Accept Minor Medicare Cuts, Poll Finds
Most Americans are willing to accept some level of cuts in Medicare spending to keep the program financially sound or to ease the federal budget deficit, but they still balk at major reductions, according to a new survey released Thursday. The poll results show that public opinion on Medicare cuts remains malleable, subject to influence by […]
Study: Small Doctors’ Practices Not ‘Home’ Yet
A study released Thursday on the Health Affairs website documents how far small- and medium-sized physicians’ practices have to go to create patient-centered medical homes. Under this model of care, primary care doctors manage all of a patient’s care and coordinate with the specialists. The Affordable Care Act encourages model homes as having potential to reduce […]
U.S. Health Surveys To Ask About Sexual Orientation
The government’s major health surveys would begin asking people to identify their sexual orientation under a proposal released today by the Obama administration. Under the proposal, the National Health Interview Survey and other major research tools would ask people to identify whether they are straight, lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. The idea was recommended by […]
For-Profit Hospices Get New Scrutiny As Costs Grow
Are for-profit companies driving up the cost of Medicare’s hospice benefit? After a decade in which most new hospices were started by corporations, half of Medicare-certified hospices are now for-profits. Concurrently, Medicare’s hospice costs have increased from $2.9 billion in 2000 to $12 billion in 2009, making it one of the fastest growing segments of […]
Growing Hospice Care Costs Bring Concerns About Misuse
Although the benefit is intended for patients who have no more than six months to live, 19 percent now receive hospice services for longer.
‘Double’ Chest Scans Increase Costs And Exposure To Radiation
Many hospitals are performing unusually large numbers of a type of CT scan experts say should be done sparingly.
Report: Big Flaws In How Medicare Pays Hospitals, Doctors
A prestigious Institute of Medicine panel says Medicare’s methods of evaluating regional costs are disturbingly imprecise and need to be overhauled.
Medicare Announces Rules For Quality Bonuses To Hospitals
Extra funding will be awarded to facilities that do better than average on quality of care and patient satisfaction.
Medicare To Begin Basing Hospital Payments On Patient-Satisfaction Scores
Beginning in 2012, bad grades from unhappy patients could cause hospitals to lose out on bonuses.
Patient Safety Expert Says Law Could Lead To Overuse Of Medical Care: The KHN Interview
Rosemary Gibson, who has led national efforts to improve health care quality and safety, is concerned about 32 million newly insured Americans being exposed to too much treatment.
New ACO Rules Outline Gains And Risks For Doctors, Hospitals
As many as 4 million Medicare beneficiaries could end up in new model of health care, but initial savings for government are small.
Brokers Seek To Preserve Role In Health Insurance Marketplace
Insurance agents fear the health reform law threatens their livelihood and want changes in rules to protect their commissions and guarantee them a role in the new health exchanges.
From California To The New York Island, A New Understanding Of Higher Medicare Spending
CMS analysis shows that some regions with high spending levels are below the national average if patient health and special expenses are factored in.
Many Americans Incorrectly Believe Health Law Has Been Repealed
Nearly a year after passage of the health care overhaul law, barely half of Americans know the law remains intact, a Kaiser Family Foundation poll shows.
Lobbyists Challenging Limits On Health Flexible Spending Accounts
Companies that administer or profit from flexible spending accounts are trying to change provisions in the new health law restricting the pre-tax funds used by millions of consumers.
GOP Vows To Attack Health Law Tree, Branch By Branch
A look at six provisions that House committees could try to ax as they begin working to revise the health overhaul.
Insurers Clash With Hospitals And Doctors Over ACO Rules
Powerful interests that are supposed to create and run the health law’s new accountable care organizations are fighting over what the rules governing ACOs should say.
McAllen, Tex. spends more on Medicare patients than almost any other part of the country. But a new study contradicts the assumption that McAllen, Texas doctors over-treat everyone.
As Hospital System Expands, Patient Advocates Worry
Sutter Health, the most expensive health system in California, is expanding at a rapid pace and transforming itself into an “accountable care organization.” Some worry about the nonprofit hospital’s growing leverage.
