Health Insurers Seek Delay Of New Consumer-Friendly Coverage Forms
Shopping for health insurance next year will be easier, consumer advocates and government officials say. But the new materials are still a work in progress.
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Shopping for health insurance next year will be easier, consumer advocates and government officials say. But the new materials are still a work in progress.
Mila Kofman and Sabrina Corlette helped to develop the forms that HHS unveiled on Wednesday. The idea is to give consumers simple, clear and standardized information before they buy coverage – akin to nutrition labels.
Express Scripts and Medco Health Services manage the prescription drug coverage that health insurance companies offer to large organizations. The two firms say their plans for a $29 billion merger will help control health care costs for consumers. But will bigger really be better?
The head-spinning jargon and fine print common in many health benefit materials could disappear next spring as insurers and employers adopt plain-English models required by the government.
Landmark study shows annual scans reduce lung cancer deaths by 20 percent, but expert groups are not yet recommending such discounted testing because of concerns over complications and overall health costs.
The health reform discussion has been focusing on the systemic impact of health care costs, but somewhere in the bar graphs detailing trillions of dollars in projected spending, the daily experience of the cancer patient has been lost.
Research shows they daily experience of cancer patients often includes a heavy financial burden that impacts both their quality of life and satisfaction with care. Meanwhile, other data reflects the high-stakes position of oncologists, who often are the midpoint between cancer therapies and their costs.
Oncologists, trained to consider the clinical implications of their decisions, are unavoidably placed in the middle of an economic predicament. To what extent should economic considerations be a factor in prescribing decisions? In the world of medicine, this dilemma is not peculiar to cancer, but with no other disease are the stakes as frequently or as starkly presented.
Experts warn of a shortage of qualified workers especially because of low wages, high turnover and a lack of training.
For some Democrats and for liberals, the best outcome of the super committee’s negotiations could be the automatic Medicare cuts.
The 304-page opinion from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ends with a short conclusion from Chief Judge Frederick Dubina and Circuit Judge Frank Hull. Judge Stanley Marcus concurred in part and dissented in part.
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