Health care is a defining issue in the 2024 election – Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and Republican contender Donald Trump have starkly different records on the issue. Rather than…
Tag: Medicare
Biden administration’s negotiated price cuts for 10 common prescription drugs likely to save Medicare billions, beginning in 2026
The Biden administration announced on Aug. 16, 2024, the reduced prices of the first 10 drugs it has negotiated with pharmaceutical companies over their Medicare prices. Provisions authorizing these negotiations…
Cancer costs for Americans with private health insurance rose after the ACA rollout and fell for those with Medicaid
Low-income Americans ages 18 to 64 with cancer saved about US$1,250 per year on treatment within seven years of the 2014 rollout of the Affordable Care Act, according to my…
Hospice care for those with dementia falls far short of meeting people’s needs at the end of life
Jimmy Carter, who chose to forgo aggressive medical care for complications of cancer and frailty in February 2023, recently reached his one-year anniversary since enrolling in hospice care. During this…
How for-profit nursing home regulators can use the powers they already have to fix growing problems with poor-quality care
Governments at both state and federal levels have yet to fully wield their authority to fight poor-quality care at for-profit nursing homes nationwide, leaving the pressing need for elder care…
Medicare starts a long road to cutting prices for drugs, starting with 10 costing it $50.5 billion annually – a health policy analyst explains why negotiations are promising but will take years
The Biden administration released on Aug. 29, 2023, a list of the first 10 drugs that will be up for negotiations with pharmaceutical companies over their Medicare prices. The drugs…
Most US nursing homes are understaffed, potentially compromising health care for more than a million elderly residents
More than 80% of U.S. nursing homes reported staffing shortages in early 2023. SciLine interviewed Dr. Jasmine Travers, a gerontological nurse practitioner and assistant professor of nursing at New York…
Where the government draws the line for Medicaid coverage leaves out many older Americans who may need help paying for medical and long-term care bills – new research
The Research Brief is a short take about interesting academic work. The big idea Medicaid, which provides low-income Americans with health insurance coverage, currently excludes large numbers of adults over…
What does ending the emergency status of the COVID-19 pandemic in the US mean in practice? 4 questions answered
The COVID-19 pandemic’s public health emergency status in the U.S. expires on May 11, 2023. And on May 5, the World Health Organization declared an end to the COVID-19 public…
