A new report from the Health Systems Innovation Network provides data on the costs of the Medicaid expansion for states. The report should serve as an early warning call to…
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According to a survey reported in VentureBeat, half of angel investors regret an investment they made, usually because of overly optimistic financial projections. Angel investing is important to innovation, as they put $20 billion into companies a year, so hopefully the disappointment doesn't lead to closed wallets.
http://venturebeat.com/2013/11/21/half-of-angel-investors-regret-investments-they-made-this-year-survey/In areas where Medicare Advantage payments are still high, patients can get high-end treatment from specialized clinics, as detailed in a Miami Herald story. Unfortunately, these clinics may add to the perception that MA plans are overpaid, even though they are doing an outstanding job for patients.
http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Stories/2013/November/26/White-Gloved-Medicare-Plans-In-Miami.aspxThe FDA has ordered 23andMe to stop selling its personalized genetic testing kits direct to consumers, highlighting the tension between consumer access to their genetic information and the regulatory need to ensure accuracy of tests and govern how the data is interpreted and used.
http://medcitynews.com/2013/11/23andme-receives-fda-warning-letter-spit-kits-violation/?utm_source=MedCity+News+Subscribers&utm_campaign=86e7021cf7-RSS_Daily+Top+Stories&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c05cce483a-86e7021cf7-67648197A report from the Administration's Council of Economic Advisors suggests that the health reform law is limiting the growth of health care spending.
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A new report from CVS Caremark indicates that specialty drugs will continue to grow as a portion of total drug spending, with little relief in sight.
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From the Department of failed government IT projects, the Department of Defense has announced that its new EHR won't be ready until 2017, at the earliest. This following the abandonment of a joint DOD/VA EHR that was projected to cost $28 billion (yes, you read that right). This one will "only" cost $4 or $5 billion; just 10 or 100 times more than buying an off-the-shelf system would, even for this large a customer. An absurd waste of taxpayer money.
http://www.nextgov.com/defense/2013/11/pentagons-electronic-health-record-not-ready-initial-use-until-2017/74135/#disqus_threadAs health care reform continues to roll out the new insurance exchanges and other features, we offer a brief commentary on the recent developments.
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About this Blog
The Healthy Skeptic is a website about the health care system, and is written by Kevin Roche, who has many years of experience working in the health industry. Mr. Roche is available to assist health care companies through consulting arrangements through Roche Consulting, LLC and may be reached at khroche@healthy-skeptic.com.