The PriceWaterhouseCooper Health Research Institute released its projections for medical trend for 2014, finding it will dip to 6.5%, which is still well ahead of economic growth or general inflation.
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The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission has issued a report on Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System, which delves into a series of issues including hospital readmissions, payments for various…
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Under contract with the US Department of Labor, the Rand organization conducted research on the effects of wellness programs. While employee participation is often not high, the programs appear to…
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A report from the Commonwealth Fund studying comparative health spending and quality across 13 industrialized countries finds that the United States is by far the highest spender as a percent…
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Yet another piece of research, this one published in Health Affairs, suggests that hospital readmission rates are a far from perfect, or even good, measure of hospital quality.
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While the state health insurance exchanges required by the health reform law have attracted much attention, the private sector has been busy creating its own exchanges and an Accenture report…
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A new study suggests that Medicare's lower payments to hospitals, contrary to prevailing beliefs, don't lead to cost-shifting and actually lower private insurer payment rates. The reality or mechanism of…
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A study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research finds that greater penetration by Medicare Advantage plans leads to lower rates of hospitalization and mortality for beneficiaries.
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The annual report from the Trustees of the Medicare Trust Funds finds that they are in a little better shape than projected last year because Medicare spending has been below…
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The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has released its annual report on quality of health care in the United States, covering the year 2012, finding both improvement and room…
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Quality measurement and incentive programs have become the norm but a new Report from the Urban Institute points out serious defects and issues with the design and execution of most…
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Medicare Advantage plans have been a source of controversy, but a new study from the National Bureau of Economic Research suggests that they have beneficial spillover effects across the health…
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Once more into the breach on geographic variation is spending, with the latest analysis examining case mix or patient health adjustments and finding that patient health accounts for 75-85% of…
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The best way to understand health spending and its growth may be to examine the arc of spending over a typical life and to test the effect of better health…
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Overuse of certain medical services is believed to be widespread and to contribute to excessive health spending growth. A review of the literature suggests that no particular organized system of…
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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.
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