What is the link, if any, between socio-economic status, health behaviors and health status? Researchers have theorized and pondered whether there is correlation or causation and in which direction. A new study from England provides some additional thoughts on the topic.
As people live longer, and as there are more families with both spouses working, more employees are having concerns about managing the care of an ill parent. A MetLife study examines some of the issues.
The Massachusetts Attorney General’s final report on what is driving health care cost increases in Massachusetts confirms the preliminary version’s finding that most of the spending rise is due to nothing more than application of raw provider market power to extract high prices from private payers. Another report also examines hospitals’ pricing practices.
Health Affairs publishes a study with a creative approach to understanding hospital costs, hospital pricing, Medicare payments and market power. The authors’ conclusion is that profitable hospitals have higher expenses because they have more money to spend, and those higher expenses may make them look unprofitable in regard to Medicare payments.
To the delight of some and the dismay of many, the health “reform” bill has passed and been signed. Very few Americans, or Congresspeople, understand what is in the bill and they are going to be very unpleasantly surprised by the taxes, the continued rapid growth in both health costs and insurance premiums and the severe negative consequences for our national finances.
MedPAC had outside researchers look at the effects of paying all physician services in the United States under the Medicare fee schedule. Changes in that schedule were supposed to be creating more equal pay between primary care and specialist physicians, but that does not appear to have happened.
Hospitals have increasingly become the hub for medical services in many communities. Trends relating to hospitals are therefore of significant interest. A recent article gives a perspective on some of those trends.
Because physicians ultimately control so much of health care spending, understanding variations in their patterns of practice is important. A NEJM article examines the reliability and accuracy of physician profiling methods.
Many telehealth, ehealth, mhealth, etc. product companies have assumed that their products and services will move easily through the FDA or that they don’t even need to interact with the agency. Recent statements by agency personnel, and handling of certain filings, should be warning that dealing with FDA regulations is not that simple.
Towers Watson is a large employee benefits consulting firm which regularly surveys companies regarding their health plan and related offerings. The latest survey offers insights on trends in plan design and cost containment efforts.
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 [email protected].
© 2023 Healthy Skeptic.
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