Monthly Archive for July, 2010

The US Last in Health System Performance

July 24, 2010
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A new study by the Commonwealth Fund comes to an old conclusion.

The United States is still last in health system performance.

The 2010 version of Mirror Mirror updates comparative health system performance data from seven industrialized countries.  The sad conclusion is that the United States is last or next to the last in five dimensions of a high performance health system: quality, access, efficiency, equity, and healthy lives.  And they are last overall.

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This conclusion is no different than that reached in previous versions of the report issued in 2004,2006, and 2007.  This year’s update adds physician and patient survey data on care experiences and dimensions of care and also adds the Netherlands into the comparison.

The Netherlands – first;  The US – last

The Netherlands may not have made it to number 1 in soccer, but they leaped to the head of pack in health system performance.

Those who consistently tout the US health care system as the best in the world clearly are not paying attention to this and similar studies.  In fact, they are not listening to their neighbors, or at least to other Americans. Continue reading ‘The US Last in Health System Performance’

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Health Care Reform and Health care quality-- Tags: , , , , .

Drug Marketing and the Tea Baggers

July 17, 2010
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Pharmaceutical Execs are worried.

According to PharmExec.com relations between the pharmaceutical industry and physicians in the United States reached a “tipping point”.5927_med

It seems that doctors in the US have traditionally been considered strong allies of the drug industry.  In 2009, this was no longer true.

According to a survey by TNS Healthcare the number of “rebel” doctors has increased dramatically from 12% in 2008 to 19% in 2009.

Negative WOM

What is a “rebel” doctor?  “Those deeply dissatisfied with the pharmaceutical industry and actively generating negative word of mouth (WOM)” (TNS Healthcare acronym). Continue reading ‘Drug Marketing and the Tea Baggers’

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End of the World as We Know It?

July 10, 2010
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In an article in Employee Benefit News, Nancy Bolton expressed some of the concern, confusion, and questions of many in the employee benefits profession right now.

Where are we going?

Where are we going?

Will health care reform be good for employee benefit plans?

Readers familiar with my musings and rants will know that I will not mourn the demise of employer sponsored health coverage.  But I am also no fan of an individual mandate.

Good guys

Nevertheless, Bolton’s perspective is an interesting one.  Like me, she administers a public plan.  She asks the question, “Aren’t employers the good guys?”

Why didn’t the politicians who loudly proclaimed support for employment based health care, do more to underwrite its cost. Continue reading ‘End of the World as We Know It?’

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Economics of health care reform, Employer health insurance, Health Care Reform, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and Single payer-- Tags: , , , , , , , .

Fraud Bureaus Report Sharp Rise in Fake Health Plans

July 8, 2010
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 By Dennis Jay     July 7, 2010

Bob Harper thought he’d found a better health-insurance deal. The Oklahoma man bought coverage from an outfit called American Trade Association (ATA). The price seemed affordable, and he thought he’d save decent money while maintaining a solid healthcare safety net.

Harper’s heart then went bad. His strength fading, he urgently needed a pacemaker. But he discovered too late that ATA was fake. Trying to find legitimate health protection he was having trouble convincing insurers to cover him because of his pre-existing condition.

A Colorado man was gravely hurt in a hit-and-run accident. His hospital bills soared to $43,000 before he died. His so-called health plan, the National Trade Business Alliance, paid out just $250, the insurance department says.

More victims like these are showing up as fake health plans operate widely around the United States over the last two and a half years, exploiting people’s anxiety over finding affordable coverage amid rising premiums, mounting layoffs and general financial distress in a downturned economy.

Fraud Bureaus Report Sharp Rise in Fake Health Plans

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The Devil is the Details – Covering Dependents to 26

July 4, 2010
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3490883926_2b26f448beFor all of the fuss about “big government” and about 2,000 page pieces of legislation, you might think there would be more pressure for legislators to take the simple route.

Not!

Take the provision in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that extends care to dependents up to age 26.

HR 676 – the single payer legislation that is still before the House of Representatives – has this to say about eligibility:

All individuals residing in the United States (including any territory of the United States) are covered under the USNHI Program entitling them to a universal, best quality standard of care.

Compare that with language in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) regarding eligibility just for those young adults up to age 26 who are children of parents with employer sponsored health insurance. Continue reading ‘The Devil is the Details – Covering Dependents to 26’

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Employer health insurance, Health Care Reform, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), Single payer and Thinking Small-- Tags: , , , , , , .
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