Medicare News and Research

RSS

Politicians increasingly addressing health care reform, universal coverage, including 2008 Presidential contenders

The Dallas Morning News on Thursday examined how "[a]fter a decade of relative silence, politicians are again broaching the issue of universal health care."

12 Feb 2007

Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association opposes reduction in reimbursements to private Medicare Advantage plans

Alissa Fox, vice president of legislative and regulatory policy for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, on Friday said that additional reductions in reimbursements to private Medicare Advantage plans "would be a disaster" for the program, CQ HealthBeat reports.

7 Feb 2007

John Edwards releases universal health coverage plan

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards on Monday proposed a universal health coverage plan that would raise taxes and impose health insurance mandates on employers, the Washington Post reports.

7 Feb 2007

Most of Medicare and Medicaid savings in Bush's budget proposal come from reducing growth in Medicare provider payments

The "lion's share" of the Medicare and Medicaid savings over five years proposed in President Bush's fiscal year 2008 budget proposal comes from limits on annual inflation adjustments for reimbursements to hospitals, nursing homes and other health care providers for Medicare, amounting to $39.5 billion, CQ HealthBeat reports.

7 Feb 2007

Canadian prescription drugs still being seized in U.S.

At least 37 packages of prescription drugs from Canada were seized by federal officials in South Florida, despite a federal government promise in October 2006 to stop confiscating drugs imported for personal use, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports.

7 Feb 2007

Many low-income Medicare beneficiaries receive no help from PAPs

Many low-income Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in the prescription drug benefit receive no help from patient assistance programs operated by pharmaceutical companies, according to advocacy groups, USA Today reports.

6 Feb 2007

Bush discusses health care

Democratic retreat for the first time since 2001 to promote his health care and other domestic policy proposals, the Washington Post reports.

6 Feb 2007

$700 billion for Health and Human Services in 2008

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has released details of the President's FY 2008 budget request to Congress for the department.

5 Feb 2007

Some insurance agents might have violated Medicare rules by soliciting fee-for-service plans

According to the Chronicle, the number of fee-for-service plans increased in the past year, and Congress in 2006 eased certain enrollment restrictions.

30 Jan 2007

Public reporting and pay for performance in hospital quality improvement

A Medicare pay-for-performance pilot project that rewards hospitals based on quality measures contributes to "modest" improvements in quality of care, according to a study published online Friday in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Wall Street Journal reports .

30 Jan 2007

CMS proposes increase in Medicare reimbursements for long-term care hospitals

CMS on Thursday proposed a 0.71% increase in standard Medicare reimbursement rates for long-term care hospitals for 2008, CQ HealthBeat reports.

29 Jan 2007

New York hospitals recommended for closure seek ways to continue operating

Several small private hospitals are seeking ways to reinvent themselves or be removed from a list of closures created by the New York Commission on Health Care Facilities in the 21st Century, while other hospitals have filed lawsuits challenging the commission's recommendations, AP/Long Island Newsday reports.

23 Jan 2007

Medicare, social security obligations could harm future U.S. economy

Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke on Thursday at a Senate Budget Committee hearing said that if "early and meaningful action is not taken" by Congress to address the rising costs of retirement and medical services for baby boomers, "the U.S. economy could be seriously weakened, with future generations bearing much of the cost," the AP/Bergen Record reports.

23 Jan 2007

House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee will make Medicare prescription drug benefit oversight priority in 2007

The House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health will examine oversight of the Medicare prescription drug benefit among other priorities for the 110th Congress, House Ways and Means Committee Chair Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) and ranking member Jim McCrery (R-La.) wrote in a letter sent last Wednesday to leaders of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee and the House Administration Committee, CQ HealthBeat reports.

23 Jan 2007

Major variations in Medicare drug costs

Soon, Congress may vote on whether to require the Medicare system to negotiate lower prices for medicines taken by millions of seniors enrolled in Medicare Part D prescription drug plans.

10 Jan 2007

Advancing medical technology increases health-care costs

Advances in medical technology are a main factor driving the trend of increasing health care costs, and industry stakeholders agree that improved evaluation methods are needed to better measure the benefits and risks of new technologies and procedures in order to avoid misallocation of health care dollars.

9 Jan 2007

First year of cancer treatment costs patients $2.3 billion in lost time

The time that cancer patients nationwide spend when they travel to, wait for and receive inpatient and outpatient treatment costs an estimated $2.3 billion in the first year after diagnosis, according to a study published on Wednesday in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the AP/South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports.

7 Jan 2007

New Medicare payment method for prescription drugs covered under Part B reducing spending

Medicare's new payment method for reimbursing physicians for prescription drugs under Part B has reduced spending, according to a report to Congress prepared by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, CQ HealthBeat reports.

7 Jan 2007

Democrats plan to introduce bills addressing stem cell research, Rx benefit

House Democrats plan to introduce bills that would reduce restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research and allow HHS to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies on prices for medications under the Medicare prescription drug benefit, incoming House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said on Wednesday, CQ Today reports.

7 Jan 2007

Medicare begins to cover ultrasounds to detect aortic aneurysms

Medicare on Jan. 1 began to cover ultrasounds to detect abdominal aortic aneurysms in beneficiaries at high risk for the condition, the Charlotte Observer reports.

7 Jan 2007