Author's posts
Insulin Copay Cap Passes House Hurdle, But Senate Looks for a Broader Bill
Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) are seeking to craft a compromise that members from both parties could accept. Their plan, still being ironed out, would not guarantee a specific limit on out-of-pocket costs but seeks to roll back insulin prices by barring rebate payments to pharmacy benefit managers.
$35 Insulin Cap Is Welcome, Popular, and Bipartisan. But Congress May Not Pass It Anyway.
Spun off from the ailing but not-quite-dead Build Back Better legislation, a popular proposal to cap out-of-pocket insulin costs at $35 a month faces tough political realities that could kill it.
Plan to Fix Postal Service Shifts New Retirees to Medicare — Along With Billions in Costs
After a years-long bitter partisan fight over reforming the U.S. Postal Service’s finances and service, congressional leaders say they have a compromise. The bill, which has won endorsements from both Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill, would force future Postal Service retirees to use Medicare as their primary source of health coverage.
Plan to fix Postal Service shifts retirees to Medicare, along with billions in costs
Some lawmakers worry that pushing future post office retirees’ health costs to Medicare could hurt the health program’s outlook.
Plan to fix Postal Service shifts retirees to Medicare, along with billions in costs
Some lawmakers worry that pushing future post office retirees’ health costs to Medicare could hurt the health program’s outlook.
Becerra Says Surprise Billing Rules Force Doctors Who Overcharge to Accept Fair Prices
The Health and Human Services secretary says the administration has heard complaints from doctors and hospitals about the rules it unveiled for implementing the law to end surprise medical bills. But he says providers who have exploited a complicated system to charge exorbitant rates will have to bear their share of the cost — or close.
Becerra defends HHS rules aimed at reining in surprise medical bills
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra says health providers who have exploited a complicated system to charge exorbitant rates will have to bear their share of the cost — or close.
Congressional Doctors Lead Bipartisan Revolt Over Policy on Surprise Medical Bills
Congress last year shielded consumers from unexpected out-of-network charges, but hospitals and doctors have decried the arbitration plan put forward by the Biden administration for negotiating these bills as favoring insurers. More than 150 members of the House agree.
Despite Restraints, Democrats’ Drug Pricing Plan Could Still Aid Consumers
A last-minute agreement among lawmakers restored a provision seeking to hold down rising costs of prescription medicines. Although details on which drugs will be targeted remain sketchy, the legislation would help patients buying insulin and cap Medicare beneficiaries’ out-of-pocket drug costs at $2,000 a year.
‘Luckiest Man Alive’: Why 9/11 First Responders’ Outlooks May Improve Even as Physical Health Fails
The New York City Fire Department’s 20-year report on the health consequences of the 9/11 terrorist attacks finds that first responders consistently report mental health quality-of-life indicators that are better than those of average Americans, even as their physical health declines.
