Author's posts
Hospitals, Insurers Invest Big Dollars to Tackle Patients’ Social Needs
Eager to control costs, health systems and insurers are trying to address patients’ social needs such as food insecurity, transportation and housing. Yet, after years of testing, there’s slim evidence these efforts pay off.
Pandemic Swells Medicaid Enrollment to Record 80 Million People
More than 80 million Americans with low incomes were receiving health coverage through the federal-state program in January. The program now covers nearly 1 in 4 people nationwide.
Biden Administration Signals It’s in No Rush to Allow Canadian Drug Imports
Federal officials asked a court to dismiss a suit by drugmakers over the policy enacted by the Trump administration that would allow states to bring in cheaper prescription medications from Canada. The filing said the lawsuit was moot because it’s unclear when or if the FDA would approve any state’s importation plan.
Colorado Will Pay Hospitals to Close Expensive Free-Standing ERs
The state, concerned about the high cost of care at these stand-alone facilities, is offering hospitals more Medicaid money if they convert them to other uses, such as primary care or mental health centers.
4 Things to Know About the J&J Covid Vaccine Pause
The messaging surrounding vaccine safety and efficacy may mean as much as the science.
Vermont Is 1st State to Give Blacks and Other Minority Residents Vaccine Priority
Covid cases have disproportionately affected the state’s Black residents, so officials are moving them to the front of the line for vaccinations before the state expands eligibility to all adults.
Indiana’s Medicaid Expansion — Designed by Pence and Verma — Panned in Federal Report
Indiana’s program seeks to give expansion enrollees “skin in the game,” requiring that they pay small monthly premiums and manage health savings accounts.
In America, Covid Vaccine Eligibility Is a ‘Crazy Quilt’ of State Rules
Across the country, a mishmash of rules to qualify for a precious covid shot is creating nightmares for consumers. Criteria including age, occupation and medical conditions vary dramatically.
‘Painless’ Glucose Monitors Pushed Despite Little Evidence They Help Most Diabetes Patients
The numbers of people wearing these monitors are soaring as prices have fallen and device-makers promote them to doctors and patients. But few studies show the devices lead to better outcomes for the nearly 25 million Americans with Type 2 diabetes who don’t inject insulin to regulate their blood sugar.
In Alabama, South Carolina and Louisiana, CVS Vaccine Appointments Go Unfilled
Dozens of open appointment slots in the three Southern states last week stood in sharp contrast to states such as Delaware, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, where spots generally were claimed by midmorning or earlier.
