In 2009, Practices Spent $68,274 Per Physician Interacting With Insurance Plans. “..When time is converted to dollars, practices spent an average of $68,274 per physician per year interacting with health plans (Exhibit 3). The median value was $51,043. Although per physician costs are lower in practices of ten or more physicians, there was not a […]
Continue readingMedicare Has Administrative Costs of 1.4%
Medicare Has Administrative Costs of 1.4% “Medicare has administrative costs of just 1.4 percent, according to the 2017 Annual Report of the Boards of Trustees of the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund. The trustees’ summary listed total Medicare expenditures of $678.7 billion for 2016, of which $9.2 billion […]
Continue readingFewer Adults Have Difficulty Paying Their Medical Bills, but the Improvement Has Stalled
Fewer Adults Have Difficulty Paying Their Medical Bills, but the Improvement Has Stalled “There was modest but significant improvement following the ACA’s coverage expansions in the proportion of all U.S. adults who reported having difficulty paying their medical bills or said they were paying off medical debt over time (Table 4). Federal surveys have found […]
Continue readingInadequate Coverage Is Associated with More Cost-Related Problems Getting Needed Care
Inadequate Coverage Is Associated with More Cost-Related Problems Getting Needed Care The lack of continued improvement in overall access to care nationally reflects the fact that coverage gains have plateaued, and underinsured rates have climbed. People who experience any time uninsured are more likely than any other group to delay getting care because of cost […]
Continue readingMore Adults Are Underinsured, with the Greatest Growth Occurring Among Those with Employer Coverage
More Adults Are Underinsured, with the Greatest Growth Occurring Among Those with Employer Coverage Of people who were insured continuously throughout 2018, an estimated 44 million were underinsured because of high out-of-pocket costs and deductibles (Table 1). This is up from an estimated 29 million in 2010 (data not shown). The most likely to be […]
Continue readingSince the ACA, Fewer Adults Are Uninsured, but More Are Underinsured
Since the ACA, Fewer Adults Are Uninsured, but More Are Underinsured “Compared to 2010, when the ACA became law, fewer people today are uninsured, but more people are underinsured. Of the 194 million U.S. adults ages 19 to 64 in 2018, an estimated 87 million, or 45 percent, were inadequately insured (see Tables 1 and 2). […]
Continue readingPublic Option Variants
Public option variants “Policymakers are floating several public-option variants, most of which would offer a public plan alongside private plans on the ACA’s insurance exchanges. Although a few of these variants would allow persons to buy in to Medicaid, most envision a new plan that would pay Medicare rates and use providers who participate in […]
Continue readingPublic Option unable to Compete with Private Plans
Public option unable to compete with private plans A quarter century of experience with public/private competition in the Medicare program demonstrates that the private plans will not allow a level playing field. Despite strict regulation, private insurers have successfully cherry picked healthier seniors, and have exploited regional health spending differences to their advantage. They have […]
Continue readingA Public Option Forgoes at least 84% of Administrative Savings
A public option forgoes at least 84% of administrative savings “[The public option] forgoes at least 84 percent of the administrative savings available through single payer. The public plan option would do nothing to streamline the administrative tasks (and costs) of hospitals, physicians offices, and nursing homes, which would still contend with multiple payers, and […]
Continue readingMultiple Insurers are Intrinsically More Costly than Single-payer Systems such as Canada’s
Multiple insurers are intrinsically more costly than single-payer systems such as Canada’s “A system with multiple insurers is also intrinsically costlier than a single-payer system. For insurers it means multiple duplicative claims-processing facilities and smaller insured groups, both of which increase overhead. Fragmentation also raises costs for providers who must deal with multiple insurance products […]
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