Unbiased Analysis of Today's Healthcare Issues
CMS has just released a new interactive tool that allows users to examine chronic conditions among Medicare beneficiaries. The CMS Chronic Conditions Dashboard presents statistical views of information on the prevalence, utilization and Medicare spending for Medicare beneficiaries with chronic conditions. The Dashboard displays information on a set of predefined chronic conditions available in the…
According to research from the CMS Office of the Actuary, healthcare spending growth is decelerating. As published in Health Affairs: In 2011 US health care spending grew 3.9 percent to reach $2.7 trillion, marking the third consecutive year of relatively slow growth. Growth in national health spending closely tracked growth in nominal gross domestic product (GDP) in 2010…
Most people stereotype European economies as a single payer system whereas the U.S. uses a system of private insurance that is largely unregulated. This characterization is largely false. The U.S. has extensive regulation. Further, the U.S. federal government pays for the largest share of health care. According to a CHCF report, in 2010, the federal…
Reuters reports on a PwC study evaluating health care premium growth. “The cost of healthcare services is expected to rise 7.5 percent in 2013, more than three times the projected rates for inflation and economic growth, according to an industry research report released on Thursday. But premiums for large employer-sponsored health plans could increase by…
This weekend is Memorial Day Weekend. It is a time to celebrate the service of current and former members of the military. Although military veterans garner a lot of attention around Memorial Day, some veterans are not having their needs met the rest of the year. A recent study, for instance, finds that many veterans…
Although executives and managers lead the way, in large part, the answer is doctors. See the chart below. Sources: John Bakija, Williams College “Jobs and Income Growth of Top Earners and the Causes of Changing Income Inequality: Evidence from U.S. Tax Return Data.” November 2010, Working Paper. Hat tip: Mother Jones.
Each year, the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) examines trends in employer health benefits in the state of California. Last year, I reported on the 2010 CHCF report and now I will examine the 2011 report. Between 2010 and 2011, some things have remained the same. Healthcare premiums are far outpacing inflation over the medium…
Although Health Reform has passed, many of its mandates–such as Health Insurance Exchanges–have not yet been implemented. As the cost of health care has been growing over time, the number of uninsured has also been growing. The California Health Care Foundation examines the uninsured in California in more detail. Although Texas has the highest share…
The California Health Care Foundation (CHCF)’s Health Care Almanac provides some unique insights on trends in health care quality in California and for the United States as a whole. Many of the national figures for the Almanac come from the CDC (BRFSS and Vital Stats) and AHRQ’s National Healthcare Quality Report. California quality figures come…
Of the 6.6 million uninsured children in the nation, 4.3 million are eligible for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Approximately 2.8 million children come from families at or near the federal poverty line (FPL). Despite the fact that millions of children are uninsured, children’s participation rates in Medicaid/CHIP are increasing. Today I…