Cost Savings – Healthcare Economist

Does preventive care save money?

2018-01-29Jason Shafrin1 Comment

Aaron Carroll argues ‘no’ and–in most but not all cases–I agree with him. Here is the evidence he cites: More health insurance does not reduce emergency department (ED) visits. States that expanded Medicaid eligibility with ACA funding saw an increase in ED visits relative to non-expansion states. In Oregon, individuals who won an eligibility ‘lottery’ to…

Does Prescription Drug Coverage Save Money?

2011-08-30Jason Shafrin6 Comments

Many experts have claimed that increasing Medicare beneficiary’s access to prescription drugs through Medicare Part D is cost saving. Even if it does increase cost, by increasing patient adherence to various prescription drugs, Medicare could prevent certain expensive hospitalizations and emergency room visits. The only problem is that it doesn’t. According to Liu et al.…