Tag: health care system

Healthcare costs for individual patients are dropping

healthcare reforms quality and cost

Though medical spending is on the rise, the amount paid from consumer pockets is falling. According to data released regarding consumer driven national healthcare spending in 2011 – the most recent complete year that this information is available – while the total amount that is actually coming out of the patient’s pocket is shrinking. These new figures from the government show that Americans are paying less for their medical costs. This is the case, despite the fast growth of health insurance with high deductibles, and the increasing employee contributions to…

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Health care reforms will place limits on costs paid by employees

H. Cutner
Health Care Reforms Small Business Health Insurance

Workers may no longer need to fear continuing spikes in out of pocket costs. In the pre-health care reforms environment, it had become a significant trend among small businesses to repeatedly hike deductibles and other costs that their workers were required to pay out of pocket in order to ensure that they would be able to continue to offer medical insurance in as coverage prices continue to rise. Now, the Affordable Care Act will limit the amount of cost that employers will be able to shift to workers. The federal health…

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Mississippi challenge to Affordable Care Act dismissed

Nordstrom
Health Care Reform

Affordable Care Act challenge dismissed by federal judge After the Affordable Care Act was upheld by the Supreme Court earlier this year, the 26 states opposing the federal health care law continued working to dismantle it while simultaneously complying with its provisions. Mississippi, however, was quick to file a follow up lawsuit challenging the law. This lawsuit managed to make its way to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, where federal judge Keith Starrett ruled that the challenge was “premature.” Challenge ruled as premature According to…

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Report highlights the sluggish growth of health care spending due to U.S. recession

S.Vagus

The worldwide recession has had a major impact on the health care system of the U.S. The effects are quite obvious in terms of insurance. As thousands of people throughout the country lost their jobs, they also lost their health insurance coverage. The recession, which lasted from late December 2007 to the middle of 2009, suppressed health care spending in the U.S. significantly, according to the federal government. The Obama administration released a report this week from the Department of Health and Human Services showing the impact of the recession…

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Health care reform faces more dangers than those posed by the Supreme Court and 2012 elections, say health care specialists

While the Affordable Care Act faces a questionable future with the coming Supreme Court hearing and the 2012 elections, the rising U.S. deficit may pose the greatest threat to the law. Both current and former health care professionals working with the Obama administration claim that the health care law may run aground, financially, as early as 2013 if the deficit is not addressed. The problems may be due to sluggish action from Congress and the rampant infighting between the two ruling parties of the government. The Affordable Care Act makes…

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Massachusetts lawmakers look to change the state’s health care system with a global payment plan

Massachusetts lawmakers are struggling to rein in on rising health care costs, but a solution may be on its way as the state reaches the conclusion of a three-year long study. The study concerns the state of Massachusetts’ health care system and how insurance companies, hospitals and doctors interact with one another. The state is not the first to consider sweeping changes to its health care system, but it may be the first in enacting such changes. Legislators are currently working toward a plan they call “global payments.” The basic…

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Insurance Dialogue launched new website to help people obtain coverage from Medicare

S.Vagus

Insurance Dialogue, a company serving as a liaison between consumers and insurers, has launched a new initiative to boost enrollment in the federal Medicare program. The company has developed a website that aims to help consumers find the Medicare plans that are best suited to their needs. The website, RightMedicare.com, is part of an overarching endeavor to raise awareness of health insurance amongst those that may need it most. Many of these people may not be aware that they are eligible to receive coverage through the program, especially as health…

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