Risk-Adjustment Proposal Could Hurt Medicare Advantage

America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) is blasting efforts by the Trump administration to recoup what Medicare managers see as excess risk-adjustment payments to Medicare Advantage plan providers.

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Harris Unveils Disability Plan Focusing On Education and Employment Opportunities

Presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris unveiled her plan for Americans with disabilities on Thursday, with a focus on employment through access to education and social programs.

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AB290 is Needed to Protect Patients from Unscrupulous Treatment Providers

Looking back on my own fight with addiction, I now know that what I needed was long-term, qualified and safe care. A professional setting to be housed, receive medical care, and access peer support. However, too many patients fall prey to treatment facilities that are more interested in bilking insurance companies than in providing the support they need to enter and sustain long-term recovery.

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Governor’s ‘Mental Health Czar’ Seeks New Blueprint For Care In California

In a career full of twists, turns and high-powered assignments, Thomas Insel may now be embarking on one of his most daunting tasks yet — helping California find its way out of a worrisome mental health care crisis.

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Another Nail in the Wellness ROI Coffin?

A recent study in JAMA showed that a large workplace wellness at BJ’s Wholesale Club failed to improve employee health and deliver ROI. The study looked at the 32,000-plus employees of BJ’s Wholesale Club and concluded that while the company’s worksite wellness program did lead to higher rates of exercise and weight management, it did not have an impact on health behaviors, clinical markers of health, health spending or absenteeism.

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They Got Estimates Before Surgery — And A Bill After That Was 50% More

From a planning perspective, Wolfgang Balzer is the perfect health care consumer. Balzer, an engineer, knew for several years he had a hernia that would need to be repaired, but it wasn’t an emergency, so he waited until the time was right.

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California Hospices Face Lax Oversight and Few Rules. The Sick and Dying Pay the Price

One day after her 80-year-old mother started hospice care at home last August, Tracy Sellers found herself racing into an emergency room, pushing a wheelchair carrying her mother.

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Overall costs for generic drugs decline, but consumers not seeing the savings

A new study finds that generic drugs are a good deal for consumers; even given the cost-shifting that comes with some health plans, generic prices have gone down steadily in recent years. However, the move to high-deductible health plans means that consumers have seen fewer overall savings than they might have.

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Bernie Sanders proposes writing off $81B in medical debt

Senator Bernie Sanders is proposing to cancel an estimated $81 billion in past-due medical debt owed by Americans as he vies for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination using a platform focused on health care.

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When Apps get Your Medical Data, Your Privacy May Go With It

Americans may soon be able to get their medical records through smartphone apps as easily as they order takeout food from Seamless or catch a ride from Lyft.

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