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The Other Washington Could Hold the Key to Medicare's Cost Crisis
Washington state won't pay for medical procedures that are unsafe, unproven or cost too much. Why can't Medicare do that?
A recent federal assessment of Medicare’s fiscal health contained a shred of good news — the public health insurance program for the elderly is burning through cash at a slightly slower rate than expected. Yet declining health care costs haven’t bought much time. According to that May report by the Boards of Trustees for Medicare, the program is slated to run out of money in 2026, only two years later than previously forecast.
In order to cut costs and put Medicare on a stronger footing, many health policy experts say the program must stop covering procedures that do little to improve patient health or are not worth the price tag. But the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the agency that administers the program, has for the most part failed to implement such cost-cutting measures, because its authority is limited, cuts are controversial and Congress frequently interferes.
Read the full story here: http://bit.ly/16uAWCs
Source: The Center for Public Integrity
Varied Access: The Pharmacogenetic Testing Coverage Divide
February 18th 2025On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we speak with the author of a study published in the February 2025 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® to uncover significant differences in coverage decisions for pharmacogenetic tests across major US health insurers.
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For Neuromuscular Disease Community, an Era of Opportunities and Threats
March 17th 2025Robert Califf, MD, former commissioner of the FDA, delivered a keynote address at the 2025 Muscular Dystrophy Association Clinical & Scientific Conference that highlighted the enormous opportunities for progress in neuromuscular disease care amid a changing policy environment.
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More Care Doesn't Equal Happier Patients in Traditional Medicare
March 17th 2025Data on care satisfaction, ease managing care, and out-of-pocket spending were the outcomes of interest for this new analysis that investigated the relationship between healthcare utilization and beneficiary experience within traditional Medicare.
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