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What We're Reading: Are Reforms Coming to Medicare?
What we're reading, November 28, 2016: The GOP is considering reforms to Medicare and Democrats are gearing up for a fight; the IRS will send letters to try to sign more people up for Obamacare; and the abortion rate reaches the lowest level in decades.
The Republican Party is eyeing Medicare reforms following its Election Day success. According to The New York Times, House Republicans are considering a fixed government contribution for each beneficiary instead of the current open-ended commitment. Democrats are preparing for a battle over the changes, which they believe would lead to sicker patients being left in traditional Medicare to face higher premiums, while healthier beneficiaries choose private insurance through the Medicare program.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is attempting to sign more people up for health insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act. The agency will send out letters to Americans who pay the tax penalty instead of purchasing insurance, reported The Washington Times. Republicans say the plan risks disclosure of taxpayers’ information, but the IRS claims it is only following the law, which requires it to let people know about the option.
The abortion rate in the United States has reached the lowest level since 1971, which was before abortion rights had been extended nationwide. The CDC reported that the abortion rate for 2013 was 12.5 abortions per 1000 women. However, the CDC doesn’t receive abortion information from California, Maryland, and New Hampshire.
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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Neurologists Share Tips for Securing Patient Access to Gene Therapies
March 19th 2025Tenacious efforts at every level, from the individual clinician to the hospital to the state to Congress, will be needed to make sure patients can access life-saving gene therapies for neuromuscular diseases.
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How Access to SMA Treatment Varies Globally and by Insurance Type
March 18th 2025Posters presented at the 2025 Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Clinical & Scientific Conference show that therapeutic advances in treating spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) are not uniformly making it into the hands of patients who could benefit.
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