Because of Obamacare, more Americans have healthcare insurance and therefore more people are able to pay for medical care when they receive it. As a result, there has been a $5.7 billion drop in uncompensated hospital care just in those states that, per Obamacare, expanded Medicaid eligibility:
Peter Bach and I have an essay in the Annals of Internal Medicine laying out some of the problems with pharmaceutical funded copay assistance programs. Check it out.
If she had been eligible for Medicare, the hospital would have charged the government $10,000 for the services it provided to her, with Medicare picking up most of the tab. But lacking insurance, she was billed directly from the hospital, and not for a mere $10,000. The total charge: $120,000! That 1200% markup is extreme….
Some people worried that the ACA would kill employer-sponsored health insurance, by giving employers an “out” – by letting them shift insurance to the exchanges. The ACA set up financial incentives, to reduce such shifting. And so far, it looks like it’s working: Still quite early, of course. I’ll keep my eyes open for further…
Here is Eisenhower drawing out the connection between science and liberty: “Love of liberty means the guarding of every resource that makes freedom possible—from the sanctity of our families and the wealth of our soil to the genius of our scientists.” I would love to see a presidential candidate pick up this theme.
One reason our healthcare system in the United States is so messed up is that so few Americans understand much about it. For that reason, their attitudes towards various healthcare reform proposals veer left and right depending on how they are asked for their opinions. Here’s great evidence of that phenomenon, as reported by the…
In this Marketplace report, Dan Gorenstein explores the role procrastination played in all the last minute efforts to sign up for health insurance through Obamacare this year. Read on to see how I managed to work “the Boss” into the story. Updated Monday, Dec. 23: The Obama administration announced on Monday it was giving a one-day…