The United States far outspends peer countries on healthcare. When American politicians complain about these high healthcare costs, they often vilify pharmaceutical and insurance companies for profiting at the expense of the general public. As I wrote earlier, such vilification is misguided, pushing too much of the blame on individual actors rather than on the…
Healthcare is often really costly. And with increasing frequency, a significant chunk of those costs is being passed on to patients in the form of high deductibles, copays, or other out-of-pocket expenses. As a result, millions of Americans struggle to pay medical bills each year. What’s a poor patient to do? For starters–they can talk…
Evidence is now overwhelming that wearing face masks slows the spread of the COVID-19 virus. But Americans haven’t universally donned these coverings. An effective leader would find a way to encourage people to adopt this lifesaving behavior. Take sauerkraut, for example. My German father tried his best to get me to eat it when I was a…
I am on a “writing sabbatical” this summer with limited access to the internet. I will resume posting articles in August. I hope everyone is enjoying their summer!
In case you missed it, I am recirculating a picture put together by the Kaiser Family Foundation , which reveals two unsettling facts about health insurance in United States. First, the cost of employer-based health insurance has risen 61% since 2005. When health insurance premiums rise, salaries don’t. That’s a problem. Second, worker contributions have…
Here is a nice summary of our research, published by an excellent reporter at The American Journal of Managed Care: A new qualitative study of clinical meetings between physicians and patients pointed out certain behavioral concerns that stand in the way of helping patients navigate out-of-pocket spending. The study, published in Health Affairs and led…