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NEWS ABOUT: health care costs

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Bully for Health Care Players Joining in Cost Cutting

But is the gift on offer a Trojan horse?

(Newser) - The last time Democrats tried to reform health care, the insurance industry crushed them, spooking the public with its infamous "Harry and Louise" campaign. This time, it’s offering to help, along with doctors, hospitals, unions, and medical-device makers. “On the face of it, this is tremendously good... More »

Health Care Groups to Offer Obama $2T in Savings

(Newser) - Top health care industry reps meeting with President Obama today plan to say they can reduce costs by $2 trillion over the next 10 years to help him overhaul the health care system, Bloomberg reports. Committed to reforming health care this year, the coalition, which brings together insurance, hospitals, pharma,... More »

Doctor Shortage Could Hurt Obama Health Care Plans

More primary care physicians are needed to serve aging population, uninsured

(Newser) - President Obama's ambitious plants to expand health care for millions of currently uninsured Americans while simultaneously meeting the needs of aging boomers, may be stymied not only by politics-as-usual but a shortage of primary care physicians, the New York Times reports. Officials are weighing several options, including increasing Medicare payments... More »

Broke Feminist Faces Health Care Battle

Family tragedies have left Michelman with nothing

(Newser) - When Kate Michelman had mounting bills as a pregnant single mother of three in 1969, she lobbied for abortion rights and became one of America's top feminists. Now, treading water financially again, she's girding for a new fight—over health care. Her daughter is paralyzed and her husband has health... More »

India's Medical Innovators Have Much to Teach US

Experts search for better, cheaper methods

(Newser) - Sure, US hospitals lead the world in the latest technology—but they could learn a thing or two from India’s improving health care system, where pioneers are demonstrating how to give superior care without unnecessary costs, the Economist reports. “In our country’s patient-centric health system, you must... More »

Many Medicare Patients Leave Hospital, Then Quickly Return

Readmissions cost US billions a year

(Newser) - One-third of all Medicare patients hospitalized each year are readmitted within 90 days of being discharged, costing taxpayers billions of dollars annually, a new study found. Meanwhile, half of patients who went back in the first month after treatment had not seen a doctor in the interim. "Given the... More »

Alzheimer's Makes Care 3 Times as Costly

(AP) - The health-care costs of Alzheimer’s patients are more than triple those of other older people, and that doesn’t include billions of hours of unpaid care from family members, a new report suggests. Compared with other people aged 65 and older, those with the mind-destroying disease are much more... More »

Mass. Seeks New Way to Pay for Health Plan

Most insured state in nation burdened by priciest care

(Newser) - Three years ago, Massachusetts politicians began what may be the gutsiest health care experiment the country has ever seen, bringing near-universal coverage to the state in record time. There’s just one problem: they put off any attempt to control costs, the New York Times reports. Massachusetts’ health care is... More »

Prez Won't Fight Tax on Health Benefits

Plan echoes McCain proposal slammed by campaigning Obama

(Newser) - Despite attacking John McCain for the idea on the campaign trail, President Obama will not oppose taxing some worker health benefits to fund health care reform, reports the New York Times reports. On the stump, Obama called a similar plan “the largest middle-class tax increase in history.” While... More »

Report: US Gets Less Health for More $$$

Other nations in better health despite spending less

(AP) - If the global economy were a 100-yard dash, the US would start 23 yards behind its competitors because its health care costs too much—about $2.4 trillion a year—and delivers too little, says a report out today. The authors and leading CEOs say the US funnels away resources... More »

White House Health Forum Convenes Today

Forum will give the floor to ranging viewpoints

(AP) - President Barack Obama has invited to the White House more than 120 people with wide-ranging views on how to fix the US health-care system, one that still leaves millions uninsured despite being the world's costliest. The group of doctors, patients, business owners, and insurers is to gather for a forum... More »

Stimulus Devotes $1B to Weighing Medical Treatments

Comparing effectiveness will 'save money and lives'

(Newser) - The stimulus bill sinks $1.1 billion into the first major government comparison of different medical treatments, the New York Times reports. The provision is a reaction to concerns that treatments are being prescribed without solid evidence to back their usefulness and cost-effectiveness. But some say such studies would mean... More »

College Students Pay Twice for Health Insurance

Parents complain of hidden costs for students who already have insurance

(Newser) - Many parents of college students across America are paying double for their children's health insurance, an NPR investigation finds. Students are usually required to show proof of health insurance for admission, but then often find they can't use that insurance at college clinics. Parents complain that colleges automatically charge for... More »

Seeking Surgery at 80? You're Not Alone

Operations on elderly patients raise questions about aggressive treatments

(Newser) - Folks over 80 are increasingly going under the knife despite critics who say it's unethical or financially perilous, the Sacramento Bee reports. New medical technology has persuaded doctors to violate tradition and perform operations like cancer and open-heart surgery on octogenarians. But one doctor has sparked controversy by saying patients... More »

US on 'Collision Course' With Health Care Costs

(Newser) - No matter the outcome of America's upcoming health care debates, costs are going to keep rising—and that’s a sign of success, David Brown writes in the Washington Post. Medical treatments are improving for dozens of ailments, and so far Americans are willing to pay. But "we are... More »

Recession-Battered States Slash Medicaid

Governments lower payments, cut add-ons to health program

(Newser) - As states across the country struggle to cope with staggering budget shortfalls, 19 of them have cut back on Medicaid, reports the Washington Post. The states, along with DC, are lowering payments to hospitals and nursing homes, ending coverage for less common treatments, and booting some citizens out of the... More »

Laid-Off Workers Stuck With Mega-Medical Bills

Abrupt loss of coverage leaves massive bills behind

(Newser) - As firms collapse and abruptly cut off insurance, some laid-off workers face staggering medical bills without any clear way to pay for them, the Wall Street Journal reports. In many cases, workers rush to take care of medical needs upon hearing their employers are going under, only to find those... More »

Money or Your Life? Brits Weigh Drug Cost Vs. Benefit

With its restrictions forcing companies to lower prices, some see 'workable paradigm' for US

(Newser) - A British government institute that approves drugs based on cost-benefit analysis is coming under fire at home even as other countries are seeing it as a model for bringing down costs, the New York Times reports. Though the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence often balks at expensive life-prolonging... More »

US Health Care Bleeds $1T, But Can Be Saved

Preventative model could save taxpayers billions

(Newser) - What America needs is another preemptive strike, executives say—in the world of health care. As Barack Obama gears up to reform the industry, several health care leaders say that up to half of the nation's $2.3 trillion health budget is wasted. In a broad consensus, they call for... More »

Chronically Ill Worse Off in US Than Elsewhere: Study

Health costs, medical errors scare more than in other rich nations

(Newser) - Chronically ill Americans are more likely to forgo medical care because of high costs or bad experiences than counterparts in a number of other rich nations, a study finds. Researchers interviewed 7,500 adults with conditions like cancer, arthritis, depression, and diabetes, and the Americans led the complaints. Dutch patients... More »

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