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Launched in 2006, Medicare added a prescription drug benefit that relies entirely on private plans, while, for other benefits, beneficiaries have a choice between private health plans and traditional fee-for-service Medicare.
This primer on health care spending in the United States reviews the growth in health care spending since 1970 and the impact of health care costs on families and employers.
Menlo Park, Calif. – Annual premiums for employer-sponsored family health coverage reached $15,745 this year, up 4 percent from last year, with workers on average paying $4,316 toward the cost of their coverage, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research & Educational Trust (HRET) 2012 Employer Health Benefits Survey released today.
For as long as I have been in the field, we have seen cycles in health care costs. Per capita health spending would rise, then moderate, then rise gain.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently released guidance on the two key components that determine the level of protection that private insurance plans will provide to consumers under health reform.
Medicare is the federal health insurance program for people 65 and older and for some younger adults with permanent disabilities and medical conditions. Prior to 1965, the year in which the Medicare program was established, about half of all seniors lacked health insurance.
In this post, we answer some of the key questions about the new contraceptive coverage policy generally, and more specifically, how it will be applied to religious organizations.
This fact sheet explains the Medical Loss Ratio requirement under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The MLR provision limits the portion of premium dollars health insurers may spend on administration, marketing, and profits. Under health care reform, health insurers must publicly report the portion of premium dollars spent on health care and quality improvement and other activities in each state they operate. Insurers failing to meet the applicable standard must pay rebates to consumers and businesses.
Just-released estimates of national health spending in 2010 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) show that 45% of our health care spending is financed by the federal and state governments, primarily through the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
Spending on prescription drugs in the U.S. rose at a faster clip in 2009 than spending for hospital and physician care, a trend that is expected to continue through 2020. The desire to get a handle on drug spending is a focus not only in the U.S. but in other countries as well.
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