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Health expenditures continue to grow very rapidly in the U.S. Since 1970, health care spending has grown at an average annual rate of 9.8%, or about 2.5 percentage points faster than the economy as measured by the nominal gross domestic product (GDP). Annual spending on health care increased from $75 billion in 1970 to $2.
For a number of years, Governors and other state policymakers have maintained that Medicare - rather than state Medicaid programs - should play the key role in providing prescription drug coverage to Medicare beneficiaries, including those who also qualify for Medicaid because they are impoverished and/or have extensive health care needs (i.e, the "dual eligibles").
This report is a case study of Oregon’s experience with its new prescription drug policy in its Medicaid fee-for-service pharmacy program. The report describes Oregon’s clinical review process, and assesses the results relative to other state preferred drug lists. Report (.
This Medicare Part D data spotlight examines the benefit design of Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Plans (PDP) in 2008, focusing on national plans. It shows that in 2008, as in previous years, only about 10 percent of national prescription drug plans offered the defined standard benefit.
Recent polls show that a substantial portion of families worry about whether their incomes will keep pace with rising prices generally and whether they will have to pay more for health care or health insurance.
Current Trends and Future Outlook for Retiree Health Benefits: Findings from the Kaiser/Hewitt 2004 Survey on Retiree Health Benefits A new survey of large employers finds businesses and retirees experienced double-digit increase in retiree health costs, with further increases expected in 2005.
The Kaiser Family Foundation's Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (KCMU) held a 9:30 a.m. ET briefing on Thursday, September 30 to examine the challenges facing states as they continue to struggle with the lingering impacts of the recession and begin preparing to implement health reform.
This Medicare Part D data spotlight examines the coverage gap, or "doughnut hole," in Medicare drug plans available in 2009. While in the gap in coverage, Part D enrollees (other than those receiving low-income subsidies) are required to pay 100 percent of total drug costs until they reach the catastrophic coverage level.
This report explores how four state Medicaid programs — Washington, Wyoming, Minnesota, and North Carolina — differ in their use of Oregon’s Drug Effectiveness Review Project (DERP) to manage their prescription drug benefit. Report (.
Key Implementation Dates for the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit This timeline presents important dates and deadlines of key implementation activities related to the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA). It runs from the beginning of 2005 through the end of 2006, the first year of the new Medicare drug benefit.
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