[…] Glenna’s article sheds light on what most of us (not just women) want when it comes to health care reform. We want something that is well-thought-out, focused on what works best for patients and health care professionals alike, and with a minimum of political grandstanding.
Blog
What We Expect Of Insurance
[…] In Colorado, if a person chooses to go without health insurance and ends up with a catastrophic medical bill, bankruptcy will be the likely outcome. Same story for a person who chooses to drive without car insurance and then causes a serious accident, except that the person driving without car insurance will also be facing legal action for making that choice. […]
Physicians, Not Providers
I wonder how many times I’ve used the term “primary care provider” on this site? I try to be as PC as possible, but I never knew that term wasn’t appreciated by the doctors to whom it refers, until I read an article by Dr. Toni Brayer at ACP Internist. It seems the term primary care provider was created by health insurance companies, not doctors. […]
Tax Breaks And Health Insurance Premiums
There is no reason why employees who get health insurance through their employer should get a tax break, while those who purchase individual health insurance don’t. Not only does the employer gets to deduct the premiums as a business expense, but the employees are not taxed on the value of the health insurance either. […]
The Drug Industry Is Dancing
[…] Drug costs have played a major role in driving up health care costs over the years. Many of the health insurance companies we work with in Colorado now require a separate pharmacy deductible to be met before copays kick in for drugs. And then I read articles that describe how psychiatric drugs have become common-place in our society. I think there’s a connection here somewhere…
Anthem Blue Cross And Boulder Chamber Offer New Health Insurance
[…] This is a big step forward for health insurance. Boulder is a great place to start something like this, as residents there do utilize alternative health care a bit more than the average Colorado resident. But over the years, we’ve had inquiries from people all over the state who are looking for a health insurance policy that will allow them to utilize alternative care. […]
Taxes To Pay For Health Care Reform
[…] And “Cadillac health insurance plans” are becoming somewhat rare. Employers are constantly trying to lower company health care costs, which means that HSA qualified plans (nothing Cadillac about those) and other options with fewer bells and whistles are becoming the norm. In the individual health insurance market, the change has been profound too. […]
Responsibility For Patient Health
[…] Would an outcome-based payment system mean that doctors who treat chronically ill patients wouldn’t be reimbursed as well as doctors who treat people who can fully recover from whatever illness they have? Would doctors be less likely to take on chronically ill patients? Yes, we should take responsibility for our own health. But what if we get sick anyway?
Overutilization Of Healthcare
[…] Was my friend’s doctor practicing defensive medicine? Probably. Was she just trained to see problems, and thus spotted one that turned out to be nothing? Whatever happened, it absolutely had an impact on the healthcare costs associated with my friend’s pregnancy and birth. Eight extra ultrasounds and 24 hours of testing and monitoring in the NICU are not cheap. […]
Eighty Eight Thousand Is A Lot Of Money
[…] Colorado is by no means a poor state . But our median household income is more than $30,000 below the cutoff point for the proposed health insurance premium subsidies. That means that a good chunk of the population here – and across the country – would qualify for subsidies under this proposal. It might make people feel good at first, but where is the money coming from? […]
The 82nd Cavalcade Of Risk
[…] Jaan homes in on the notion Bob puts forth that health insurance carriers are responsible for spiraling healthcare costs, and should thus be accountable for keeping those costs in check. I agree with Jaan here – health insurance companies are already highly regulated entities, and don’t have as much say when it comes to costs as the public would like to believe. […]
McAllen Might Be Over Simplification, But It Is A Start
[…] I don’t see a disparity between making more hospitals like the Mayo Clinic and focusing on how to cut costs in places like McAllen. I see them as two sides of the same story. Until we address the underlying issues that create cost structures like we see in McAllen, we aren’t likely to be successful in implementing healthcare reform that models itself on the Mayo Clinic.
State Versus Federal Regulation Of Health Insurance
Marcy Morrison, the Colorado insurance commissioner, has made it clear that she supports keeping insurance regulation at a state level. The creation of a Health Choices Commissioner is part of the reform bill drafted by House Democrats, and would basically duplicate a lot of the responsibilities currently handled by state insurance commissioners. […]
Healthcare Reform Ideas From An Economist Point Of View
[…] On an issue as complicated as healthcare reform, it’s disingenuous to claim that one side has all the answers, and Jason does a fantastic job of highlighting all sorts of issues from an objective viewpoint. His article includes recommendations and strategies that he feels would help to reform our healthcare system. […]
Surgery Might Not Be Best For Breech Births
[…] In the current quest to reform health care, everyone is talking about controlling costs. Lowering the rate of c-sections would have a significant impact on the cost of maternity care, since vaginal births are much less expensive than surgical births. Maternity care is something that most women eventually use, and lowered costs would translate to lowered health insurance premiums for all of us. […]
Where Medicare Leaves Off
[…] I agree with Mike that we need to be having more of a discussion here in the US about how to better fund long term care. Private insurance policies work well, for the relatively few people who purchase them. But I think more intensive public education is needed in terms of what is and isn’t covered by Medicare.
Medical Underwriting And Policy Rescission
[…] Electronic medical records that allow underwriters to see complete medical histories at the time of application would greatly reduce the number of policy recissions. Then again, there’s a lot of talk on the table right now about eliminating medical underwriting all together, which would solve the problem once and for all.
Some People Already Pay Too Much Of Their Own Costs
[…] I know that a lot of our clients in Colorado request HSA qualified plans, mainly because the premiums tend to be lower. But the perspective probably looks a whole lot different if you’re not only funding your own HSA and paying for your own high deductible health insurance, but also facing the prospect of meeting that deductible year after year.
Removing An Exclusion Rider On Our Policy
[…] It’s a lot of hoops to jump through, but if you have an individual health insurance policy in a state like Colorado that allows pre-existing condition exclusion riders, you might want to double check to see if your rider can be re-evaluated. Most carriers in Colorado require that the condition be resolved for at least a year before you can request a review of the rider. […]
Multiple Viewpoints On Health Care Reform
[…] Topics like health care reform sometimes become so politically polarized that people start to think of one side as good and the other as bad, with no gray areas in between. Forums that allow multiple, often conflicting, ideas to be shared alongside one another are a great way to get past argument and start to find common ground.
Health Care Must Be About More Than Money
[…] We all need to take a hard look at our motivations and what we consider to be our primary responsibilities. Anyone who puts making money at the top of the list might be better served in a different profession. Obviously, money will be somewhere on the list – we all need an income. But the health care industry isn’t a place where money should be the driving factor. […]
Keep It Simple Senators
[…] I’m seeing lots of things that would be very beneficial to the clients we serve in Colorado who are purchasing individual health insurance: no underwriting, premiums that are not based on gender or health history, and no caps on benefits. I haven’t yet found any wording about how these changes would be financed though, and that could become a sticking point. […]
Profitability And The Health Insurance Industry
[…] The industry as a whole chalked up a profit margin of more than 10% in 2007, but that was carried by the life insurance side of the industry. Health insurance companies don’t fare nearly as well when it comes to making profits. Far more of their revenues are eaten up by claims, which continue to grow year after year as health care costs increase.
A La Carte Not Such A Good Idea For Health Insurance
[…] the al la carte insurance idea, written as a piece of satirical genius, reminded me of policies that are sold by some of the less scrupulous health insurance carriers in Colorado. If your health insurance application is asking you to decide whether you’d like to have coverage for cancer and ambulance rides, you might want to keep shopping.
Humana Approved Our Appeal
[…] We’re thrilled with Humana’s decision, and we’re glad to be able to offer their policies to our clients in Colorado. Jay’s knees are really the first time we’ve had to use our health insurance for anything more than preventive care, and we’re happy to be able to report that everything has worked the way it’s supposed to. […]