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The Flaw in Using Medicare Price Caps as a Cost-Control Model
Recent articles have suggested capping health-care prices at a percentage above Medicare payment levels as a way to bring down health costs. But evidence suggests that, rather than reducing overall spending levels, Medicare’s price caps don’t effectively control health costs. The August blogpost proposing the idea,…
Editorial: Beware the sophomore slump
All the trends are positive as the insurance industry, the government and healthcare reform advocates gear up for the second year of open enrollment on the federal and state-run insurance exchanges. Competition is up. Price increases are modest. And politicians who thought they could…
Disney autism disability lawsuit moves to Orlando federal court
A Federal judge has transferred a California autism discrimination lawsuit against the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts to Orlando, after Disney argued for the transfer. The suit alleges that Disney’s Disability Access Service, which began in 2013, discriminates against autistic children…
14% of People Failed this Simple Social Security Quiz
Earlier this year, independent investment advisory firm Financial Engines commissioned a survey of people approaching retirement. When asked how much they knew about Social Security, more than three-quarters of respondents said they were either very confident or somewhat confident that they had…
Women need help with retirement planning
Women are great money managers, but their confidence regarding financial decisions is a bit lacking. Researchers say that while many women are terrific budgeters, savers and entrepreneurs, they are less likely to be prepared for retirement even though they live longer…
When the tiny hospital can’t survive: Free-standing EDs with primary care seen as new rural model
When Stewart-Webster Hospital in Richland, Ga., closed its doors early last year, anxiety spread rapidly throughout the rural town of 1,500 residents. The critical-access hospital—one of the town’s largest employers that had been around for more than six decades—could no longer…
Sunshine Act website will expose potential conflicts—and what else?
Dr. Uzma Samadani, a New York City neurosurgeon, publicly discloses that she receives 6% of her revenue from research funding and has equity in a startup medical technology firm she founded. Samadani and about 300 other doctors and clinicians are members of “Who’s…
Easy way to get benefit verification: Visit socialsecurity.gov
There are a number of reasons you may need written verification of your Social Security benefits. You may need to provide it to an energy assistance program or for subsidized housing. Perhaps you’re ready to make a major purchase, and…
Big retirement fear: Outliving your savings
Almost half (46 percent) of investors in this country are worried they will outlive their savings in retirement, a new survey shows. In fact, 36 percent of retired investors and 50 percent of investors who aren’t retired are concerned they will…
Move to shift disabled workers from ‘sheltered workshops’ to community jobs stirs debate
For decades, facilities where people with disabilities do basic jobs while separated from non-disabled workers were praised for providing those with developmental disabilities opportunities to learn skills and build friendships. But in recent years, increasing numbers of people, including disability rights…