As lawyers argue Medicaid expansion case, uninsured Mainers forgo health care
Thousands of low-income residents who don’t have health insurance are skimping on medications or passing up on treatment as they wait for access to Medicaid coverage that voters approved 11 months ago. By Joe Lawlor for Press Herald Eric Spahn knows he should be taking better care of his deteriorating health, but without insurance and […]
Guest commentary: Single-payer health care likely less disruptive, better for economy
By Dr. George Bohmfalk for The Aspen Times Many people fear that moving abruptly to a single-payer system, as in expanding and improving Medicare to cover everyone, would be disruptive and might wreck the economy. I believe that the only areas that may face any disruption would be the insurance and pharmaceutical industries. There is […]
Breast cancer survivors have a bigger problem after treatment: The cost
By Ann Pietrangelo for Healthline Breast cancer treatment is saving lives. But its extreme expense is also causing a different kind of hardship for many survivors, saddling them with lifelong financial burden. A new study finds that many physicians believe they’re adequately addressing patients’ financial concerns before treatment. However, many patients say doctors need […]
The time for single-payer system is now
By Chuck Pezeshki for the Moscow-Pullman Daily News I read in the Daily News (“Old Peking owner retired, but grateful,” Sept. 1) with a fair amount of chagrin about the closing of the Old Peking Restaurant in Moscow. The owner, Vinh “Sam” Huy Tran, is being forced by health reasons to close his operation of […]
Reporting on Medicare for All Makes Media Forget How Math Works
By Justin Anderson for FAIR “Medicare for All,” a federally funded universal healthcare plan championed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vermont–Ind.), has quickly become a key issue for progressive voters evaluating Democratic Party candidates for the 2018 midterm elections and the 2020 presidential race. The plan would provide coverage for the 40 million currently uninsured in […]
Private Insurance Companies Don’t Care About the Elderly
NOTE: The author, Joel Dodge, seems to be unaware of HR 676, which includes long term care. Still, he makes a good argument for including long tern care coverage in our single payer healthcare system. This is why we must continue to advocate loudly for its inclusion and protect the integrity of HR 676. – […]
The No-Brainer Case for Universal Long-Term Care
By Joel Dodge for People’s Policy Project Progressives have increasingly coalesced around a single-payer Medicare-for-All system as the goal for American healthcare. There is one piece of our healthcare system in particular where single-payer is the undeniably obvious solution: long-term care. Long-term care encompasses everything from nursing homes to home health aides to rehabilitation for […]
Why Your Health Insurer Doesn’t Care About Your Big Bills
By Marshall Allen for Pro Publica Patients may think their insurers are fighting on their behalf for the best prices. But saving patients money is often not their top priority. Just ask Michael Frank. Michael Frank ran his finger down his medical bill, studying the charges and pausing in disbelief. The numbers didn’t make sense. […]
He went to an in-network emergency room. He still ended up with a $7,924 bill.
By Sarah Kliff for VOX On January 28, 34-year-old Scott Kohan woke up in an emergency room in downtown Austin, Texas, with his jaw broken in two places, the result of a violent attack the night before. Witnesses called 911, which dispatched an ambulance that brought him to the hospital while he was unconscious. “The […]
When credit scores become casualties of healthcare debt
By Shefali Luthra for Modern Healthcare After a devastating horse-riding accident in 2017 landed him in the hospital for a month, requiring trauma care and hospital-based therapy, Jeff Woodard considered himself lucky. The bills amounted to hundreds of thousands of dollars. But Woodard’s employer-sponsored health insurance limited his out-of-pocket maximum payment to $5,000. He reached […]