Sally C. Pipes

Commentary

Read the latest on Medicare spending

Focus Medicare’s Dwindling Resources to Those Most in Need

Medicare’s trustees released their annual report this week. It paints a bleak picture of the program’s future. Total spending on the healthcare entitlement for seniors exceeded $1 trillion last year, the trustees note — some $12 billion more than the program took in. If current trends continue, Medicare’s Part A hospital insurance ...
Commentary

Read the latest on medical debt proposals

Medical Debt-Relief Can Backfire on Patients

Americans collectively owe some $220 billion in medical debt. In response, a growing number of states, including New Jersey and Connecticut, are using public funds to relieve those debts. Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Pa., proposed doing something similar in his state earlier this year. But is canceling medical debt the best way to help cash-strapped Americans? Click to ...
Commentary

Read how overregulation is having negative effects on nursing homes

Government shouldn’t micromanage nursing homes

The Biden administration published regulations last month requiring most nursing homes to maintain specific staffing levels. As a result, roughly three in four nursing homes will have to hire additional personnel. Progressives argue the rules will lead to better care. “For residents, this will mean more staff, which means fewer ER visits potentially, more ...
Commentary

Read the latest on single payer health care proposals

Sanders Views Canada’s Healthcare Through Rose-Colored Glasses

Sen. Bernie Sanders’s, I-Vt., assessment of U.S. healthcare during an event at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health earlier this month, was “It is a system not designed to provide health care to all people in a cost-effective way.” What Sen. Sanders failed to mention is that his preferred model for care delivery ...
Commentary

Oh, Canada: U.S. Patients Don’t Want Your Health Policies

There’s never been a worse time to get sick in Canada. Our northern neighbors must wait 2.5 years longer than Americans enrolled in Medicare to access new drugs, according to a report published this month by the Canadian Health Policy Institute. The Canadian government has chosen to deprive its citizens of the ...
Commentary

Read the latest on CA single-payer health care proposals

California’s Single-Payer Health Insurance Dream Remains a Fantasy

The state Assembly’s Health Committee advanced Assembly Bill 2200 this week. The bill would ban private health insurance and force all state residents into “CalCare,” a government-run health plan. Nine Democrats voted aye, four Republicans voted no, and three Democrats abstained. The measure now heads to the Appropriations Committee. But AB 2200’s odds ...
Commentary

Read on the benefits of telehealth

Time Medicare Joined 21st Century on Telehealth

The House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing this month to discuss extending pandemic-era policies that expanded access to telehealth under Medicare. Without urgent action by lawmakers, these telehealth flexibilities will expire at the end of the year. That’s an outcome few should welcome. Telehealth has proved enormously valuable to ...
Commentary

Read the latest on pharmaceutical benefit managers

Biosimilars could save the healthcare system billions

Cost Plus Drug Company CEO Mark Cuban recently pointed out that self-insured businesses could save over $70,000 per employee annually by getting their workers to switch from AbbVie’s blockbuster anti-inflammatory treatment Humira to a lower-cost biosimilar called Yusimry. Humira has a list price of roughly $7,000 per month. Since it lost market exclusivity last year, nine nearly identical copycats have hit ...
Commentary

Congress Has A Big Chance To Investigate A Financial Threat To Patients

Following an enormous cyberattack on a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group, the Senate Finance Committee has called the company’s CEO, Andrew Witty, to testify on April 30th. The hackers stole millions of medical records, which reflects badly on the company’s ability to protect patients. But while members of Congress are grilling Witty about the ...
Commentary

Medicare Is in Serious Need of Reform. Biden’s Budget Plan Won’t Cut It.

President Joe Biden recently unveiled his $7.3 trillion budget proposal for next fiscal year. He has pitched his plan as one that would “preserve Medicare benefits and the Medicare trust fund.” It’s a nice soundbite. But it’s not the whole story. The president’s budget would raise taxes without solving Medicare’s ...
Commentary

Read the latest on Medicare spending

Focus Medicare’s Dwindling Resources to Those Most in Need

Medicare’s trustees released their annual report this week. It paints a bleak picture of the program’s future. Total spending on the healthcare entitlement for seniors exceeded $1 trillion last year, the trustees note — some $12 billion more than the program took in. If current trends continue, Medicare’s Part A hospital insurance ...
Commentary

Read the latest on medical debt proposals

Medical Debt-Relief Can Backfire on Patients

Americans collectively owe some $220 billion in medical debt. In response, a growing number of states, including New Jersey and Connecticut, are using public funds to relieve those debts. Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Pa., proposed doing something similar in his state earlier this year. But is canceling medical debt the best way to help cash-strapped Americans? Click to ...
Commentary

Read how overregulation is having negative effects on nursing homes

Government shouldn’t micromanage nursing homes

The Biden administration published regulations last month requiring most nursing homes to maintain specific staffing levels. As a result, roughly three in four nursing homes will have to hire additional personnel. Progressives argue the rules will lead to better care. “For residents, this will mean more staff, which means fewer ER visits potentially, more ...
Commentary

Read the latest on single payer health care proposals

Sanders Views Canada’s Healthcare Through Rose-Colored Glasses

Sen. Bernie Sanders’s, I-Vt., assessment of U.S. healthcare during an event at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health earlier this month, was “It is a system not designed to provide health care to all people in a cost-effective way.” What Sen. Sanders failed to mention is that his preferred model for care delivery ...
Commentary

Oh, Canada: U.S. Patients Don’t Want Your Health Policies

There’s never been a worse time to get sick in Canada. Our northern neighbors must wait 2.5 years longer than Americans enrolled in Medicare to access new drugs, according to a report published this month by the Canadian Health Policy Institute. The Canadian government has chosen to deprive its citizens of the ...
Commentary

Read the latest on CA single-payer health care proposals

California’s Single-Payer Health Insurance Dream Remains a Fantasy

The state Assembly’s Health Committee advanced Assembly Bill 2200 this week. The bill would ban private health insurance and force all state residents into “CalCare,” a government-run health plan. Nine Democrats voted aye, four Republicans voted no, and three Democrats abstained. The measure now heads to the Appropriations Committee. But AB 2200’s odds ...
Commentary

Read on the benefits of telehealth

Time Medicare Joined 21st Century on Telehealth

The House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing this month to discuss extending pandemic-era policies that expanded access to telehealth under Medicare. Without urgent action by lawmakers, these telehealth flexibilities will expire at the end of the year. That’s an outcome few should welcome. Telehealth has proved enormously valuable to ...
Commentary

Read the latest on pharmaceutical benefit managers

Biosimilars could save the healthcare system billions

Cost Plus Drug Company CEO Mark Cuban recently pointed out that self-insured businesses could save over $70,000 per employee annually by getting their workers to switch from AbbVie’s blockbuster anti-inflammatory treatment Humira to a lower-cost biosimilar called Yusimry. Humira has a list price of roughly $7,000 per month. Since it lost market exclusivity last year, nine nearly identical copycats have hit ...
Commentary

Congress Has A Big Chance To Investigate A Financial Threat To Patients

Following an enormous cyberattack on a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group, the Senate Finance Committee has called the company’s CEO, Andrew Witty, to testify on April 30th. The hackers stole millions of medical records, which reflects badly on the company’s ability to protect patients. But while members of Congress are grilling Witty about the ...
Commentary

Medicare Is in Serious Need of Reform. Biden’s Budget Plan Won’t Cut It.

President Joe Biden recently unveiled his $7.3 trillion budget proposal for next fiscal year. He has pitched his plan as one that would “preserve Medicare benefits and the Medicare trust fund.” It’s a nice soundbite. But it’s not the whole story. The president’s budget would raise taxes without solving Medicare’s ...
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