Aetna creates new obstacle to care for seniors, highlighting need for prior authorization reform, California Medical Association, August 10, 2021
One of the nation’s largest health
The McCanne Health Justice Monitor is produced by a team of health policy experts and single-payer champions. For more information, and a complete archive of entries, visit the HJM website. For an archive of Quote of the Day entries from Dr. Don McCanne, click here.
The Financial & Health Hazards of Medicare Advantage
Medicare Advantage Boom Times, Axios, August 11, 2021, by Bob Herman
“Medicare Advantage continued to grow during the pandemic, and it’s increasingly likely a majority of
Private Equity Is Buying Up Health Care: Patients (and Doctors) Beware
REPORT TO THE CONGRESS: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System; Chapter 3 – Congressional request: Private equity and Medicare, MedPAC, June 21, 2021
We examined
The Rice Family Health Reform Legacy
Health Insurance Systems: An International Comparison, Academic Press, 2021, by Thomas Rice
Chapter 16, Some Insights
Health outcomes: How much a country invests in its health care
U.S. Health System Implosion / Tipping Point
U.S. longevity down to 78.5 years, other nations 81-84.
U.S. pervasive race disparities in private insurance and health.
U.S. health spending twice the wealthy country average.
U.S. uninsured
U.S. Health System a Pitiful Last Among Wealthy Nations
Mirror, Mirror 2021: Reflecting Poorly; Health Care in the U.S. Compared to Other High-Income Countries, The Commonwealth Fund, August 4, 2021, by Eric C. Schneider
Why Antitrust Enforcement Can Only Go So Far in Health Care
Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy, The White House, July 9, 2021
Stop Playing Health Care Antitrust Whack-A-Mole, Bill of Health, May 17,
If the policy is right & the politics are wrong, change the politics!
Newsletter Opinion, The New York Times, August 3, 2021, by Paul Krugman
When you’re a wonk trying to be a pundit — or for that matter
Dental Care Access for the Elderly: A Gaping Shortfall
Medicare and Dental Coverage, KFF, July 28, 2021, by Meredith Freed, et al.
Key Findings:
Nearly half of Medicare beneficiaries (47%), or 24 million people, do
Physicians are unsuited as bill collectors
The Increasing Role of Physician Practices as Bill Collectors Destined for Failure, JAMA, July 30, 2021, by A. Jay Holmgren, et al.
Through increasing deductibles, coinsurance,
Medical Debts Now Surpass All Others, and Likely Shorten Lives
Medical Debt in the US, 2009-2020, JAMA, July 20, 2021, by Raymond Kluender et al.
Data … were obtained from a nationally representative 10% panel of
Medicare Advantage Skips Out on Paying for End-of-Life Care
Medicare Advantage: Beneficiary Disenrollments to Fee-for-Service in Last Year of Life Increase Medicare Spending, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), June 28, 2021
Medicare Advantage (MA) beneficiaries