Medicare/Medigap Insurance
Found 107 Articles.
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Where Medicare Dollars Go
As the Center for Medicare and Medicaid has become more open with data, we’ve learned more about government medical spending. A few years ago we learned that treatments for what appear to be the same conditions vary greatly around the country, as do the costs and the results. This week we learned that a small […]
Medicare Cuts Delayed
In what has become an annual charade, Congress voted to defer until next year the reductions in reimbursements to doctors and hospitals under Medicare. The cuts, slated to be 24%, are used to seem to reduce Medicare spending. But each year they are deferred or changed because doctors and hospitals point out that they would […]
The Coming Medicare Advantage Cuts
Government policy for several years has been to reduce the reimbursements paid to insurers who offer Medicare Advantage plans. The plans have become very popular, now enrolling 38% of Medicare beneficiaries, according to some estimates. But the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid announced recently that the reimbursements are likely to be reduced again for 2015. […]
Medicare Prescriptions Receive a Reprieve
A few weeks ago I reported on a proposal by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid to potentially limit some drugs covered by Part D. Briefly, Medicare has six classes of drugs that are protected under the program. If a doctor prescribes a drug in that class, it is considered covered. The agency proposed that […]
Coming Changes in Medicare/Medicare Advantage
More changes, none of them positive, are on the way for those enrolled in Medicare or Medicare Advantage. First are the broader changes that apply to all Medicare prescription drug beneficiaries. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid quietly released a proposal to limit the types of drugs that are protected under the program. Those in […]
Medicare Advantage and Obamacare
If you’re in a Medicare Advantage plan (about 25% of Medicare beneficiaries are), you’ve already seen the negative effects the Affordable Care Act is having. But there is a lot more to come. About $156 billion over 10 years is expected to be shifted from Medicare Advantage plans to help fund the increased coverage and […]
The Future of Medicare
Some people are excited because medical expenses decreased at a slower rate the last few years than previously forecast. That is helpful for Medicare, and some say it means Obamacare is working and eventually will help Medicare recover. Charles Blahous of the Mercatus Center disagrees. He’s also a public trustee for the Board of Trustees […]
Beware Medicare “Observation” Status
You might need a subscription to read this from The Wall Street Journal, but I’ll give you the highlights. As you might know, when you’re at a hospital you might be officially admitted or you might be kept there but under “observation status.” Ideally observation status is so doctors can run tests and take other […]
