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Health Care Costs and the Domestic Budget

7 Responses

1. Janice, on July 28, 2009 at 2:07 PM said:

   What is the use of Obama’s universal healthcare insurance coverage, if there are too few primary care doctors, and too many medical specialists, for the task?

   http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2009/07/will-the-lack-of-primary-care-doctors-make-universal-coverage-useless.html

   Janice

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2. James, on July 30, 2009 at 1:39 AM said:

   Negotiators Reach Agreement on House Healthcare Bill

   Negotiators on the House healthcare reform bill have reached an agreement that seeks to shave $100 billion from the cost of the bill and delays a vote in the full House until September. The agreement, reached by the White House, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, paved the way for Rep. Henry Waxman’s (D-CA) panel to resume its negotiations on the bill. At least four of the seven fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats on the panel have signed on to the agreement, said Rep. Mike Ross (D-AR), chairman of the Blue Dog Health Care Task Force.

   Public plans under this agreement will be authorized to negotiate rates with providers instead of establishing Medicare rates, to create a more level playing field between public and private options in the bill. Ross also clarified that the public option would remain an option, and “not be mandated on anyone.” State-based “co-ops” will also be offered as a coverage option, he said.

   Savings will be achieved through various measures, such as increasing the premium cap from 11% to 12% of income, and establishing a hospital value-based purchasing system, Ross said.

   Source: Jennifer Lubell, Modern Healthcare [7/29/09]

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3. Joe, on September 2, 2009 at 9:09 PM said:

   Janice,

   A new report states that the SEC found it mishandled five investigations of Bernie Madoff’s firm, despite ample complaints over 16 years about the multibillion-dollar fraud.

   http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32659739/ns/business-us_business

   Now, just what do you think would happen if Obama and the Feds ever ran healthcare?

   Joe

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4. Ann Miller RN MHA, on March 28, 2011 at 2:01 PM said:

   Bipartisan Senators Propose Deficit Summit

   In a letter to President Obama this week, 32 Republican and 32 Democratic Senators proposed a budget summit to implement “comprehensive deficit reduction measures.” Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Mike Johanns (R-NE) were the leaders of the bipartisan group.

   The letter noted that the Presidential Fiscal Commission had provided “an important foundation to achieve meaningful progress” on deficit reduction. Six senators (three Democratic and three Republican) have been working to develop an actual bill that would implement the recommendations of the Fiscal Commission.

   The group of 64 senators now recommends that the President develop a comprehensive package that will attack the budget deficit. The comprehensive bill would include “discretionary spending cuts, entitlement changes and tax reform.”

   In the view of the bipartisan group of senators, a joint effort “would send a powerful message to Americans that Washington can work together” on deficit reduction.

   President Maya MacGuineas of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget praised the bipartisan effort by the 64 senators. She noted that the Fiscal Commission prompted action by the bipartisan group of six senators and now the call for reform by the larger group of 64 senators. She stated, “I’m not usually an optimist on budget issues, but something big is happening and those who don’t confront our fiscal situation head on are going to be left behind.”

   Source: Children’s Home Society of Florida Foundation

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5. Butch, on August 23, 2013 at 5:24 PM said:

   Why Are American Health Care Costs So High?
   [The movie by John Green]

   http://johngreenbooks.com/

   Butch

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6. Ann Miller RN MHA, on September 26, 2013 at 5:02 PM said:

   Health Care Spending Growth in 2012

   For the third consecutive year, the growth rate of health care spending among privately insured people under age 65 remained low in 2012, growing 4.0 percent, slightly lower than in 2011 (4.1%), says the Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI).

   Health care spending averaged $4,701 per person with employer-sponsored coverage in 2012, up $181 from the year before. Forty-five percent of the additional dollars were due to more spending on outpatient care. In addition, out-of-pocket spending rose more quickly than expenditures per person in 2012, increasing 4.8 percent to $768 for each individual.

   After three years of slowing growth, spending per person on prescription drugs and devices reversed course, growing 3.8 percent in 2012, due mainly to increased use and rising prices for generic drugs.

   Inpatient spending grew slower (2.4%) than any other medical service category in 2012, while spending on outpatient services grew at the fastest rate (6.5%). Prices rose 5.4 percent for inpatient services, and 5.6 percent for outpatient services.

   Source: Health Care Cost Institute

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7. Ann Miller RN MHA, on November 21, 2013 at 7:11 PM said:

   Real Per Capita National Health Expenditures Annual Growth Rates, by Payer and Spending Category

   Historical Average Annual Growth Rate

   Average Annual Growth Rate, 2010-2013 1965-2010 2000-2007 2007-2010
   Total National Health Expenditures 1.3% 4.5% 3.9% 1.8%

   Major Payers (per enrollee)

   Private Insurance 1.6% N/A 5.1% 4.0%
   Medicare 0.0% N/A 5.4% 2.3%
   Medicaid -0.5% N/A 0.3% 0.1%

   Major Categories of Spending

   Hospital Care 1.9% 4.3% 3.9% 3.2%
   Physician and Clinical Services 1.7% 4.4% 3.1% 1.6%
   Prescription Drugs -1.6% 4.7% 6.2% 0.3%
   Home Health and Skilled Nursing Care 1.1% 6.5% 2.9% 2.7%

   Source: White House Council on Economic Advisers

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