If ever there were an award for the best “buyer beware” story, a tale detailing the pitfalls of short-term health insurance would certainly rise to the top of the list of nominees. Short-term policies — not to be confused with association policies I’ve written about before — are hitting the...
Former Iowa governor Terry Branstad, who instituted the privatization with a claim of saving money, was a founding member of the influential, Koch-brother affiliated American Legislative Exchange Council and now his legacy causes chaos for patients, doctors and hospitals in the state.
The tribulations of fighting unfair denials from PBMs and how one patient taped her calls. Listen to her calls within.
Recently Peggy, an Indiana woman and reader of this column, sent me a lengthy email about her 94-year-old mother who is rapidly spending down her minimal savings to pay for prescription drugs. Peggy didn’t hold out much hope that prices would come down before it was too late for...
High drug prices are Americans’ number one health care concern. The average price of a cancer drug rose from less than $10,000 a year before 2000 to more than $170,000 a year in 2017. Between 1995 and 2013, the launch price of cancer drugs increased by 10 to 12...
This analysis was written by Tarbell board member Diane Archer and originally published in the health news and advisory platform Just Care on 3/6/2019. Tarbell is republishing this piece with permission.
I’ve been thinking a lot about health-care mergers and acquisitions lately, and I must confess, it’s making me dizzy. All of this head-spinning thought was prompted primarily by the creation of Ballad Health Care, now the sole hospital system for my entire region of the country. Ballad was established about...
Critics feared the worst on March 14, but under pressure from activists and Tarbell reporting, an Oregon panel has tabled a vote on a cut-off that could raise the risk of suicide nearly 300%.
How health insurance cash forms opinions on Medicare for All.
Researchers at Brown and Columbia Universities found that disenrollment from MA plans “may indicate that plans do not meet the preferences of enrollees with significant chronic illness.”
Some states are once again offering insurance across trade organizations or business groups, but will the revamped program have the same old flaws?
A two month coma, a misdiagnosis and a $3 million bill.
Big Pharma dresses wolves in sheep's clothing to keep drug prices high. Don't be deceived. Learn how to sniff them out.
"The crooks already know these tricks; honest men must learn them in self-defense."
My former colleagues undoubtedly where cheering when they heard Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) come to the defense of private health insurers and trash the idea of improving and expanding Medicare to cover all Americans.
Open enrollment is over and the flood of advertisements for Medicare Advantage plans has ended for another year. I’m happy to report that, once again, I’ve managed to avoid signing up for one of those plans. For those who aren’t familiar with Medicare Advantage...
https://www.facebook.com/Tarbell.org/videos/2305283496367173/ Transcript Here's a startling fact: almost one of every three Americans now has diabetes or prediabetes. Thirty million Americans are already diabetic, and many of them have to use insulin to control their blood sugar levels.
Without the protections in the Affordable Care Act, many would find themselves back in the "bad old days."
Addressing the problem will require private and public sector to agree on causes and solutions.
With Congress set to debate “Medicare-for-all,” Tarbell examines efforts by health insurers to take over past health care reforms.