Medicare and other insurers are using patient satisfaction to determine provider payment. But according to one expert, rheumatologists who look at their practice with a critical eye, listen and ask their patients the right questions may improve their patient relationships and their practice…
(Reuters)—UnitedHealth Group Inc. on Tuesday said it anticipated another $200 million more in losses this year on the individual insurance business created under U.S. President Barack Obama’s national healthcare reform law, citing the program’s high medical costs. The largest U.S. health insurer says the problem was confined to this one business line, which it plans…
It’s been said that there is no greater bully pulpit than the American presidency. Linking the force of moral persuasion to this most powerful office—one that is capable of issuing executive orders and bypassing the wishes of Congress or rousing public opinion in favor of or against bills that are in the process of being…
WASHINGTON (Reuters)—U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) called on Wednesday for an end to Obamacare‘s financial protections for people with serious medical conditions, saying these consumers should be placed in state high-risk pools. In election-year remarks that could shed light on an expected Republican healthcare alternative, Ryan said existing federal policy that prevents…
Four years ago, a series of articles in The Rheumatologist talked about the practice of rheumatology in rural settings. Since then, changes have occurred, with the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), differences in reimbursement and the trek toward value-based payment systems. One major concern expressed in the original article was the fact that…
WASHINGTON (Reuters)—The U.S. Supreme Court, which delivered major rulings in 2012 and 2015 preserving President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare law, on Tuesday declined to take up a new, long-shot challenge to Obamacare brought by an Iowa artist. The court turned away an appeal by Matt Sissel, who had asserted that the 2010 Affordable Care Act…
hgh(Reuters Health)—High-deductible health insurance plans have been tied to lower healthcare spending, but a new study suggests the reason is not that enrollees in those plans are savvier. High-deductible plans have lower premiums, but when enrollees need medical care, it costs them more out-of-pocket. Researchers had expected that these patients are spending less because they’re…
Rheumatologists practicing in rural and urban areas face different challenges. Robert Jackson, DO, discusses how technology, healthcare reform and hospital closures affect rheumatology practice in rural areas and its future…
(Reuters)—The chief executive of HCA Holdings Inc. on Monday said he expects the Affordable Care Act to drive more growth for the U.S. hospital operator in 2016 as Americans sign up for insurance coverage through exchanges created under the law. “We are very encouraged by the open enrollment results so far,” R. Milton Johnson, CEO…
(Reuters)—Healthcare investors can expect a volatile week starting on Monday when the sector’s biggest financial event hits San Francisco. The annual JP Morgan healthcare conference, in which many healthcare companies present product and financial news to would-be investors, has been credited for helping the January out-performance of the healthcare sector in recent years. But after…