The week in healthcare reform
“Newsom said following his win, Democrats should ‘stiffen our spines and lean in to keeping people safe and healthy….’”
Gavin Newsom, Some Tips for Democrats in 2022
Slate | Jim Newell | September 17, 2021
“The decrease in private coverage was largely offset by a higher percentage of working-age adults covered by public insurance programs such as Medicaid.”
Private Health Coverage for Working-Age Adults Fell Amid Pandemic, Census Data Shows
Healthcare Dive | Susan Kelly | September 15, 2021
“[California Rep Scott ] Peters, in particular, has accumulated sizable donations from the pharmaceutical industry this year.”
A Cornerstone of Democrats’ Agenda is Suddenly in Deep Trouble
Slate | Jim Newell | September 15, 2021
“Government assistance, in the form of beefed-up Medicaid eligibility and heavily subsidized plans in the Affordable Care Act markets, kept people insured….”
Pandemic Didn’t Lead to Spike in Uninsured
Axios | Bob Herman | September 15, 2021
“Step therapy delays access to FDA-approved treatments that are immediately available to Medicare fee-for-service patients. … Since a larger share of Black and Hispanic than white beneficiaries are enrolled in MA plans, such access issues may contribute to disparities in care.”
Doc Groups Seek to Reinstate Ban on Step Therapy in Medicare Advantage
MedPage Today | Joyce Frieden | September 14, 2021
“Hospitals are worried that the Democrats’ plans to curb prescription drug costs could be the beginning of a slippery slope that ultimately cuts into their bottom lines, too.”
What Hospitals Don’t Like About Democrats’ Drug Pricing Bill
Axios | Caitlin Owens | September 14, 2021
“‘Abortion saves lives’ is more than just a slogan; it is an empirical truth that everyone, no matter their position on the morality of abortion, needs to consider.”
Pregnancy is Much More Dangerous than Abortion — Meaning Abortion Bans Like Texas’ Will Be Deadly
Salon | Amanda Stevenson | September 11, 2021
“Medicare Advantage is a massive, trillion-dollar rip-off, of the federal government and of taxpayers, and of many of the people buying the so-called Advantage plans.”
Let’s End the Medicare Advantage Scam
LA Progressive | Thom Hartmann | September 11, 2021
“Some Democrats in the Senate are defensive of the pharmaceutical industry, and the caucus can’t afford to lose a single vote on the reconciliation bill given the chamber’s 50-50 split.”
Rep. Lloyd Doggett Dismisses Senate Proposal to Use Veterans’ Rates for Drug Pricing Reform
The Intercept | Sara Sirota | September 10, 2021
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