The rising prevalence of "narrow" health insurance networks has set off alarms. But do such networks keep patients from getting good care? Not necessarily. The more relevant question is whether a provider network is adequate or not.
Healthcare Regulation and Reform
Can you buy health care like computers? For years, health policy gurus, employers and entrepreneurs have argued you could. But growing evidence tells us that the focus on turning patients into shoppers has real limits.
On Monday, Montana became the 30th state to expand Medicaid. On Tuesday, election results cast Kentucky's Medicaid expansion into doubt. What does this all have to do with kids' health? When it comes to children's health insurance, a state's Medicaid status can make a big difference.
Health insurance premium hikes have been modest in recent years, but out-of-pockets costs are another story. Our Thursday webinar on "Out of Pocket: Surprise Costs After Health Reform" offered a primer on the trends and a host of story ideas for reporting on these topics.
India-West’s examination of the impact of diabetes within the Indian population continues with a look at an attempt to legislate efforts to reduce sugar consumption, how one diabetic patient lived with the disease for nearly 25 years, and ways to manage the chronic condition.
Last week, the New England Journal of Medicine published a landmark study by CDC researchers on the safety of dietary supplements. The new study stands as a strong challenge to our current regulatory framework, as our Slow Medicine contributors explain.
When it comes to getting kids into health coverage, the numbers have never been better. By the first quarter of 2015, the percentage of kids without insurance was less than 5 percent. But despite the gains made in improving children’s coverage, big challenges remain on the horizon.
Out-of-network "surprise bills" are a growing problem. Patients think they're staying in their coverage network only to receive a bill for thousands of dollars after a procedure from, say, an anesthesiologist who wasn't included in their plan. So far, proposed solutions have proven controversial.
People with insurance are significantly more likely to be diagnosed with a chronic condition than uninsured people. That means that as the number of insured grows, the health system will have to cope with an influx of patients newly diagnosed with conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
There’s no question that prescription drug prices are skyrocketing in the United States, and consumers aren’t happy about it. What’s more complicated, though, is understanding the complexities of the issue and reporting on what those soaring prices mean for consumers.