Health Affairs

Choosing Wisely: Doctors Want To Do The Right Thing

Getting physicians and patients talking about whether tests are necessary is a small but important first step in addressing what is wrong with our current health care system. Issues such as how we pay for care, how we organize our delivery systems, and...

Published Wed, Jun 06 2012 11:37 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Consumers, Physicians, Health Care Costs, Spending, Quality, Effectiveness

New Health Affairs Focuses On Americans Covered By Both Medicare And Medicaid

Research and analysis in the newly released June 2012 issue of Health Affairs, supported by a grant from The SCAN Foundation, emphasizes the need to develop new ways of paying for and providing care for the roughly 9 million Americans who are eligible...

Published Tue, Jun 05 2012 12:37 PM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Policy, Health Care Costs, Spending, Medicare, Quality, Medicaid, End-of-Life Care, Aging, Disabilities

Can Active States Endure A Ground Shift? Implications Of The Supreme Court’s Health Reform Decision

We do not know what the Supreme Court will decide about the Affordable Care Act, but we do know that changes to the ACA’s coverage provisions would have a major impact on states already active in implementing the law. Would active states be able to overcome...

Published Mon, Jun 04 2012 6:01 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Policy, Politics, States, Coverage, Medicaid, Health Law

Implementing Health Reform: Essential Health Benefits And Plan Accreditation

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) continues to put in place the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that is health reform. On June 1, 2012 HHS released a notice of proposed rulemaking addressing two issues: collection of data to support the essential...

Published Sat, Jun 02 2012 3:01 PM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Policy, Insurance, States, Quality

The Supreme Court On The Affordable Care Act: What We Are Waiting For

With the U.S. Supreme Court poised to rule on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) it is worth reminding ourselves of what, exactly, we have been waiting for. We await a judicial opinion that could deliver a decisive blow to all or part of a massive piece of...

Published Fri, Jun 01 2012 11:45 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Consumers, Insurance, States, Medicaid, Health Law

A New Tool To Track The Progress Of The Health Care System

Editor’s note: In addition to Sherry Glied, the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) at HHS, (photo and linked bio above), this post is coauthored by Erin Miller, a Public Health Analyst and Special Assistant to the ASPE, and Julia...

Published Fri, Jun 01 2012 9:42 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Public Health, Policy, Health Care Costs, Workforce, Quality, Disparities, Research

Bundled Payments: Toward A Challenging Yet Better Place

‘But I don’t want to go among mad people,’ Alice remarked. ‘Oh, you can’t help that,’ said the Cat. ‘We’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.’ ‘How do you know I’m mad?’ said Alice. ‘You must be,”...

Published Fri, Jun 01 2012 5:59 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Policy, Payment, Health Care Costs, Spending, Quality

The Curtain Rises On The Fourth Act: States’ Evolving Responses To The Affordable Care Act

As we anticipate release of the Supreme Court’s decision on the Affordable Care Act, we can look back at how states have responded thus far to the ACA in order to anticipate what may come next. States’ responses have unfolded in three acts, and when the...

Published Thu, May 31 2012 12:57 PM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Policy, Politics, Insurance, States, Health Law

Media Partnership: State Healthcare IT Connect Summit

Whatever the Affordable Care Act’s fate in the Supreme Court, Medicaid will continue to be of great importance to states and will continue to consume large portions of their budgets. Modernizing state Medicaid programs will be a key focus of the...

Published Wed, May 30 2012 11:42 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Health IT, States, Medicaid, Innovation

Prescription Drug Shortages: Reconsidering The Role Of Medicare Payment Policies

Concern over prescription drug shortages has recently reached a fever pitch. The cause for concern includes the rise in the sheer number of shortages — from fewer than 80 shortages in 2005 to more than 250 in 2011 — and the types of drugs...

Published Tue, May 29 2012 1:14 PM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Policy, Payment, Medicare, Pharma

Health Affairs Briefing: The Care Span For The Elderly And Disabled

On Tuesday, June 5, Health Affairs will hold a briefing to discuss its June 2012 issue, “Focus On The Care Span For The Elderly And Disabled.” The volume explores a wide range of topics — from avoidable hospital admissions and readmissions...

Published Thu, May 24 2012 2:13 PM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Payment, Chronic Care, Spending, Medicare, Quality, Hospitals, Medicaid, End-of-Life Care, Aging

Most Individual Polices Would Not Meet Affordable Care Act Standards

More than 11 million Americans below the age of 65 are now covered by private individual health insurance plans. A new study, released yesterday by Health Affairs as a Web First, measures the actuarial value (the percentage of medical bills an insurance...

Published Thu, May 24 2012 8:58 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Consumers, Insurance

Health Care Economics 101 And The Supreme Court

Editor’s note: Kathryn Gilbert, a J.D. candidate at the University of Michigan Law School, is a coauthor of this post, in addition to Jill Horwitz and Helen Levy (photos and linked bios above). The case that will decide the fate of the most important...

Published Wed, May 23 2012 1:29 PM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Consumers, Policy, Insurance, Health Care Costs, Bioethics, Hospitals, Health Law

Six Strategic Variables In Predicting The Impact Of Accountable Care

As Integrated Delivery Networks (IDNs) assess the financial implications of accountable care, six key variables deserve special attention. These variables are unique because they will shape both the accuracy of future financial projections and begin to...

Published Tue, May 22 2012 11:38 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Insurance, Payment, Physicians, Health Care Costs, Medicare, Hospitals

Implementing Health Reform: The Premium Tax Credit Final Rule

At the heart of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) health care reforms are the premium tax credits, which will extend health insurance coverage to 18 million lower and middle-income Americans. The idea of using tax credits to purchase private health insurance...

Published Sun, May 20 2012 8:15 AM by Health Affairs Blog

Filed under: All Categories, Health Reform, Consumers, Policy, Insurance, Employer-Sponsored Insurance, Coverage, Access

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