Tax Cuts Could Make It Harder to Change Medicare, Medicaid December 20, 2017 Perspective In this Axios column, Drew Altman discusses how cutting Medicare and Medicaid has always been a challenge, but if the public comes to view “entitlement reform” as a means to pay for tax cuts, the GOP will have an even stiffer challenge, including with their base.
Web Briefing: The Future of Delivery System Reform in Medicare: Assessing the Evidence and Looking Ahead November 28, 2017 Event On Nov. 28, 2017, KFF held a public web briefing on the topic of delivery system reform in Medicare. It explored the latest evidence on savings and quality among newer payments models (including ACOs, bundled payments and medical homes), and discussed future directions that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services…
Kaiser Health Tracking Poll – November 2017: The Politics of Health Insurance Coverage, ACA Open Enrollment November 17, 2017 Poll Finding This month marks the start of the ACA’s fifth open enrollment period and finds three in ten of the public saying they haven’t heard anything at all about the current open enrollment period. Despite their overall views of the ACA, the majority of the public (61 percent) – including most Democrats (71 percent), independents (58 percent), and half of Republicans (52 percent) – say that because President Trump and Republicans in Congress are now in control of the government, they are responsible for any problems with the health care law moving forward. This month’s tracking poll also examines public support for two variations of a Medicare buy-in proposal.
10 Essential Facts About Medicare and Prescription Drug Spending: A Slideshow November 10, 2017 Slideshow
One Million Medicare Part D Enrollees Had Out-of-Pocket Drug Costs above the Catastrophic Threshold in 2015 November 7, 2017 News Release One million Medicare beneficiaries had out-of-pocket drug spending above the Part D catastrophic threshold in 2015, and the number with such high spending has risen sharply in recent years, according to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation. While the Part D drug benefit has helped make drugs more…
FAQs: What’s the Latest on IPAB? November 3, 2017 Issue Brief The Independent Payment Advisory Board was authorized by the Affordable Care Act to help slow the growth in Medicare spending. These FAQs address common questions about IPAB, including how it was designed to operate and the implications of eliminating it.
Medicare’s Income-Related Premiums Under Current Law and Proposed Changes November 2, 2017 Issue Brief Most people with Medicare pay the standard monthly premium for Part B and Part D coverage, which is set to cover 25 percent of Part B and Part D program costs, but a relatively small share of beneficiaries are required to pay higher premiums. This issue brief describes current requirements with respect to Medicare’s Part B and Part D income-related premiums and proposed changes under House legislation being considered in November 2017.
One Big Thing People Don’t Know About Single Payer November 2, 2017 Perspective In this Axios column, Drew Altman discusses a challenge for single payer which has not received much attention – a large share of the American people do not think they would have to change their current health insurance arrangements if there were a Medicare-for-all style single payer plan.