In the 1990s, Taiwan did what has long been considered impossible in the US: The island of 24 million people took a fractured and inequitable health care system and transformed it into something as close to Medicare-for-all as anything in the world.Read HERE to learn what it takes to set up and sustain such a system.
According to a JAMA review, the waste in the U.S. healthcare system costs from $760 to $935 billion annually, roughly one-quarter of all U.S. healthcare spending, The two previous studies on the subject from 2012 estimated waste at roughly 30% and 34% – a key reason why the new study’s estimate is lower than previous ones is…
Almost all of the major health insurance companies are spending more on medical care this year than they have in the past. Rising prices and more services for sicker patients are among the many reasons why this is happening. That uptick in spending has freaked out Wall Street, even though insurers are still quite profitable.…
In 2019, the cost of healthcare for a hypothetical American family of four covered by an average employer-sponsored preferred provider organization (PPO) plan is $28,386, according to the Milliman Medical Index – Healthcare costs are increasing at a slower rate estimate costs grew by 2.9% from 2017 to 2018, and then 3.8% from 2018 to…
Hospitals represent the largest chunk of U.S. health care spending, and hospitals are acquiring more market power and commanding higher prices — bills that every American pays for in some part. A report funded by the American Hospital Association claims hospital mergers result in better care and savings for patients. But all independent studies show…
The amount of money Americans have to pay out of pocket for healthcare expenses before their insurance kicks in is now double what it was a decade ago. The average deductible for an individual is $1,655 a year, roughly double the $826 workers paid about a decade ago, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s annual…
Healthcare expenses forced 8 million Americans into poverty in 2018, according to the Census Bureau, an improvement from the past several years, when an annual average of 11 million people fell into poverty because of medical costs! The Census Bureau tracks how social programs and expenses influence poverty rates. Social Security, SNAP benefits and housing…
One alternative to sky-high monthly health insurance premiums for many Americans is opting for a high-deductible plan instead. Those plans come with lower monthly premiums, but their elevated deductibles create other problems. Deductibles can reach into multiple thousands of dollars — causing some people to skip care altogether. Foregoing preventative care or not filling prescriptions…
