Date Post Title Post Summary Topics
May 26, 2011 Fighting a Silent Epidemic: A New Strategic Approach to Viral Hepatitis Millions of baby boomers and other Americans have hepatitis B or C and do not know it. In fact, nearly two percent of the U.S. population may have some form of the disease – and approximately five million individuals will develop a chronic form of the diseases. Yet, startlingly, many of them will not even realize they have a hepatitis infection for decades. Chronic Disease | Public Health
May 24, 2011 Bundled Payment, Transparency, and Market Competition: What's Under Wraps? Bundling provides incentives for providers to differentiate product and price and enables purchasers and payers to compare and contrast offerings. Costs & Economic Analysis | Insurance
May 19, 2011 Recess: Moving People to Action I often start off my play-related trainings with a visioning exercise. I ask the audience to close their eyes and remember their own play memories–the sights and sounds they experienced, how they interacted with their peers, and where they were when they played. At the close of the activity the group participates in a sharing of memories. Public Health | Women & Children
May 17, 2011 New Labels Will Help Consumers Choose Health Plans For the first time, consumers shopping for a health policy will be able to get a good idea of how much of the costs different plans will cover for three medical conditions: maternity care, treatment for diabetes and breast cancer. Health Reform | Insurance
May 12, 2011 What You Need to Know to Engage Patients...and Why According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 88 percent of American adults who have Internet access research information about their health online. This trend provides a unique opportunity to improve the patient experience and quite pos­sibly their health outcomes. Behavioral Health | Information Technology
May 11, 2011 The Case for Tracking Health Spending as a Share of "Potential" GDP In my last Altarum Health Policy blog, I discussed how to recognize a bent health care cost curve. This curve was defined in terms of health spending as a share of gross domestic product (GDP), a measure that is closely watched by health economists and policymakers who are concerned with the share of national income needed to fund health care. Costs & Economic Analysis | Health Policy
May 10, 2011 Is the Political Terrain Shifting on Health Reform? As of this writing, since taking control of the House in January, Republicans have tried to repeal the ACA, strike out large portions of the law, defund it, and weaken some of the regulations of health reform. Some were willing to shut down the government over health reform. Health Policy | Health Reform | Medicare
May 5, 2011 Being a Consumer Isn’t Just About Money, It’s About Choice In a system that generates income by providing more and more services, the only party currently paying attention to the necessary care question is the government and employers. Consumer Choice | Costs & Economic Analysis | Insurance
May 3, 2011 Essential Health Benefits: The Secretary’s Joystick Beginning in 2014, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) hands the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services a joystick – the Essential Health Benefits package – with the potential to rocket small-business health insurance premiums skyward. Health Reform | Insurance