In 2018 the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) suddenly removed Auryxia (ferric citrate) from the Medicare Part D drug formulary and began to require prior authorization for the few indications it would reimburse. CMS gave little information about the reversal but apparently made the decision because it views ferric citrate at a mineral product, like dietary supplements such as Vitamin C. Dietary supplements are not covered by Medicare except in a few cases.
Category: Experts
Why Dogs Get Better Care Than Most Humans
My dog had to go to the veterinarian on Tuesday for her annual visit. Where I live vets aren’t particularly cheap, but they have one thing us human patients do not: price transparency. Since most pet owners don’t have health insurance for their pets, they are more price sensitive. Because vets don’t have many different insurance companies to bill, prices tend to be uniform. One vet we’ve patronized even has a list of lab test prices on each exam room wall. It explains the cost of various individual tests and a package price if all were performed together. Another vet has a note on the interior door that reads, “Did you make an estimate???” When is the last time you saw a sign like that in your physician’s office? Probably never.
John C. Goodman
John C. Goodman is one of the nation’s leading thinkers on health policy. The Wall Street Journal calls Dr Goodman “the father of Health Savings Accounts.” Modern Healthcare says he is one of four people who have most influenced the changes shaping our health care system.
Devon Herrick, Ph.D.
Devon Herrick, Ph.D. is a health economist and former hospital accountant. Herrick has researched and written about health reform and health economics for many years. He concentrates on issues such as direct primary care, Internet-based medicine, telemedicine, medical tourism, emerging trends in retail medicine, and pharmaceutical economics. Dr. Herrick also studies health insurance issues, including state health care regulations, federal health reform, Medicare, Medicaid, and the uninsured. Herrick worked for the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA) from 1996 until 2017, becoming a senior fellow in 2003.