- Biden’s executive order uses the Defense Production Act (DPA) to allow the government to produce drugs that are in short supply. It also waives any requirement to notify Congress before taking action.
- In 1980, physician donations to the two parties was 50/50; by 2018, 90% of physician donations were going to Democrats.
- Where are all the U-Hauls going? Texas ranks first and California ranks last.
- Australia has gone more than 30 years without a recession. Scott Sumner explains why.
- Can therapy help make you rich? “Light-touch psychological interventions, such as videos that aim to raise aspirations, have shown some promise in … improving economic well-being.”
- Recent increases in Medicare spending have been concentrated in specialties with the greatest proliferation of new Medicare billing codes. This is spending on new procedures.
Category: Medicare
Friday Links
- How UnitedHealth used secret rules to keep Medicare Advantage patients out of rehab.
- Former NIH director on lockdowns: You attach a zero value to whether this actually totally disrupts people’s lives, ruins the economy, and has many kids kept out of school in a way that they never quite recovered.
- Medicare Advantage enrollment: As of 2021, 59% of Black Medicare beneficiaries, 67% of Hispanic beneficiaries, and 55% of Asian and Pacific Islander beneficiaries were enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan as compared with 43% of White beneficiaries. Left out of the headline: These disparities mirror the same disparities found in traditional Medicare.
- Pandemic unemployment insurance benefits: Once they ended, the flow of people from unemployment to work increased by two thirds.
- How Medicare determines what it pays for medical care.
How Long Do You Want to live… with Alzheimer’s?
Several close family members developed Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia before they died. They all required institutional care. Alzheimer’s is an insidious disease that robs the victims of the person they were. It robs them of the people they loved as they forget the names and faces of family and friends. It robs them of their dignity as they can no longer care for themselves and must be fed, bathed, clothed and toileted like a toddler. It sometimes robs them of their legacy, as their care is so costly they have to bankrupt themselves before qualifying for Medicaid coverage.
The Dark Side of Telemedicine
I love telemedicine. I have long been an advocate of being able to talk to your doctor on the phone when you have a health complaint. The alternative is often driving across town and waiting in a crowded waiting room with other sick people. I have long believed the natural progression of telemedicine would be (or at least should be) people buying Bluetooth devices that check vital signs and connect seamlessly to your doctor’s computer to make telemedicine even more robust. This would help your doctor know even more about your medical complaint than listening to you on a cellphone or seeing you through a grainy video feed.