Health Care

The Rising Tide of Health Care Costs

By The Fiscal Times Staff

We told you yesterday about new data from the Medicare actuaries showing health care spending in the U.S. hitting a record high last year, totaling $3.65 trillion overall, or more than $11,000 per...
The Healthiest — and Unhealthiest — US States

By Yuval Rosenberg

Vermont is the healthiest state in the U.S., according to the latest annual ranking by the United Health Foundation. Vermont climbed three spots, thanks in part to “a low incidence of chlamydia, a...
Health Spending Hits Record High, Even With 1 Million Fewer Insured

By Yuval Rosenberg

U.S. spending on health care grew to $3.65 trillion last year, climbing above $11,000 per person for the first time, according to a new report from Medicare actuaries. Spending rose 4.6% in 2018,...
A White House Report Slams Pelosi’s Drug Plan. Experts Call Its Claims ‘Nonsense’

By Yuval Rosenberg

The White House Council of Economic Advisers issued a report Tuesday warning that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s bill to lower prescription drug prices would have devastating health and economic costs...
How a Public Option Would Affect the Insurance Market

By Michael Rainey

Several Democratic presidential candidates say a public option for health insurance would provide a more moderate, less disruptive alternative to the Medicare for All plan backed by Senators Bernie...

Joe Biden Says Pete Buttigieg ‘Stole’ His Health Care Plan

By Yuval Rosenberg

Former Vice President Joe Biden said Monday that Pete Buttigieg, a surging rival for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, “stole” his health care proposal to expand the Affordable Care Act...
63% Say U.S. Health Care Has Huge Problems — and That’s an Improvement

By Yuval Rosenberg

Here’s a nugget of good news: Nearly two-thirds of Americans surveyed by Gallup say that the U.S. health care system is in a state of crisis or has major problems. Yes, that’s good news because...
Chart of the Day: Record Low Poverty Rate

By Michael Rainey

The extensive array of government assistance programs — including Social Security, unemployment insurance, veterans’ benefits, nutritional aid, rental assistance and the Earned Income Tax Credit —...
Feud Between Top Officials Hinders Trump Health Care Agenda: Report

By Yuval Rosenberg

A deep, personal feud between President Trump’s health secretary and his Medicare administrator has undermined the administration’s health care agenda and disrupted the development of an Obamacare...
Fact Check: Do 160 Million Americans Really Like Their Health Plans?

By Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News

Articulating his proposal for health care reform, former Vice President Joe Biden emphasized the number of Americans who, he said, were more than perfectly satisfied with the coverage they have. “One...

The 20 Most Expensive Drugs in the US

By The Fiscal Times Staff

Drug price-comparison platform GoodRx recently released an expanded rundown of the 20 most costly drugs in the U.S., based on the list price set by manufacturers — which can be very different from...
Fixing U.S. Health Care: Can States Step Up Where Washington Has Failed?

By Yuval Rosenberg

The midterm elections may have focused extensively on health care, but the results have done little to clarify where health care reform is headed. “The future of U.S. health care reform is muddier...
Narrow Networks Still Dominate Obamacare Exchanges

By Yuval Rosenberg

Networks that offer less choice of health care providers remain the most common types of plans on Affordable Care Act exchanges, with 72 percent of the market, according to a new analysis by research...
No, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, a $21 Trillion Pentagon Accounting Error Can’t Pay for Medicare for All

By The Fiscal Times Staff

Newly elected representative and social media lightning rod Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) sparked a round of controversy this weekend when she compared the potential cost of Medicare for All to the...
Republicans Push Back on Trump Plan to Lower Drug Prices

By Yuval Rosenberg

In late October, the Trump administration announced a plan to lower some Medicare drug prices in part by tying them to an index of prices in other advanced economies, like France and Germany...