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...

Poll of the Day: Sanders Has the Edge on Health Care

By Yuval Rosenberg

Potential Democratic primary voters give Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders the edge over his rivals for the party’s 2020 presidential nomination when it comes to understanding and dealing with health care...
Short-Term Insurance Plans Pushed by Trump Spend Far Less on Medical Care

By Yuval Rosenberg

Many of the short-term health insurance plans being promoted by the Trump administration spent a relatively small fraction of the premiums they collected last year on patients’ medical claims. Modern...
Trumpcare, Coming This Fall?

By Yuval Rosenberg

The Trump White House is “considering releasing” its long-promised health-care plan next month as part of an election campaign effort to counter calls from some Democrats for a transition to Medicare...
Drugmakers Master Rolling Out Their Own Generics to Stifle Competition

By Jay Hancock and Sydney Lupkin, Kaiser Health News

When PDL BioPharma’s $40 million blood-pressure medicine faced the threat of a generic rival this year, the company pulled out a little-known strategy that critics say helps keep drugs expensive and...
Op-Ed of the Day: The Health Care Debate Democrats Should Be Having

By Michael Rainey

Democrats should skip the debate over Medicare for All and turn their attention instead to the most important issue in health care, affordability, says Ezekiel J. Emanuel, an oncologist at the...