Caregiverlist® Announces Vermont Nursing Home Rating and Cost Index for February 2016

February 24, 2016, 3:01 am

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Vermont seniors seeking a long-term nursing home stay in their state will pay roughly $106,000 per year, the average annual cost based on the daily private and semi-private rates of 38 nursing homes in Vermont. Medicare does not pay for long-term care, while Medicaid does pay for an ongoing stay in a nursing home for low-income seniors.

Chicago, Illinois (PRWEB) February 24, 2016

The Caregiverlist® Nursing Home Index reports the updated costs and ratings for nursing homes in the state of Vermont in order to assist seniors looking to plan ahead for their senior care options. Because Medicare does not pay for long-term care, but does pay for short-term stays in a nursing home, the costs and ratings of a local nursing home can assist a senior and their family to plan ahead for the right senior care option. Medicaid for low-income seniors may pay for an ongoing stay in a nursing home, but does have a financial requirement in order to qualify. The February 2016 Caregiverlist® Index reports the average annual cost for an Vermont nursing home is $106,324.50.

Seniors in Vermont looking to plan ahead for senior care options should first understand the daily costs of nursing homes in their area and review the most important factors indicating quality of care. This is because Medicare does not pay for long-term care but does pay for short-term stays in a nursing home, usually as post-hospital stay rehabilitation.

Seniors in the Green Mountain State needing nursing home care can now view the most recent ratings and costs of nursing homes in their area by using the interactive Caregiverlist® Nursing Home Directory. This month’s update of the Vermont's Caregiverlist® Index indicates that the average cost of a nursing home in Vermont is $291.30 per day, or about $8860.00 per month. Of the 38 total Vermont nursing homes, the majority, 33, receive a Caregiverlist® Nursing Home Rating of 3- and 4-stars, with 5-stars being the highest score. Just 3 of the nursing homes rank 2-stars, and no nursing homes rate the lowest quality rating of 1 star. Only 2 of the 38 nursing homes in Vermont receive a 5-star Caregiverlist® Nursing Home Rating.

February 2016, National Averages Weighting for Rating

2 hours, 28 minutes: C.N.A. Hours per Resident per Day 40%
15.7%: Long-stay Residents with Increasing Activities of Daily Living Needs 20%
1.0% Short-term Residents with Pressure Sores (Bed Sores) 20%
Overall Medicare Star-Rating Score 20%

Caregiverlist® Vermont Nursing Home Rating and Cost Index

Total Number of Nursing Homes: 38

Average Cost Varies by Region
Average Cost of Private Room for Vermont: $301.95
Average Cost of Shared Room for Vermont: $280.65
Average Star-Rating: 3.1

Vermont Nursing Home Star-Rating Results
5-Star: 2
4-Star: 19
3-Star: 14
2-Star: 3
1-Star: 0

The Caregiverlist® rating combines 4 criteria to calculate an overall star-rating with a 5-star rating as the highest and a 1-star rating as the lowest score, as rated against the results for the total number of nursing homes.

Vermont seniors and their families must remember that nursing homes have become an extension of a hospital stay and many times Medicare health insurance will authorize a hospital discharge directly to a nursing home for rehabilitation after a major medical event has happened. This means researching the right nursing home ahead of time will ease the transition should a medical emergency occur.

Senior care costs are always a factor when choosing the right senior care option, as many elderly live on a fixed income. The average annual cost of a nursing home in Vermont is $106,324.50. Low-income seniors in Vermont may qualify for Medicaid, with the financial qualification of no more than $2,000 in assets for individuals and a $3,000 limit for couples. Medicaid will pay for long-term care in a nursing home for as long as the senior qualifies for needing care, even if this means multiple years of care until death. Visit the Caregiverlist® Vermont Medicaid Eligibility Requirements for for more information. Because seniors must private pay for a nursing home if needing care beyond the number of days Medicare will reimburse (usually only up to 100 days), many seniors also explore senior home care and assisted living options. Some assisted living centers also provide nursing home care.

Seniors should review the ratings and costs of nursing homes in their area and then visit the nursing homes which meet their budget availability. Ratings for nursing homes are only a starting point and while the Caregiverlist® Index calculates a custom rating based on the most important criteria for quality, Medicare will only begin auditing the nursing home’s submitted information for C.N.A. staffing next year. Right now all of the information for the nursing home ratings is self-reported.

About Caregiverlist®
Caregiverlist.com® is the premier service connecting seniors and professional caregivers with the most reliable senior care options, highest quality ratings and outstanding careers nationwide. Founded by senior care professionals, Caregiverlist® delivers the efficiencies of the internet to senior care companies by providing online job applications, caregiver training, background checks and industry news. Seniors and caregivers can access senior service information “by state,” view nursing home costs and star-ratings and learn about all senior care options and quality standards. For more information, please visit http://www.caregiverlist.com. Reported by PRWeb 21 hours ago.

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BetterDoctor Launches Provider Directory Requirement Solution, ProofPoint, at HIMSS 2016

February 24, 2016, 5:05 am

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New Tech Platform Eases Healthcare Company Provider Directory Challenges

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) February 24, 2016

BetterDoctor Inc. announced today that it will launch its newest product, BetterDoctor ProofPoint, at HIMSS 2016 in Las Vegas. This product serves Health Insurers and Managed Care Organizations with a scalable technology platform to update their provider directories and successfully comply with new federal and state regulatory requirements.

Inaccurate provider directories are costly to both consumers and insurance providers. New stricter mandates including Federal Exchange rules, Medicare Advantage, and Qualified Health Plan Directory requirements request health care organizations to have more accurate provider directories. Penalties for noncompliance may be severe. For Medicare Advantage directories, for example, there could be bans on new enrollment and marketing or fines up to $25,000 will be applied per day per beneficiary. California’s SB-137, passed in October 2015, also requires health plans in the state to comply to stricter provider directory standards with similar penalties applying.

“BetterDoctor’s ProofPoint offers the most robust and regularly verified doctor data in the marketplace,” explains Tapio Tolvanen, CTO at BetterDoctor.

Services via ProofPoint include real-time validation, timestamp proof that validation has occurred, and customized ways to develop scalable validation efforts for health plans. More importantly, providers can participate for free by updating their information on BetterDoctor’s provider portal, responding to our emails, and direct phone calls.

When a doctor updates their information with BetterDoctor the following happens:
-The updates are pushed out in ‘real time’ to over 150 healthcare companies using the BetterDoctor API. This partner network reaches over 60 million consumers each month.
-Our health plan partners are notified of the update(s) and can quickly incorporate them into their own member facing directories.
-Our website BetterDoctor.com is updated, which has helped over 20 million consumers find a doctor with a uniquely designed user experience.

Ultimately, this helps health plans focus on giving the best care they can to their members and unburdens them from the administrative cost and legwork of validating provider data.

Ari Tulla, BetterDoctor CEO, puts it this way, “We want to make this data available to everyone to make healthcare more transparent. Through BetterDoctor ProofPoint, we aim to simplify the healthcare industry’s provider directory challenges.”

BetterDoctor ProofPoint helps health plans by:
-Cleansing provider directories
-Automating and optimizing the validation process
-Providing historical and attestation data for submission to regulators

Why accurate provider directories are necessary:
-Consumers need accurate information about the providers and facilities that are in health plan provider networks when shopping for coverage.
-Health plan enrollees need accurate information about which providers and facilities they can visit in-network.
-Accurate information is necessary for consumers, regulators, and lawmakers to assess the adequacy of an insurer’s network.

For more information about BetterDoctor or BetterDoctor ProofPoint, please contact press(at)betterdoctor(dot)com.

To access our provider data, visit us at data.betterdoctor.com.

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About BetterDoctor:
BetterDoctor brings transparency to provider data. Their real-time platform, master database and API services enable organizations to quickly add provider data to systems, websites and applications. The information is used to help patients find the right doctor for them. Today, BetterDoctor API and data tools power health insurance companies, healthcare startups and doctor search tools. Reported by PRWeb 19 hours ago.

21 Hacks to Reduce Your Health Care Costs This Year

February 24, 2016, 10:10 am

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By Beth Braverman, Contributor

More than 43 percent of Americans recently polled by GOBankingRates said that they expected to pay more for health care costs this year, while less than 20 percent anticipated that their costs would go down. There are plenty of reasons to expect health care costs will go up: Employers are shifting a greater share of costs onto their workers, the prices of drugs and medical procedures continue to rise and our aging population has greater medical needs.

Still, there are ways to fight back against rising health care costs. Read on for 21 health care hacks that can help you slash your bills in 2016.*Visit GOBankingRates for the latest financial news and tips for 2016 >>>*

-1. Use Generics-
If your doctor prescribes you a brand-name drug, ask whether it would be OK to use a generic substitute. Generics can be significantly less expensive, and often there's no difference in outcome. Medicare enrollees who opted for generic drugs saved an average $1,923 per person in 2014, according to a report by the Generic Pharmaceutical Association.

*Read: 10 Ways to Survive Rising Health Care Costs*
-2. Stick With In-Network Providers-
Your insurer has deals with certain providers that will give you the best price and guarantee that the treatment will be covered. Going out of network almost always means that you'll have to pay higher prices. Out-of-network providers charged patients on average 300 percent more, or higher, than the Medicare rate for many procedures, according to analysis by America's Health Insurance Plans, a trade association representing the health insurance industry.
-3. Ask for 90-Day Prescriptions-
Breaking down the monthly cost, you'll likely pay less for a prescription for 90 days' worth of medicine than you will for a 30-day supply. Plus, you'll only have to pay your copay once, versus three times.
-4. Get Moving-
In addition to causing poor health, living an inactive lifestyle can have a dramatic impact on your medical bills. Sedentary adults pay $1,500 more per year in health care costs than adults who are physically active, according to a recent study by health advocacy organization Trust for America's Health.
-5. Get a Pet-
Not only can it be rewarding to have a pet, it can tangible health benefits, too. The decline in office visits and the reduced frequency of obesity associated with pet ownership can lead to a health care savings of about $86 per year, according to a recent report from the Human Animal Bond Research Initiative Foundation.
-6. Shop Around for Care-
For elective procedures, shop around to find the best price, and quality, for a procedure within your insurance network. Start by checking Healthcare Bluebook to get a sense of what a fair price for the procedure might be in your geographic area. Then call around to a few providers and ask for a quote based on your health insurance.

"Even if you have insurance and you play by the rules, you could still pay five to 10 times more than you should if you don't shop for care," said Jeff Rice, CEO of Healthcare Bluebook.
-7. Check Your Bill for Errors-
Nearly half of Americans say that they've received an inaccurate health care bill, according to a Wolters Kluwer Health poll. Protect yourself from overpaying by carefully reviewing every bill that you receive and disputing any potential errors. If anything looks off, or you don't understand a charge, contact the provider.
-8. Carefully Select a Health Care Plan-
When it comes to deciding on a health insurance plan, choosing the correct one upfront can potentially save you thousands in medical expenses throughout the year. However, more than 90 percent of workers say they choose the same benefits every year, and almost 80 percent spend less than an hour researching benefit options before making a selection, according to a recent Aflac poll.
-9. Take Advantage of Wellness Programs-
Companies are increasingly investing in wellness programs that encourage their workers to take steps -- such as signing up for biometric screenings, health assessments and physical activity programs --to monitor and improve their health. To increase employee participation in such programs, a growing number of employers are now offering incentives like money, gift cards, reduced health insurance premiums or contributions to an HSA or FSA, according to a report last year by the National Business Group on Health.
-10. If You're Eligible for an HSA, Use It-
If you have a high-deductible health plan at work, then you can fund a health savings account to use for medical expenses. Unlike an FSA, your HSA money is yours to keep and grows over time, so even if you don't use it this year, you can tap it for medical expenses in the future. For 2016, you can put up to $3,350 for an individual and $6,750 for a family into an HSA to use for medical expenses.
-11. Shop Around for Drugs-
Just as medical providers offer different prices, so do drug stores. A recent search on GoodRx.com for a 30-day supply of Lipitor found prices ranging from $10 to more than $90.

Retailers like Walgreens and Costco have prescription savings clubs, which offer a discount on generic prescriptions and often price match their competitors. The Walgreens program also provides a 10 percent discount on care at the store's health clinics.
-12. Avoid the Emergency Room-
Unless you have an actual emergency, stay away from the emergency room. Visiting a doctor's office or urgent care clinic typically costs much less, and is often a less frenzied experience.

Choose carefully, though, because urgent care clinics that are owned by hospitals could charge the same rate as their parent company. "You'll pay anywhere from four to 20 times the price by not going to your doctor," said Adria Gross, CEO of Medwise Insurance Advocacy, which helps people navigate the medical claims system.
-13. Negotiate Your Bills-
If you're paying out of pocket for a procedure, contact a hospital's billing department upfront to see whether there's any wiggle room in the price. If you've already had a procedure, but can't afford to pay the bill, there might also be an opportunity to negotiate the size of the bill, or set up a payment plan that makes it more affordable.
-14. Try Telemedicine-
More insurers and companies are offering benefits that include telemedicine, in which you can consult with a doctor online or over the phone for minor ailments, at a fraction of the cost of an in-patient visit. The average telemedicine visit is estimated at $40 to $50, compared to an in-person acute care visit at an average estimated cost of $136 to $176, according to a study commissioned by the Alliance for Connected Care. Bonus: You don't have to leave the house when you're under the weather.
-15. Consider Medical Tourism-
Some 750,000 Americans leave the country every year for health procedures that are cheaper elsewhere or not affordable in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The practice of "medical tourism," as it's known, includes risks, such as trouble communicating or less-safe practices. However, the Medical Tourism Association estimates that traveling for medical treatment can net savings of up to 90 percent.
-16. Bundle Your Costs-
Once you've reached your deductible in one year, consider scheduling any covered, elective procedures to also take place that year. That way, you can potentially avoid having to pay the full deductible in two consecutive years.
-17. Deduct Your Medical Expenses-
You qualify to write off your medical expenses on your taxes if your medical expenses are more than 10 percent of your adjusted gross income, or 7.5 percent if you're age 65 or older. Qualified expenses include doctor visits and premiums, fertility treatments and hearing aids.
-18. Go to Labs for Blood Work-
If your doctor orders blood work or other lab tests, first ask the doctor whether they're medically necessary. If yes, get the work done in a standalone lab, where prices tend to be cheaper than what you'll pay by getting work done in a hospital or some doctor's offices.

Asking your doctor for a written lab order and taking it to a national laboratory group, rather than an in-hospital lab facility, could save you up to 90 percent on costs, according to a 2014 study by health care consultant group Castlight.
-19. Insure Yourself-
Under the Affordable Care Act, if you can afford health insurance but choose not to buy it, you'll have to pay a fine when you file your federal tax returns for that year. In you're uninsured in 2016, you could pay a fine of 2.5 percent of your household income, or $695 per adult and $347.50 per child under 18 -- whichever is highest. In addition, going uninsured means that one medical emergency could become a financial disaster for you, depleting your savings or causing you to run up unnecessary debt.

*Read: 5 Tax Law Changes for 2016 You Need to Know*
-20. Strategize With Your Spouse-
If both you and your partner have access to health benefits at work, compare the plans offered by both companies. Find out which one offers the richest benefits at the best cost for your family, and whether you might be able to save money by being insured separately.
-21. Move Somewhere Cheaper-
The cost of getting insurance via the Affordable Care Act marketplaces plan varies drastically depending on where you live, according to recent analysis by GOBankingRates. Buying a plan in New York, the most expensive state in the country for these costs, for example, would mean signing on for a $3,000 deductible and a $366 monthly premium. A similar plan in New Mexico, by contrast, features a $2,000 deductible and premiums of just $181 per month, less than half of those in a New York plan.

This article, 21 Hacks to Reduce Your Health Care Costs This Year, originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com.

More from GOBankingRates:
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· Bank5 Connect Offers Best Checking Account of 2016· 10 Things That Will Be Cheaper for You Because of Falling Oil Prices· 10 Best Online Banks of 2016· 10 Benefits You Didn't Know Most Health Care Plans Cover· 10 Best Savings Accounts of 2016

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-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 14 hours ago.

7 Ways To Save At The Dentist

February 24, 2016, 10:51 am

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Dental care is important to your overall health as well as your smile. Failure to take care of your teeth and visit a dentist regularly can lead to gum disease and allow bacteria an efficient path into your bloodstream, potentially contributing to the risk of heart attacks, strokes, and diabetes. Unfortunately, too many Americans are not visiting a dentist as often as they should -- and, according to a 2012 study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one of the primary factors is cost.

Dental insurance is not covered in many health insurance plans, nor is adult dental health covered under the Affordable Care Act. Separate dental insurance is available, but it can be out of reach for many families who require subsidies just to maintain health insurance, let alone dental coverage.

If you are not covered through your job and you cannot find dental insurance that you can afford, what are your options? There are a few ways you can take care of your teeth and save at the dentist's office during your visits.
· *Preventative Care -* The best thing you can do is to take good care of your teeth and gums on a daily basis. Brush your teeth twice daily and floss to remove any trapped food particles. With any luck, all you will have to pay for is a checkup and cleaning when you do visit the dentist.Healthy eating habits should be a part of your preventative care. A package of Oreos is not going to be any better for your teeth than it will be for your waistline.
· *Do not Let Problems Linger -* As the old saying goes, you can pay now or pay later -- and if you pay later, you are likely to pay much more. A simple cavity may cost you a few hundred dollars to fill now, but ignoring it can lead to a much more expensive root canal in the future.Similarly, do not ignore any tooth pain that does not have an obvious external cause. It is almost certain to cost more in the future and could endanger your overall health if the pain is a symptom of a more serious problem.
· *Shop Around -* There is no reason you cannot compare prices for dental procedures as you would any consumer service. FAIR Health's website contains a cost lookup tool that should give you a good idea of the cost of dental care procedures. Ask for prices before visiting and be skeptical of any providers with unusually high or low costs. Check your local providers for any coupon programs or affiliations with other merchants, service providers, and savings programs.
· *Ask for Cash Discounts -* Providers may offer lower prices in exchange for payments in cash up front. The ability not to have to deal with credit or insurance can save the provider money, which they can partially pass on to you. Be prepared to ask for the discount; it won't usually be offered automatically.
· *Investigate Dental Savings Plans -* Dental savings plans are effectively membership programs that charge a low monthly or annual fee in exchange for dental services. The certainty of income allows the dental provider to offer discounts on services, often ranging between 15% and 60% off regular prices. Be sure you understand exactly what is and is not covered under any plan before you sign up.
· *Consider Dental Schools -* Accredited dental schools need patients to work on, and you can get your teeth done there for considerably lower costs. Qualified instructors supervise all the work. Access may be limited and wait times may be long, so it is best to combine this with excellent home dental care and pre-planned check-up dates.
You can check the American Dental Association Website for a list of nearby accredited dental schools. Visiting any unaccredited dental school is done at your own risk.
· *Look Into Assistance Programs -* If all else fails and you simply have no funds for care, investigate the assistance programs available in your area. Check with your local city and state government as well as with the dental association in your state -- contact information will be available on the ADA website.
However you have to do it, make sure that you take care of your teeth with necessary dental care. Failure to do so will make you pay later, and not just in terms of money.
This article was provided by our partners at moneytips.com

Dental Insurance Pros and Cons
Types of Supplemental Insurance
5 Ways to Save Money on Drugs

 

 
Photo ©iStock.com/belterz

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 13 hours ago.

Oscar confirms $400M investment from Fidelity

February 24, 2016, 10:59 am

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Oscar Health Insurance Corp. made good on a promise it made last month of a major investment coming its way. New York Business Journal previously reported that the New York City-based startup — known for using technology to change and improve the health-care industry — authorized the sale of up to $400 million in new “Series A8” stock. Rumblings of the deal, led by Fidelity Investments, started in late January when Oscar's parent company, Mulberry Health, filed new stock authorization documents… Reported by bizjournals 13 hours ago.

Smart Tax Deductions to Lower Your Tax Bill

February 24, 2016, 11:49 am

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*Smart Tax Deductions to Lower Your Tax Bill*

It’s not too late to lower your tax bill for 2015. If you haven’t filed your taxes yet, you may be able to reduce your adjusted gross income by up to $6,500. These tax deductions, in turn, reduce the amount you owe Uncle Sam.

There are three options to lower your tax bill, all of which take the form of a contribution, either to your retirement account or a health savings account. All can be funded up to this year’s tax deadline of April 18 (April 19 for Massachusetts and Maine): 

*Contribute to a traditional IRA. *The easiest way to lower your adjusted gross income is by adding to your retirement savings through an IRA. You can contribute up to $5,500—$6,500 if you’re over age 50—and the deduction will apply to your 2015 taxes if you make the contribution before this year’s tax deadline.

Something to keep in mind: Your deduction from an IRA contribution could be reduced or eliminated if you or your spouse is covered at work by a retirement plan like a 401(k), and your income exceeds certain limits. 

Note, too, that this tax break only applies to a traditional IRA—one in which your contribution comes from pre-tax income. While you can still open or add to a Roth IRA to apply toward tax-year 2015 (if your earned income is less than $193,000 for married couples filing jointly or $131,000 for singles and heads of household), contributions to a Roth IRA are not tax-deductible. The result is that it would not lower your tax bill for 2015. 

*Contribute to a SEP IRA. *If you made money from self-employment last year, you can lower your tax bill by contributing to a Simplified Employee Pension Individual Retirement Arrangement (SEP) IRA. The SEP IRA allows you to put aside up to $53,000 or 25 percent of your income—whichever is smaller—regardless of whether you’re covered by a retirement plan at your main job.

While you may contribute to both a SEP and a traditional IRA in the same tax year, because of their tax-advantaged nature, the amount of the traditional IRA contribution that you can deduct on your income tax return may be reduced or eliminated if you contributed the maximum allowed to your SEP IRA.

*Contribute to an HSA. *Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) are accounts that you can create and fund in conjunction with high-deductible health insurance plans. An individual can allocate up to $3,350 for 2015, which must be contributed before this year’s tax-filing deadline; families can fund their account up to $6,650. You can draw on the account to pay for out-of-pocket health care costs. The money in the HSA is yours to keep and use, even if you switch plans. 

There are three ways to fund an HSA and lower your tax bill. Your employer may have elected to contribute directly to your 2015 HSA; that contribution is not tax-deductible. You might have made pre-tax contributions, deducted from your own income, up to December 31, 2015. And if you haven't reached the contribution limit, you can make post-tax contributions directly to the HSA, up to the 2016 filing deadline. 

Whether pre-tax or post-tax, your contributions are eligible for a 2015 tax deduction if your health plan meets certain criteria. For a plan to be HSA-eligible, it must not cover any health care costs (except preventive care) before the deductible is met. If your plan covers doctor visits with a copay before the deductible is met, it's not HSA-eligible—and you won’t be able to take advantage of the tax-deductible contribution. 

To contribute post-tax dollars, you'll need to send a check or arrange for an electronic transfer directly to the company managing your HSA account, indicating that it's for tax-year 2015. Tax software or a tax professional can guide you to ensure that the additional contribution counts toward your deduction on your tax return. 

*Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers on this website. Copyright © 2006-2016 Consumers Union of U.S.*

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Oracle tells Congress of Oregon's 'mismanagement'

February 24, 2016, 11:58 am

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Oracle America sent 824 documents to three U.S. House oversight committee chairs, along with an offer to help “get to the bottom of Oregon’s failure” to create a functioning health insurance website. Oracle General Counsel Dorian Daley's 15-page letter outlines “the state’s mismanagement of the project.” (See document below). The letter, sent earlier this week, is addressed to Utah Republican Jason Chaffetz, chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform; Ohio Republican… Reported by bizjournals 12 hours ago.

HealthCare.gov to Tighten Eligibility Checks

February 24, 2016, 10:04 pm

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The Obama administration is adopting verification measures to ensure that people who sign up for health insurance on the Affordable Care Act’s federal exchange outside of the enrollment period are entitled to coverage. Reported by Wall Street Journal 2 hours ago.

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Fitch: Growth in Medicaid Expansion Depends on States, Political Climate

February 24, 2016, 2:16 pm

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CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Link to Fitch Ratings' Report: Medicaid Expansion (Underwriting Margins Maintained)https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=877723 The Medicaid expansion provision in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) drove 31% growth in health insurance industry Medicare revenues in 2014, outpacing the 18% five year average between 2010 and 2014, according to a Fitch Ratings report Medicaid Expansion - Underwriting Margins Maintained. Future growth in indust Reported by Business Wire 10 hours ago.

Medicaid is choice for most health insurance enrollees in NY

February 24, 2016, 2:50 pm

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More than 2.8 million New Yorkers have signed up for health insurance on the state's exchange, more than two-thirds of them on Medicaid, according to the state Department of Health. Reported by Newsday 9 hours ago.

Obamacare 'gaming' update: Feds tighten up on documentation for special enrollments

February 24, 2016, 4:04 pm

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The notion that mobs of Americans are actively plotting to cheat the Affordable Care Act by waiting until they get sick and then finding an excuse to sign up for health insurance is cherished by two groups: anti-Obamacare conservatives, and insurance companies.

As we've pointed out in the past,... Reported by L.A. Times 8 hours ago.

6 states sue Obama administration over Affordable Care Act

February 24, 2016, 4:43 pm

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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Six states have filed a new lawsuit against the Obama administration over the Affordable Care Act. The complaint that Texas, Wisconsin, Kansas, Louisiana, Indiana and Nebraska filed Wednesday in the Northern District of Texas takes issue with the Health Insurance Providers Fee assessed to health insurers to cover federal subsidies. The […] Reported by Seattle Times 7 hours ago.

Support For Sanders’ Single-Payer Plan Fades With Control, Cost Concerns

February 25, 2016, 2:14 am

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Americans are divided about the idea of creating a single-payer government health insurance system, as Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has proposed, but support shrinks when negative arguments are highlighted and alternatives are presented, according to a poll released Thursday. Reported by ajc.com 22 hours ago.

Leonardo Woman Steals Health Insurance Money, Prosecutor Says

February 25, 2016, 6:05 am

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Patch Middletown, NJ -- Stole a total of $2,587, prosecutors said. Reported by Patch 18 hours ago.

Health Insurance in Africa? There Should Be an App for That

February 25, 2016, 12:39 pm

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Right now health insurance in Africa constitutes a tale of two continents. The very affluent can take advantage of private insurance with top-tier doctors and hospitals. However, many families rely on crowded state-run facilities, with long wait times and not always the best of care or they have to pay out of pocket for medical services. The current situation leaves a huge gap in the middle. In order to make a difference different parties need to unite and start utilizing technological advances that exist in today's marketplace.

The market for healthcare in Africa is worth some $35 billion, according to McKinsey. About half of Africa's health expenditure is estimated to come from out-of-pocket payments. With patients paying over the counter, a sudden health crisis can cause severe financial hardship for families. And the cash economy can allow counterfeit medicines and unlicensed dispensaries to flourish.

The World Health Organization (WHO) considers health insurance "a promising means for achieving universal healthcare coverage." The goal of universal health coverage is to provide everyone with access to the quality health services they need at a reasonable cost. Clearly, more and better coverage would transform healthcare in Africa.

Africa needs affordable pre-paid private health insurance. A few years ago, Kenya launched a successful private program that provides basic quality medical care at low cost. Costs are lessened by keeping medical tests to a minimum and using doctors' time efficiently, with nurses performing tasks doctors don't need to do. The Kenyan program costs about $11 a person, compared to $30 - $40 per patient the WHO estimates for a basic medical system.

One of our healthcare portfolio companies, Sphera Bluoshen, has developed an innovative solution called M Health that is being implemented in Russia and elsewhere, and will be soon be tested in Africa. M Health allows mobile consultation 24/7 for pediatric and general medicine through its mobile app. We've found that M Health provides easier access to healthcare, with better quality, increased efficiency and reduced costs. Patients can communicate easily with their doctors, receive medical information to which they never before had access, and essentially control their own health.

A report by KPMG Africa calls technology a positive "disruptor" that can transform the system. According to our studies on mHealth, 20% of patients in emerging countries would pay more than $5 annually for this type of service, vs. 10% in developed countries. 82% of patients with poorly managed conditions are engaged in mHealth and 40% of payers encourage patients to monitor their condition through the service.

Africamentor.com describes some of these technologies now helping to change lives. In many parts of Africa, when an x-ray or other medical image has been taken, there is no guarantee that the image will be seen by a technician or physician who is qualified to read it correctly and make a diagnosis. Now radiologists can read medical images remotely, to provide reports and consultation for doctors and hospitals in rural areas or small towns.

Another company, according to the article, has developed a vast digital library of medical information, including doctors' credentials, which can be accessed on a smartphone. And an African entrepreneur has invented a computer tablet that allows heart examinations such as electrocardiograms to be conducted at remote, rural locations which have never before been able to perform these critical tests.

The increasing adoption of cell phones and mobile technologies allows for many innovations. For example, Kenya is piloting a portable kit consisting of a mobile app and clip-on hardware that transforms a smartphone into an eye examination tool. Another example is one state governor who simply gave expectant mothers cell phones so they can could call health professionals when they had a health issue, and receive calls to remind them to take their medicines or get their check-ups. This step greatly cuts the incidence of maternity-related complications.

Governments, providers, investors, employers and others in the private sector need to come together to develop innovative models that will work according to the needs of individual countries. It is very difficult today to obtain a license and to meet the regulatory requirements for health insurance in Africa. Today it is still challenging to provide real solutions to the people who need them most.

Quality healthcare for all is a challenge in many parts of the world, not just in Africa. We can make progress toward more feasible insurance, better coverage and quality healthcare in Africa - by employing the latest technology combined with the will to get it done.

Zandre Campos is chairman and CEO of Angola Capital Investments (ACI), an international investment firm that invests in companies in the healthcare, energy, transportation, hospitality, and real estate sectors throughout Africa. The mission of ACI is to create global value for developing countries in Africa, while contributing to their economic development.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 12 hours ago.

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What Political Revolution Looks Like in South Carolina

February 25, 2016, 12:39 pm

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Amy Glass is an I.C.U. nurse in California's Central Valley. Working in the heart of the valley for more than fifteen years, Glass has seen more than enough rural poverty for a lifetime. The often undocumented Mexican and Central American immigrants who make up the Valley's agricultural workforce live in atrocious conditions. They're often housed in broken down trailers without running water that bake to unbearable temperatures in the irrigated desert's sun. These women, men, and children find themselves in Glass's care after being stricken with massively high rates of cancer and asthma caused by pesticide exposure, as well as more mundane maladies like debilitating back issues and chronic fatigue syndrome that occur far earlier than they do for most Americans. As a professional caregiver to some of the poorest people in America, Glass did not think she could be shocked by rural inequality and dislocation.

That is, she did not think she could be shocked before she came to South Carolina.

Talking to Curtis Dixon, a collard green picker in Clarendon County, Glass was brought to tears by what she saw. Working twelve hours a day and paid by the box of greens he picks, Dixon described to her how it was virtually impossible to put even make the minuscule South Carolina minimum wage of $7.75 per hour. Despite his twelve-hour days, he struggled to put food in his children's mouths while keeping his lights and water on. As he told Glass, "no one in America should have to do this for that amount."

"It just felt different," Glass told me.
The conditions in the Valley are horrible for sure, but the people I treat there have hope. They came here for a better life and while they are realistic enough to know that they might not live long enough to see it they think their children will at least have more opportunities than they have had.
For Glass, this was the big distinction between what she sees every day in the Valley and what she's seen in South Carolina. The poverty, inequality, and health crises are the same. The difference though, was that despite the horrible conditions she's come to see every day in California, the undocumented migrants she treats maintain a hopefulness for a better tomorrow, while families like Curtis Dixon's are representative of a disintegrated American dream, a disintegrated dream that for poor black farmers in South Carolina has likely never existed.

Glass came to South Carolina with a team of nurses from around the country as part of the Vote Nurses Values campaign for Bernie Sanders. Pundits and Democratic Party elites are skeptical, if not downright derisive of what Sanders terms "political revolution." For Glass and her colleagues who are on the frontlines of treating the ill effects of the more than 33 million Americans lacking health insurance and the millions more whose wages barely cover it, political revolution is not an abstract concept though. As Bessie Gray, a nurse from Kansas City, told me, political revolution means "coming together and actually making sure the government helps people where they're hurting."

The derision with which comfortable Democratic elites and pundits who have likely never gone without health insurance have greeted Sanders' call for political revolution is palpable. From the perch of a Manhattan loft or Washington D.C. townhouse, Sanders' campaign and groups like these nurses he is inspiring is one of "ideological purity," a "magic unicorn" that offers naïve hope. For such operatives and writers, the solidarity demonstrated by nurses like Glass, Gray, and Dixon is inconsequential. Politics, they tell us, is about incremental change and what they define as the "achievable possible." It's what's practiced in $2,000 dollar-a-plate donor dinners, in speeches in front of corporate executives, and by "responsible" party leaders and analysts. What they fail to recognize is how Sanders' message of universal health care, access to higher education as a right, and living wages for all Americans inspires the kinds of conversations and encounters like what occurred between Glass and Dixon on Monday. Sanders' political revolution is not built on slogans or wishful thinking. It's not about ideology or loudly proclaiming how much smarter his supporters are than those of other candidates.

It is in fact, built on diametrically opposite grounds. It is about commonality and shared interests. It is about Americans of all stripes recognizing that despite their myriad differences, when they get down to it, most agree that hard work should be able to provide a decently comfortable life for them and their families -- a life that includes health care, not worrying what your children are going to eat at night, and giving them a real opportunity to follow their dreams. In the final analysis, it is about precisely why Glass, Gray, and other nurses came to South Carolina. They came here to do what nurses do -- talk to people about where they are hurting -- and find ways to work with them to truly fix it.

I asked Glass what she thought about people who would call her organizing and her trip to South Carolina naive. Channeling her new friend Curtis Dixon, this Central California raised horseback rider and target shooter told me, "they need to wake up and smell the collards."

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 12 hours ago.

Legislators wary of state employee health care increases

February 25, 2016, 2:10 pm

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Efforts to increase how much state workers pay for health insurance appears to be facing stiff opposition in the Legislature.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  Reported by Delawareonline 10 hours ago.

You can't fully understand the Internet of Things without this report

February 25, 2016, 3:17 pm

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The Internet of Things (IoT) Revolution is picking up speed and it will change how we live, work, and entertain ourselves in a million ways big and small.

From agriculture to defense, retail to healthcare, everything is going to be impacted by the growing ability of businesses, governments, and consumers to connect to and control their environments:

· “Smart mirrors” will allow consumers to try on clothes digitally, enhancing their shopping experience and reducing returns for the retailer
· Assembly line sensors will detect tiny drops in efficiency that indicate critical equipment is wearing out and schedule down-time maintenance in response
· Agricultural equipment guided by GPS and IoT technology will soon plant, fertilize and harvest vast croplands like a giant Roomba while the “driver” reads a magazine
· Active people will share lifestyle data from their fitness trackers in order to help their doctor make better health care decisions (and capture discounts on health insurance premiums)

No wonder the Internet of Things has been called “the next Industrial Revolution.” It’s so big that it could mean new revenue streams for your company and new opportunities for you. The only question is: Are you fully up to speed on the IoT?

Research analysts John Greenough and Jonathan Camhi of BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, spent months of researching and reporting this exploding trend and have put together a report on the Internet of Things that explains its exciting present and the fascinating future.

It covers how IoT is being implemented today, where the new sources of opportunity will be tomorrow and how 17 separate sectors of the economy will be transformed over the next 20 years, including:

· Agriculture
· Connected Home
· Defense
· Financial services
· Food services
· Healthcare
· Hospitality
· Infrastructure
· Insurance

· Logistics
· Manufacturing
· Oil, gas, and mining
· Retail
· Smart buildings
· Transportation
· Connected Car
· Utilities

 

If you work in any of these sectors, it's important for you to understand how the IoT will change your business and possibly even your career. And if you’re employed in any of the industries that will build out the IoT infrastructure—networking, semiconductors, telecommunications, data storage, cybersecurity—this report is a must-have.

Among the big picture insights you’ll get from *The Internet of Things: Examining How the IoT Will Affect The World*:

· IoT devices connected to the Internet will more than triple by 2020, from 10 billion to 34 billion. IoT devices will account for 24 billion, while traditional computing devices (e.g. smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, etc.) will comprise 10 billion.
· Nearly $6 trillion will be spent on IoT solutions over the next five years.
· Businesses will be the top adopter of IoT solutions because they will use IoT to 1) lower operating costs; 2) increase productivity; and 3) expand to new markets or develop new product offerings.
· Governments will be the second-largest adopters, while consumers will be the group least transformed by the IoT.

And when you dig deep into the report, you’ll get the whole story in a clear, no-nonsense presentation:

· The complex infrastructure of the Internet of Things distilled into a single ecosystem
· The most comprehensive breakdown of the benefits and drawbacks of mesh (e.g. ZigBee, Z- Wave, etc.), cellular (e.g. 3G/4G, Sigfox, etc.), and internet (e.g. Wi-Fi, Ethernet, etc.) networks
· The important role analytics systems, including edge analytics, cloud analytics, will play in making the most of IoT investments
· The sizable security challenges presented by the IoT and how they can be overcome
· The four powerful forces driving IoT innovation, plus the four difficult market barriers to IoT adoption
· Complete analysis of the likely future investment in the critical IoT infrastructure: connectivity, security, data storage, system integration, device hardware, and application development
· In-depth analysis of how the IoT ecosystem will change and disrupt 17 different industries

*The Internet of Things: Examining How the IoT Will Affect The World* is how you get the full story on the Internet of Things.

To get your copy of this invaluable guide to the IoT universe, choose one of these options:

1. Purchase an ALL-ACCESS Membership that entitles you to immediate access to not only this report, but also dozens of other research reports, subscriptions to all 5 of the BI Intelligence daily newsletters, and much more. >> *START A MEMBERSHIP*
2. Purchase the report and download it immediately from our research store. >> *BUY THE REPORT*

The choice is yours. But however you decide to acquire this report, you’ve given yourself a powerful advantage in your understanding of the fast-moving world of the IoT.

Join the conversation about this story » Reported by Business Insider 9 hours ago.

Big News: The GOP Has A Plan To Make A Plan To Replace Obamacare

February 25, 2016, 2:58 pm

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WASHINGTON -- It took President Barack Obama and the Democratic Congress 14 months to pass the Affordable Care Act in 2009 and 2010. In about five times as many months, congressional Republicans have produced the following: a set of warmed-over talking points that fits on less than two printed pages.

Yes, it's true. More than seven years into Obama's presidency -- an era during which health care reform has been one of the defining issues in domestic politics -- a group of GOP lawmakers hand-picked by House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) released a "mission statement" on Thursday. It is 251 words long.

The House Republican Health Care Task Force is holding an "ideas forum" the same day. That's fortunate for the GOP conference, since the mission statement is light on ideas. Take care not to confuse this task force with the one from last year, or any of the other House-leadership-sanctioned exercises in failure to achieve consensus on an Obamacare "replacement."

So, what do Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price (R-Ga.), Education and the Workforce Committee Chairman John Kline (R-Minn.), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) and Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) have to show the American people? Let's begin with the preamble:

Mission Statement: To modernize American health care with patient-centered solutions that improve access, choice, and quality, lower costs, promote innovation, and strengthen the safety net for the most vulnerable.

Obamacare is proof that putting the government at the center of our health care system harms patients, families, providers, and businesses. This is why we need to replace Obamacare’s obsolete, one-size-fits-all approach with innovative, market-based, patient-centered solutions.

This is a good start, because all of those words are words. And it's hard to argue with any of the the items on this wish list. Who doesn't want all those great things?

Of course, that's part of the problem. These aspirations are so universal they would apply to almost any health care plan. If you squint a little, it even looks like they could describe the Affordable Care Act or the single-payer program Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is promoting on the presidential campaign trail.
But what's really notable about this opening is that it reads as though it was copied and pasted from a memo Republican messaging guru Frank Luntz wrote in 2009 to advise GOP lawmakers how to kill health care reform without making it look like they were killing health care reform.

Here are excepts from the Luntz memo from seven years ago (emphasis his):

*Americans will expect the government to look out for those who truly can’t afford healthcare.* Here is the perfect sentence for addressing cost and the limited role for government that wins you allies rather than enemies: *“A balanced, common sense approach that provides assistance to those who truly need it and keeps healthcare patient-centered rather than government-centered for everyone.”*

*The arguments against the Democrats’ healthcare plan must center around **“**politicians**,” “**bureaucrats**,” and “**Washington**” … not **the free market, tax incentives, **or competition**.* Stop talking economic theory and start personalizing the impact of a government takeover of healthcare. They don’t want to hear that you’re opposed to government healthcare because it’s too expensive (any help from the government to lower costs will be embraced) or because it’s anti-competitive (they don’t know about or care about current limits to competition). But they are deathly afraid that a government takeover will lower their quality of care -- so they are extremely receptive to the  anti-Washington approach. It’s not an economic issue. It’s a bureaucratic issue.

Luntz goes on like that for a while. In fact, the memo is considerably lengthier than the House GOP task force's mission statement, though Luntz wrote it without the benefit of Obamacare being law for almost six years.

The document Ryan and his lieutenants issued on Thursday continues with what looks like a promise to spell out what Republicans want to do about the health care system, beyond just trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act for the umpteenth time.

To achieve the best outcomes and get results for the American people, this task force will follow key principles of patient-centered health care:

This is the moment health care wonks, anyone who's benefited or been harmed by Obamacare, and Republican voters have been waiting for! Drum roll...



· Empower every American with the ability to gain access to coverage that is affordable and portable.· Provide Americans with more choices, not mandates, so they have the freedom to pick plans and providers that best fit their unique health care needs.· Protect the quality of care for all patients -- including those with pre-existing conditions.· Promote innovation to improve competition, harness the power of new technologies, lower prices, and foster better cures and treatments for patients.· Save Medicare and Medicaid to strengthen health care security for seniors and America’s most vulnerable.

To that end, the Chairmen of the House Ways & Means Committee, Energy & Commerce Committee, Education & the Workforce Committee, and Budget Committee are focused on building consensus around specific health care policies that reflect these principles and will hold hearings to advance real patient-centered reforms, including:
· Innovations in employer-provided health care coverage· Health tax expenditures· Reforming broken insurance markets· Increasing state flexibility and sustainability in the Medicaid program· Saving and strengthening Medicare.



Oh.

To the extent this can be translated into policy positions, based mostly on things House Republicans have always more or less favored, they seem to be moving toward deregulating the health insurance industry, deregulating the pharmaceutical and medical device industries, slashing Medicare and Medicaid spending and doing some other stuff, maybe?

In the fairest reading of this mission statement, it's a sign that congressional Republicans are beginning a formal process to arrive at a consensus about replacing Obamacare -- a process made all the more vital because the party has no control over its leading presidential contender, Donald Trump, and would like to start defining the issues before he has a chance to lock up the nomination.

And yet! There is reason to be skeptical, mostly because there has never been a Republican consensus on how to fix the biggest problems in the health care system -- things like tens of millions of uninsured Americans, or people being denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions -- either before or after Obamacare.

What's more, Republicans in Congress have been making this same promise since the Obamacare debate started in 2009, and have never come through. It can't be repeated enough that this, alone, is cause to doubt it'll be different this year.

But at least now there's a mission statement GOP lawmakers can tweet out, so that's something.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 10 hours ago.

GOP Presidential Hopefuls Fail Again To Sketch Out An Obamacare Replacement

February 25, 2016, 7:52 pm

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Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.) made business mogul Donald Trump look silly during Thursday's GOP debate by pointing out that Trump had no real plan to replace the Affordable Care Act.

It was one of Rubio’s best moments yet -- and probably distracted many viewers from the fact that Rubio doesn’t really have an alternative, either.

The exchange happened after Trump got a question from CNN’s Dana Bash, asking Trump to offer details on his Obamacare replacement scheme. Trump, as usual, promised that he would create something “wonderful” and mentioned that he would remove barriers to purchasing insurance across state lines.

Conservatives have long supported this idea, on the theory that it will create more competition, thereby bringing down the cost of health insurance. Liberals have long opposed it, at least it the absence of a national health insurance scheme, on the theory that the insurance industry would end up looking like the credit card industry -- with carriers gravitating to the states with the loosest regulations on benefits and sales practices.

But whatever the relative merits of the idea, it’s simply not a way to provide insurance to tens of millions of people who, in the absence of some kind of universal health program, could not get coverage either because they have pre-existing conditions or simply don’t have the money to pay for premiums. In other words, by itself, it’s not a replacement for Obamacare -- or any other major health reform.

Rubio pounced on this -- pointing out, in a rebuttal to Trump, that the real estate mogul didn’t really have a plan. Rubio went on to note that Trump was simply making the same point over and over again about the perils of “drawing lines” around states, and really had nothing else of substance to say.

Rubio was right about that. Trump has talked a lot about health care, but when it comes to policy, he’s produced the equivalent of policy word salad -- a bunch of buzzwords that don’t even add up to coherent principles, let alone a plan.

But Rubio himself hasn’t done much better. The health care plan on his website is basically a set of talking points that are only slightly more detailed than what Trump has offered.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 5 hours ago.