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Remedies needed: Better palliative care, patient-centered approach

MedPAC, the Congressional advisory committee on Medicare, discussed how to get patients more involved in their health decisions.

Health Information Technology (HIT) is expected to make patients' medical information not only more accessible, but easier to share among providers. Yet, despite the promising capabilities of HIT, providers are not entirely convinced about the costs that come with health technology.

A commission created by Congress to address the country's surging need for long-term health care released recommendations Friday but did not reach a consensus on how to pay for these often expensive services.

At least one company's doubts about the reform effort have led to their departure from the new navigator program intended to assist the uninsured in obtaining health plans through the federal health exchange.

Researchers and policymakers say one reason healthcare prices continue to outstrip inflation and quality of care lags is that most patients have no way to compare the price and quality of different healthcare providers, products and services.

States are increasingly turning to insurance companies to provide coverage for people on Medicaid in hopes of saving money and improving care.

Republican lawmakers have failed in dozens of attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, but a new poll shows just how difficult they have made it for President Obama's signature legislative achievement to succeed.

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) voted 13 to 0, with one abstention, in favor of recommending accelerated approval of a Perjeta® (pertuzumab) regimen for neoadjuvant treatment (use before surgery) in people with high-risk, HER2-positive early stage breast cancer.

A new study suggests that primary care providers participating in an accountable care organization (ACO) and having greater engagement with patients transparency into the cost of services and procedures have the ability to bend the healthcare cost curve by an 8 to 1 margin in terms of return on investment (ROI).

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act saved consumers $1.7 billion on health insurance premiums last year, an HHS report found. Meanwhile, a separate study found that ACA provisions squeezed insurers' profits.

As healthcare delivery evolves to be more efficient and cost-effective, health technology continues to show the biggest promise.

The ability to treat cancer in a growingly aging population is reaching a near crisis level in the healthcare community.

When it comes to controlling healthcare costs, only 36% of physicians agree that practicing physicians have a major responsibility to participate in cost containment, according to a recent study.

Gov. Corbett is considering an expansion of Medicaid to cover hundreds of thousands of uninsured residents if he can also win significant changes to the existing part of the entitlement program, which otherwise would continue in its current form.

The expansion of Medicaid may drastically change the demographics of beneficiaries.

Cancer treatment has grown so complex, many U.S. doctors can't keep up with new information and are offering incorrect treatment, failing to explain options and leaving patients to coordinate their own care.

Two new studies have put a price tag on healthcare services considered of little benefit to patients. In both reports, researchers raised questions about the role that healthcare providers play in delivering potentially unnecessary care.

Even if the employer mandate will not be enforced until 2015, the US Treasury Department is still looking at ways to simplify the healthcare reporting process for employers and insurance companies.

Federal officials for more than a decade have let hospitals charge Medicare varying rates for certain emergency department overhead and staffing costs called facility fees-a controversial policy some critics believe invites overcharges.

Coping with advanced cancer, Bev Veals was in the hospital for chemo this summer when she got a call that her health plan was shutting down. Then, the substitute insurance she was offered wanted her to pay up to $3,125, on top of premiums.

The health law is expected to change the face of Medicaid literally.

Hospitals and healthcare systems nationwide are increasingly buying more physician practices as health reform requires care delivery to move toward a more quality-based care model instead of a fee-for-service one. The reactions are mixed.

The decision of some states not to expand Medicaid means that the nation's poorest - those the Affordable Care Act would have helped the most - may not receive any help at all.

Officials overseeing Delaware's implementation of the federal health care reform law still don't know what residents will pay for health care coverage under a new state health insurance exchange.

The phones are already busy at the Washington State Exchange call center where customer service representatives are fielding hundreds of questions about the state's new health insurance exchange, slated to open for enrollment Oct. 1.

While health law reform and expansion of insurance coverage comes with good intentions, there are many other decisions that are seemingly shifting care in the opposite direction.

The Republican-led Michigan House gave final approval on Tuesday to a bill that would expand the Medicaid health program for the poor under Democratic President Barack Obama's healthcare reform law.

Mark Fendrick, MD, co-editor-in-chief of The American Journal of Managed Care, concludes the PCDC event with his closing remarks.

Deneen Vojta, MD, says cheaper, better, more accessible healthcare is something we all want. Big data, value-based insurance design, and value-based contacting are all factors that might help the industry get there.