Insurance

Could two years really have made the difference? While some healthcare reforms proposals have called for raising Medicare eligibility from age 65 to 67 to address cost concerns associated with the Affordable Care Act, President Obama has made it clear that he would not consider increasing the age limit as a way to aid the national deficit.

For the second time in 6 months, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services officials have revised readmission penalties for hospitals. In doing so, approximately 1200 hospitals are now subject to lesser penalties.

A new study published online today in The American Journal of Managed Care found that in Medicare Part D, generic drug coverage was cost-saving compared to no coverage in bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, while also improving health outcomes. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, the Pitt Graduate School of Public Health, and Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic of UPMC note that policymakers and insurers should consider generic-only coverage, rather than no gap coverage, to both conserve healthcare resources and improve health.

Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor therapy reduces hospitalizations and improves chemotherapy administration in elderly breast cancer patients, but increases overall Medicare costs during first year of therapy.

In Medicare Part D, generic drug coverage was cost saving compared with no coverage in bipolar disorder and schizophrenia while improving health outcomes.