The Estimated Cost For Extending Skinny, Short-Term Coverage Plans: Up To $168 Million A Year
Because healthier people are more likely to buy the skinny plans, the overall marketplace -- which the government helps subsidize -- would become less stable
The New York Times:
Trump’s Plan For Cheaper Health Insurance Could Have Hidden Costs
President Trump’s plan to expand access to skimpy short-term health insurance policies, as an alternative to the Affordable Care Act, would affect more people and cost the government more money than the administration estimated, an independent federal study says. The study, by Medicare’s chief actuary, suggests that the new policies would appeal mainly to healthy people, including many who have had comprehensive coverage under the Affordable Care Act. The administration estimated in February that a few hundred thousand people might sign up for the “short-term, limited-duration policies,” which would not have to provide the standard health benefits like preventive services, maternity care or prescription drug coverage. (Pear, 5/15)
In other national health care news —
Reuters:
Healthcare, Freelanced-Where Will Gig Economy Workers Get Coverage?
There are plenty of problems lurking on America's career ladder, but here is a big one: our healthcare systems are designed for the workforce of 1950. If you have a lifetime corporate 9-to-5 gig, then you probably have group health insurance. But what if that is not the kind of job you have? Well, good luck with that. (Taylor, 5/15)
Stat:
Taking Aim At 340B Drug Program, Lawmakers Target Both Hospitals And Pharma
They don’t agree on the details, but both Republicans and Democrats in the Senate are ready to ramp up oversight of a federal drug discount program that hospitals generally support — and drug makers tend to want to rein in. On its face, the increasing congressional scrutiny seems like a win for the pharmaceutical industry, which has bucked against the status quo. But lawmakers at a Tuesday hearing on the program, known as 340B, signaled an interest in taking aim at both industries. (Mershon, 5/15)
Bloomberg:
$100,000 Drugs Get Targeted For Discounts Under Trump's Plan
The key proposal in President Donald Trump’s plan to lower the price of some of the most expensive drugs would open up those treatments to price negotiation, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said. Trump had once pledged, to the chagrin of many Republicans, that the federal government would be doing the negotiating, using its enormous buying power to drive down prices. But the plan his administration announced last week made no mention of that strategy. Instead, the new goal is to shift the coverage of some drugs so that insurers and pharmacy-benefit managers can negotiate better deals. (Edney and Langreth, 5/15)
The Hill:
GOP Chairman Plans Hearings On Trump Drug Pricing Proposals
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) said Tuesday that he plans to conduct hearings on some of President Trump’s new proposals to bring down drug prices. Brady said it is too early to tell if the committee will move legislation on the issue, but said he wanted to consider the ideas. ...Brady said he particularly liked items in the proposal to bring drugs to market faster to increase competition, as well as ideas to make sure that savings from insurer negotiations with drug companies make their way to consumers. (Sullivan, 5/15)
The Hill:
Trump Administration Won't Approve Lifetime Limits On Medicaid
The Trump administration will not approve state requests to impose lifetime limits on Medicaid coverage, breaking with conservatives who have pushed for the strict limitation. “We’ve indicated we would not approve lifetime limits, and we’ve made that pretty clear to states,” Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma said Tuesday. (Weixel, 5/15)
The Associated Press:
Cherokee Nation Lauded For Hepatitis C Elimination Effort
Recovering addict Judith Anderson figures if she hadn't entered a program that caught and treated the hepatitis C she contracted after years of intravenous drug use, she wouldn't be alive to convince others to get checked out. The 74-year-old resident of Sallisaw, Oklahoma — about 160 miles (257 kilometers) east of Oklahoma City near the Arkansas border — said the potentially fatal liver disease sapped her of energy and "any desire to go anywhere or do anything." (5/16)
The Wall Street Journal:
Youth Suicidal Behavior Is On The Rise, Especially Among Girls
A new study finding a rise in suicidal thoughts and attempts among young people adds to the research pointing to a decline in mental health among U.S. children and adolescents. The study showed the proportion of young people treated at 31 U.S. children’s hospitals for suicidal thoughts or attempts more than doubled between 2008 and 2015, from 0.66% of all visits to 1.82% of all visits. Rates were higher during the school year than in the summer, and nearly two-thirds of the visits involved girls, according to results published in the medical journal Pediatrics. (Whalen, 5/15)