Families in Ghana still pay for maternal health services despite the country’s policy of free care.
Medicare Advantage was supposed to find efficiencies, but instead is costing taxpayers an extra $83 billion a year.
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Grace Mackleby, University of Southern California and Erin Duffy, University of Southern California
Rather than finding efficiencies and saving money all around, the private companies that administer the Medicare Advantage option to Medicare are profiting at seniors’ – and taxpayers’ – expense.
The price of the doctor’s visit you calculated online might not reflect what you’ll actually be billed.
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While some policies have made the price of certain health care services more transparent, they don’t guarantee patients won’t be surprised by how much they’ll need to pay out of pocket.
Signing up for a Medicare plan when you turn 65 − or making changes in subsequent years – means wading through a thicket of consequential choices that can’t always be undone.
Unexpected bills for preventive care can worsen existing racial and socioeconomic health disparities.
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Researchers found that nearly 74% of patients who reached out about a billing mistake received bill corrections. For those who negotiated their bills, nearly 62% saw a price drop.
New Zealand is not unique – health systems in most high-income countries are under stress. But that’s no reason to question the viability of the publicly-funded system in general.
Cancer burdens your finances as well as your health – even if you’ve got insurance.
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Knowing which kind of provider to see and how to access help can be half the battle.
Colon cancer symptoms usually don’t arise until later stages of the disease, making routine screening imperative for prevention.
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Andrea Shin, University of California, Los Angeles
Colon cancer is curable when caught early, but some insurers are either refusing to cover or significantly delaying approval for colonoscopies.
Minister of Health Mark Holland speaks about new national pharmacare legislation during a press conference in Ottawa on Feb. 29, 2024.
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The way pharmacare is implemented could contribute to the Canadian health insurance system’s transition toward a more contentious and unequal American-style system with heavy administrative burdens.
Kenyan doctors protest outside the health ministry in Nairobi in April 2024, four weeks into a strike.
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Ghana’s public health insurance scheme was designed to provide basic care for all. But in reality those who would rather pay upfront than enrol get better treatment.
Employment and education increase financial resilience.
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The health coverage program’s enrollment soared during the three years after March 2020 due to temporary policies adopted at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Work doesn’t have to make you feel burned out.
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Changing workplace culture and the way jobs are designed can stave off depression, anxiety and burnout.
Research shows that uninsured people are more likely to get care later in pregnancy, and less care overall. This increases risks for mothers and babies.
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Discontinuing expanded health-care funding will result in less prenatal care for uninsured patients, more health risks, higher costs to the health system, and moral distress for health-care providers.
Raising the cost barriers for health care will harm the most vulnerable patients.
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On the basis of government appointment technicalities and religious freedom, Americans may lose free coverage for cancer and blood pressure screenings, HIV prevention medication and other essential services.
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne
Quintiles Professor of Pharmaceutical Development and Regulatory Innovation, Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics, University of Southern California