By Eric Sagonowsky; FiercePharma ~ Jun 14, 2017
If President Donald Trump can’t count on Congress to pass legislation targeting high drug prices, his administration may have to go it alone. The White House is working on an executive order on the issue, according to BioCentury, with eyes on value-based contracting for executive agencies.
By Ashlea Ebeling; Forbes ~ Jun 12, 2017
The Internal Revenue Service has issued another round of relief for executors who mistakenly fail to file an estate tax return to elect portability, the arcane provision that lets spouses double the amount they can leave to heirs estate-tax-free to nearly $11 million.
“The big issue is that people might have heard of portability, but didn’t realize you have to actually tell the IRS, ‘We want it.’
By Jessie Hellmann; The Hill ~ Jun 11, 2017
GOP senators are trying to strike a balance that’s proving difficult: lowering healthcare insurance premiums for young adults while shielding older people from massive price hikes.
At issue is an ObamaCare provision that essentially caps how much insurers can charge older people for premiums.
Republicans want to raise that cap, saying it vastly undercharges older people for their healthcare services, creating higher costs for younger, healthier adults.
By Alex Ruoff; Bloomberg BNA ~ Jun 02, 2017
The growing partisan divide over the future of Obamacare may prevent repeal of a controversial Medicare cost-cutting provision that both Democrats and Republicans agree should be overturned, health lobbyists and researchers told Bloomberg BNA recently.
The Independent Payment Advisory Board, or IPAB, was created by the Affordable Care Act, and it may take on added importance this summer, when federal officials release the latest Medicare spending projections.
By Debbie Reslock, NA; Forbes ~ Jun 02, 2017
How would you finish this sentence? “The end-of-life care I would want is …”
Would you want all possible measures taken? To be in a hospital or at home? Surrounded by family and friends? Once you’ve decided, now imagine arriving at an emergency room unable to speak or tell anyone what you want. If you haven’t chosen someone to express your wishes — a health care proxy (also known as a health care agent or a power of attorney for health care) — they may never be known.
By Dan Caplinger, TMF; Fox Business ~ Jun 01, 2017
IRAs are useful tools to save for retirement, but many IRAs don’t get spent down completely before the accountholder passes away. If you’re named as beneficiary on an IRA, there are five things you really need to know about your inherited IRA:
1. Spouses can roll over inherited IRAs into their own IRA.
2. Any beneficiary can elect to take a lump sum.
By Kevin Dayaratna; Cybercast News Service ~ Jun 01, 2017
With the health care debate currently dominating headlines, many Americans may be unaware of a more subtle issue that is affecting the U.S. health care system.
That issue is an increasing shortage of medical professionals. An analysis by the Association of American Medical Colleges estimates that by 2030, America will likely experience a shortage of anywhere between 40,800 and 104,900 physicians.
From “News Wire Feed”; Light Reading ~ May 31, 2017
PALO ALTO, Calif – The AT&T Foundry innovation center in Palo Alto, California is joining the California Institute of Technology to form the Alliance for Quantum Technologies (AQT). The Alliance aims to bring industry, government, and academia together to speed quantum technology development and emerging practical applications.
From Rebecca S. Fahrlander ; USA TODAY ~ May 31, 2017
President Donald Trump is right to not change Social Security by raising the eligibility age.
The last time the age for Social Security eligibility was raised was back in the 1980s, and the negative consequences of those changes are being lived out in the light of many Americans’ senior years now.
From Max Richtman; The Hill ~ May 30, 2017
The Trump administration has been attempting to spin its proposed $64 billion in cuts to Social Security Disability Insurance as somehow not cutting Social Security. Some in the media have parroted the White House line. “Trump’s Budget Slashes Spending, Leaves Social Security & Medicare Untouched,” declared a headline from Fox Business News. A CNN Money correspondent told Wolf Blitzer that Trump’s budget “doesn’t touch Social Security.”