By Lydia Wheeler; The Hill ~ Nov 07, 2016
A federal judge in Mississippi issued an order Monday temporarily blocking a new rule from the Obama administration that gives patients at federally funded nursing homes the right to settle disputes in court.
Judge Michael Mills of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi granted a request from members of the nursing home industry to stop the rule from taking effect on Nov. 28 while it’s being challenged in court.
By Christopher Maynard; ConsumerAffairs ~ Nov 04, 2016
Lately, there’s been a lot of outrage aimed at the pharmaceutical industry over high drug prices. Consumers are coming around to the idea that they shouldn’t have to pay thousands of dollars for a life-saving treatment that has basically stayed the same for years.
However, many experts have pointed out that high hospital costs are also putting people in a tough spot. One of them, Dr. Robert M. Doroghazi, has gone as far as to say that high hospital profits are causing extensive damage to the field of medicine.
By Michael Hiltzik ; Los Angeles Times ~ Nov 04, 2016
Time magazine has just published online the latest in the media’s unceasing stream of alarmed reports on Social Security, proclaiming that the next president will have to face up to “one of the largest financial issues facing the country: shoring up Social Security.”
By Ben Steverman; Bloomberg ~ Nov 03, 2016
The next U.S. president and Congress will face a serious test: What to do, if anything, about the nation’s retirement crisis?
Americans aren’t saving nearly enough in their 401(k)s, while wide swaths of the workforce aren’t saving at all, because they don’t have access to a retirement plan. Social Security, meanwhile, faces a financial shortfall as the baby boomers enter retirement.
By Stephanie Armour; The Wall Street Journal ~ Nov 03, 2016
WASHINGTON—Advocates and opponents are gearing up for a life or death battle over a problematic Affordable Care Act in 2017, and the idea of a government option in health insurance is gaining some traction among Democratic legislators.
Almost seven years ago, Congress and President Barack Obama undertook a health overhaul that deliberately avoided a government-run insurance alternative.
By Kimberly Leonard ; US News & World Report ~ Nov 03, 2016
Health care reformers are experimenting with models to improve health care in a way that delivers better, more efficient care at a lower price.
One of these models, known as bundled payments, allows a player like an insurance company or the government to give health care providers a specific amount to deliver a package of services.
From Andrew Biggs; Forbes ~ Nov 02, 2016
Kathleen Romig and Arloc Sherman of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities write that Social Security benefits lift 22 million Americans out of poverty, a figure that has fueled news stories around the country. Both are solid researchers and, in Kathleen’s case, a friend from back when we both worked at SSA. I don’t disagree that Social Security reduces poverty substantially, and I wish it did even more.
By Selena Maranjian; The Motley Fool ~ Oct 31, 2016
There’s a good chance you’re well aware that Medicare exists but are only vaguely aware of how it works and what it does. There’s much you should know about it, though, because it will probably play a vital part in protecting your health in the future. After all, it serves around 55 million Americans — a major chunk of the population.
By Sean Williams; The Motley Fool ~ Oct 31, 2016
Since 1940, many of our nation’s retired workers have counted on the income provided by the Social Security Administration (SSA) to make ends meet during their golden years. Statistics released by the SSA this year show that just over 3 in 5 seniors (with a particular leaning toward elderly unmarried individuals) rely on their benefits to provide at least half of their monthly income during retirement.
By Brian Solomon; Forbes ~ Oct 25, 2016
The whole point of the $86 billion AT&T-Time Warner deal announced over the weekend is to plan for the future of television. Before that’s complete, AT&T’s DirecTV unit will launch a big new service: streaming over-the-top TV service.
At the WSJD Live conference on Tuesday, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson announced that in November his company will launch “DirecTV Now,” a streaming TV offering with more than 100 channels at an attractive price point: $35 per month.