Medicare Advantage prior authorizations have few friends. Doctors hate them. Patients hate them. Politicians say they hate them and introduce bills to curb them. But how onerous are they really? Less than many people think. But they still create opportunities for insurance companies to maximize profits at the expense of needed care. And they can be improved. Prior authorizations are [...]
Despite his vow to close the US borders to nearly all immigrants and deport millions of others, President-elect Trump says he’ll continue special H-1B work visas for tech workers. That decision came in response to some of his Silicon Valley supporters, who insist foreign labor is critical because there are not enough US-born engineers and others to do this important [...]
Later this year, Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) will reintroduce his public catastrophic long-term care insurance bill, called the WISH Act. Suozzi is doing all the right things: Looking for Republican support and trying to engage the private insurance industry, long-term care providers, and employers, as well as advocates for older adults and people with disabilities. But he has a big [...]
President-elect Donald Trump prides himself on making deals. Here is one for him: Keep Joe Biden’s commitment to have Medicare pay for GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy for weight loss. But only if the drugmakers agree to substantially reduce their prices right away. Such a move would be fraught for Trump and his Republican allies on multiple levels. [...]
The Older Americans Act, the umbrella federal law that includes programs such as Meals on Wheels, senior transportation, information services, adult day, and caregiver support was hours from being expanded and winning congressional approval for another five years. Now, its fate has become far more uncertain. Its all because the OAA, despite broad bipartisan congressional support, got caught up in [...]
Ask family caregivers what sort of government support they want and their answer is clear: They want upfront cash. Not bigger future Social Security benefits. Not respite care or tax credits, not paid family leave, or even reimbursement for out-of-pocket costs. They want cash. That, at least, were the preferences of participants in four focus groups described in a new [...]
The incoming Trump Administration has been sending mixed signals about the fate of Medicare. But if Trump advisers and GOP lawmakers are serious about slashing government spending it is hard to see how they will ignore the program, which last year cost $850 billion and accounted for about one out of every six dollars the federal government spent. Trump’s problem: [...]
This year, California took the second of two steps to allow residents with unlimited assets to participate in its Medicaid long-term services and supports (LTSS) program. Advocates hoped the move would make the program far more widely available. Conservative critics feared it would become a budget-busting open door for the wealthy to take advantage of a public program. Both were [...]
Donald Trump’s return to the White House, coupled with Republican control of the Senate and possibly of the House could result in a far more limited government role in the care of older adults and younger people with disabilities. Most immediately, Trump’s proposed mass deportations will make the current shortage of care workers much worse, increasing the burden on family [...]
Voters in Washington State have decided to keep the state’s first-in-the-nation public long term care insurance program. On Tuesday, they easily rejected a ballot initiative that would have killed the far-reaching law. The WA Cares law provides up to $36,500 in long-term care insurance benefits, with the amount increasing with inflation. It is funded with a payroll tax surcharge of [...]