New on the Web 64 (January 2010)
From the Center for American Progress: “New Jobs through Better Health Care: Health Care Reform Could Boost Employment by 250,000 to 400,000 a Year This Decade”
From the Commonwealth Fund: “Young, Uninsured, and Seeking Change: Health Coverage of Young Adults and Their Views on Health Reform”
From the Commonwealth Fund and the California HealthCare Foundation: “COBRA Subsidies for Laid-Off Workers: An Initial Report Card”
From the Commonwealth Fund and Washington and Lee University School of Law: “Health Insurance Exchanges in Health Care Reform: Legal and Policy Issues”
From the Government Accountability Office: “Brand-Name Prescription Drug Pricing: Lack of Therapeutically Equivalent Drugs and Limited Competition May Contribute to Extraordinary Price Increases”
From the Health Affairs: “Health Spending Growth at a Historic Low in 2008,” "New State Strategies to Meet Long-Term Care Needs"
From the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured: “The Extension of the COBRA Subsidy: An Update”
From the Kaiser Family Foundation: “Issues for Structuring Interim High-Risk Pools,” "Medicare Part D 2010 Data Spotlight: A Comparison of PDPs Offering Basic and Enhanced Benefits," "Today's Topics in Health Disparities: What Might Health Reform Mean for Women of Color?"
From the Office on Women's Health: “Quick Health Data Online: Health Disparities Profiles”
From the Center for American Progress:
New Jobs through Better Health Care: Health Care Reform Could Boost Employment by 250,000 to 400,000 a Year This Decade discusses how slowing the growth of medical spending could be an effective tool for creating jobs. The report analyzes two recent studies—the first showed the negative impact of rising health care costs on employment, the second estimated that health reform would slow the growth of health care costs and premiums—to illustrate that health reform will actually increase jobs over the next 10 years. (January 2010)
From the Commonwealth Fund:
Young, Uninsured, and Seeking Change: Health Coverage of Young Adults and Their Views on Health Reform found that almost half of young adults are uninsured at some time during the year. In the current economic climate, young adults are less likely to find jobs, especially jobs with health benefits, and are often dropped from their parents' insurance upon graduation from college or high school. Provisions in federal health reform legislation could significantly help this group get and keep health coverage. (December 2009)
From the Commonwealth Fund and the California HealthCare Foundation:
COBRA Subsidies for Laid-Off Workers: An Initial Report Card indicates that enrollment in COBRA coverage has increased substantially, and reports show that most eligible people have heard about the subsidy. Unfortunately, many eligible people still can't afford COBRA coverage. In order to further increase enrollment, Congress should consider raising subsidies and further simplifying enrollment procedures. (December 2009)
From the Commonwealth Fund and Washington and Lee University School of Law:
Health Insurance Exchanges in Health Care Reform: Legal and Policy Issues explains the nature and function of an exchange, including six roles that exchanges are intended to play in health reform. The report concludes that, given our past experience, the effectiveness of any new exchange will depend entirely on the institutions that are established to administer it, highlighting the importance of how Congress designs the exchanges in its health reform legislation. (December 2009)
From the Government Accountability Office:
Brand-Name Prescription Drug Pricing: Lack of Therapeutically Equivalent Drugs and Limited Competition May Contribute to Extraordinary Price Increases looks at the frequency of drug price increases from 2000-2008, the types of drugs that had price increases, and the factors that may have contributed to these increases. The study found that the number of yearly price increases more than doubled, and most of the increases ranged from 100-499 percent. (December 2009)
From the Health Affairs:
Health Spending Growth at a Historic Low in 2008 reports that the growth rate of health care spending has slowed to a 48-year low. Despite this slowdown, national health spending reached $2.3 trillion, or $7,681 per person, in 2008. These increases in spending continue to outpace the growth of resources necessary to pay for them, making it especially important that national health reform helps reign in health care spending. (January 2010)
New State Strategies to Meet Long-Term Care Needs discusses states' efforts to expand consumer-directed long-term care service programs under Medicaid and the challenges they face. Some states have developed a number of successful strategies for overcoming these challenges, and their experiences offer valuable lessons for the other states considering similar expansions. (January 2010) Subscription Required
From the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured:
The Extension of the COBRA Subsidy: An Update reviews the COBRA subsidy and key changes made since its extension in December 2009. The brief looks at the options available for people who may have dropped coverage in anticipation of the end of the subsidy or who paid the full premium after their nine months of receiving the subsidy expired. (December 2009)
From the Kaiser Family Foundation:
Focus on Health Reform: Issues for Structuring Interim High-Risk Pools discusses the creation of high-risk pools in federal health reform legislation for people who are denied private coverage based on their health status. The brief examines the current role of high-risk pools as a safety net for coverage and reviews key issues involved in implementing a national high-risk pool. (January 2010)
Medicare Part D 2010 Data Spotlight: A Comparison of PDPs Offering Basic and Enhanced Benefits examines key differences between the basic and enhanced Medicare stand-alone prescription drug plans (PDPs), including monthly premiums, cost-sharing, and coverage in the doughnut hole. It also looks at whether plan names convey meaningful differences between basic and enhanced PDPs. (December 2009)
Today's Topics in Health Disparities: What Might Health Reform Mean for Women of Color? discusses how provisions in the current health reform bills would affect women of color. In particular, it highlights provisions such as ending gender rating, eliminating pre-existing condition exclusions, and improving access to preventive services. (December 2009)
From the Office on Women's Health:
Quick Health Data Online: Health Disparities Profiles includes 21 different key health indicators at the state level for different racial and ethnic populations in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Territories. It can be used as a reference for policymakers and program managers to identify areas where major health disparities exist in each state. (December 2009)
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