Free Republic

"The VFW opposes this attempt to balance the budget on the backs of service members, veterans and their families," Fuentes said. "We opposed the TRICARE fee increases in last year’s NDAA and hope that the NDAA conference committee will once again defeat this proposal which would endanger the financial wellbeing of the brave men and women have worn our nation’s uniform."

Federal prosecutors indicted Elizabeth Holmes on criminal fraud charges for allegedly defrauding investors, doctors and the public as the head of the once-heralded blood-testing startup Theranos. Federal prosecutors also brought charges against the company's former second-in-command. Holmes, who was once considered a wunderkind of Silicon Valley, and her former Chief Operating Officer Ramesh Balwani, are charged with two counts conspiracy to commit wire fraud and nine counts of wire fraud each, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California said late Friday. If convicted, they could face prison sentences that would keep them behind bars for the rest...

Canada's single-payer healthcare system forced over 1 million patients to wait for necessary medical treatments last year. That's an all-time record. Those long wait times were more than just a nuisance; they cost patients $1.9 billion in lost wages, according to a new report by the Fraser Institute, a Vancouver-based think-tank. Lengthy treatment delays are the norm in Canada and other single-payer nations, which ration care to keep costs down. Yet more and more Democratic leaders are pushing for a single-payer system -- and more and more voters are clamoring for one. Indeed, three in four Americans now support a...

I am out of the loop on a few things admittedly. What is are the Cliff Notes about Veteran's Choice that was signed into law? I am a vet, I carry my health insurance through my employer because after what I saw the VA do to my Father; all my nopes. I figured I would come here and open a discussion; maybe there are others in my position that do not understand fully what Veteran's Choice offers. Thanks. Again, VANITY.

Democrats are adopting a new political spin, which is that everything is fine with ObamaCare. They claim that the only reason premium and deductible costs keep exploding is because President Donald Trump repealed the individual mandate tax — which was nothing more than an unfair penalty on low-income families who couldn't afford the high cost of the health law's mandates. But if Trump is to blame, why were the costs skyrocketing two years before Trump even entered the Oval Office? The clear-eyed reality is that things aren't going well for ObamaCare. The predicted death spiral in the insurance market (higher...

The California Democratic Party recently adopted its own Nicene Creed. While the Christians’ profession of faith numbers almost 400 words, Democrats offer a more succinct five: “I believe in single payer.” The mantra hits voters focused on Tuesday’s elections hard and often. Blah, blah, blah…single payer… blah, blah, blah… single payer… blah, blah, blah… single payer… blah, blah, blah. What sounds surreal today may soon become real.In the governor’s race, twelve Democrats race to outdo the others on their absolute, airtight fidelity to a total state takeover of healthcare, which, of course, its proponents never describe in such terms. Instead,...

As I listened to President Trump take a victory lap after signing the bill that reversed a good bit of the Dodd- Frank regulations, he said something that struck a chord. What he pointed out was that these rules were so onerous, that only the big banks had the resources to comply with the law, and the small banks did not, so they began to fold. All because of government regulation. The losers were consumers who had less choice because of reduced competition, forcing them to pay higher prices for fewer services. Does this not sound just like health care...

COLUMBUS, Ohio, May 23, 2018 (LifeSiteNews) – Twin premature newborn boys died at an Ohio hospital last year while staff stood by refusing to give them medical assistance, a pro-life group is reporting, and the hospital classified the boys’ deaths as stillbirth. Both boys were born alive at 22 weeks and 5 days gestational age at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, according to the report. The first born, Emery, survived for 45 minutes. His younger brother, Elliot, lived for two and a half hours, even crying, and his mother, Amanda, begged for help to no avail. Alarming footage released today...

The House sent “right to try” legislation on experimental drugs to President Trump’s desk Tuesday — a measure Trump, Vice President Pence and groups backed by mega-donors Charles and David Koch have repeatedly urged Congress to pass. The House passed the bill largely along party lines by a 250-169 [actually 267-149] vote.

Connecticut’s official balance sheets will be noticeably worse next year due to changes in how the state reports its retiree healthcare liabilities... Truth in Accounting issued Connecticut a failing grade based on its 2017 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report and said the state is “hiding” $10.4 billion in retiree healthcare debt. “Connecticut’s financial condition is not only concerning, but also misleading as government officials failed to disclose significant amounts of retirement debt on the state’s balance sheet,” the report says. “As a result, residents and taxpayers have been presented with an inaccurate and untruthful accounting of the state government’s finances.” According...

The incessant smear campaigns by the progressive socialists must stop. It is apparent that this is the weapon of choice among the leftists who inhabit the Deep State and the media. The fact that they act the way they do, venturing well outside the rule of law or even basic decency is nothing more than the fact that they feel morally superior and indispensable.  The morality of the past and the affirmation that people can disagree civilly is now gone. Any deviation from moving forward to make the world as they want it must be destroyed and any means are...

http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20180511/NEWS/180519968 https://www.statnews.com/2018/05/11/trump-drug-pricing-speech/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/trump-denounces-middlemen-and-largely-spares-pharma-in-drug-pricing-speech/ http://www.bipc.com/trump-condemns-middlemen-in-drug-pricing-speech-modern-healthcare https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/the-health-202/2018/05/14/the-health-202-health-industry-appears-unfazed-by-trump-s-drug-pricing-speech/5af4ac5530fb042588799464/ http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/health-plans/eliminating-middlemen-trump-takes-aim-pbms-drug-pricing-speech http://www.bipc.com/trump-condemns-middlemen-in-drug-pricing-speech-modern-healthcare

All Erika Zak wants to do is play with her daughter on the playground. Take her to the zoo. Walk her to school. She's never been able to be the mother she longs to be. At 38, Erika is dying. Her battle to live began almost as soon as her daughter, Loïe, was born four years ago, when Erika was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic colon cancer that had spread to her liver. The cancer was removed from her colon and, her doctors say, she responded well to treatment. But a microwave ablation surgery last year to remove two tumors...

Here’s a simple idea to help lower healthcare costs: Publish prices. A bipartisan group of state lawmakers in Colorado is pushing a bill to do precisely that. The Comprehensive Health Care Billing Transparency Act would allow Coloradans to see the true price of any health service they use—exams, procedures, prescriptions—before they undertake treatment. If passed, the legislation would mandate that hospitals and other facilities disclose the base fees they charge for specific services “before applying any discounts, rebates, or other charge adjustment mechanisms.” Every bill sent to a patient would need to include an itemized list, which would allow patients...

Most physicians don't think it's their responsibility to address patients' social determinants of health, according to a new survey from Leavitt Partners. Nearly half of doctors reported that their patients would benefit from food assistance, affordable housing and transportation to appointments. Yet well over 50% of doctors didn't think they or insurers have a role in providing that help. Physicians' resistance to address social determinants comes as providers are increasingly responsible for patients' well-being with the transition to value-based payment models. Research indicates an individual's health status is tied to their social environment, so providers are currently rethinking—and debating—the services...

The Trump administration is considering a policy change that might discourage immigrants who are seeking permanent residency from using government-supported health care, a scenario that is alarming some doctors, hospitals and patient advocates. Under the proposed plan, a lawful immigrant holding a visa could be passed over for getting permanent residency — a green card — if they use Medicaid, a subsidized Obamacare plan, food stamps, tax credits or a list of other non-cash government benefits, according to a draft of the plan published by The Washington Post. Even the use of such benefits by a child who is a...

A new venture capital firm co-led by former CMS Administrator Andy Slavitt will seek to invest in healthcare technology and service companies that deliver innovative care to low-income, high-needs populations. Town Hall Ventures will focus on building companies that provide higher-quality and lower-cost care for poor, underserved communities, particularly involving Medicare, Medicaid, risk-based care, complex care and the social determinants of health. Its leaders see a big opportunity to improve care for the 120 million people in Medicare and Medicaid through innovations such as better models for delivering care at home or in other comfortable and low-cost settings. "We are...

At first look, the city of Long Beach and county of Fresno could not seem any more different. But whether you’re a farmworker or an urban worker, there’s one struggle many people in our districts share: the human cost of being undocumented and uninsured. One in 10 California workers is undocumented, and one in six children in our state has a parent who is undocumented. Ensuring healthcare coverage for all Californians not only strengthens the health of our state’s workforce, but will move the entire state forward. Immigrants play a vital role in all aspects of California’s social, economic, and...

After beating back the repeated Republican efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Democrats, for the first time in years, are taking the offense on health care. While the flashiest proposal—for an entirely government-run system—remains a distant aspiration, Democrats are again looking for new ways to expand Washington’s role in shaping the health-care system. Their ideas include new plans to expand coverage, restrain drug prices, and create a public competitor to private health-insurance companies. Encouraging all of these efforts are polls showing that support for the ACA clearly increased during the long legislative struggle over its future. “People are increasingly...

Amazon announced its number of Prime customers for the first time last week. The online retailer counts 100 million of them — who, excluding students and others affiliated with educational institutions, each pay $99 — around the globe to subscribe. Sixty-seven million of these Prime customers live in the United States. A majority of U.S. households voluntarily joined this exclusive club, which, the numbers indicate, is not very exclusive. Members benefit from discounts, streaming television, movies, and music, expedited shipping, and other perks. Might Amazon soon offer health insurance coverage to Prime subscribers? The company, as CNBC reports, already sells...