Patient portals are online programs and applications that help patients and physicians interact. Although there are many different implementations, most will have some sort of messaging component to help with communication between the doctor and the patient, as well as access to at least some elements of the chart, such as test results. “Patients should…
WASHINGTON (Reuters)—The U.S. Supreme Court, which delivered major rulings in 2012 and 2015 preserving President Barack Obama’s signature healthcare law, on Tuesday declined to take up a new, long-shot challenge to Obamacare brought by an Iowa artist. The court turned away an appeal by Matt Sissel, who had asserted that the 2010 Affordable Care Act…
WASHINGTON (Reuters)—U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan said on Thursday that Republicans next year will unveil a plan to replace President Barack Obama’s national healthcare program, widely known as Obamacare, in its entirety as part of a “pro-growth” Republican alternative to Democratic policies. “Next year, we are going to unveil a plan to replace every word…
You worked hard your entire life to build your medical practice, and now you’re ready to enjoy retirement. Regardless of whether you choose to sell your practice or gradually wind it down over a period of time, you must take certain legal steps before you can leave. Deciding to Retire & Making a Plan Once…
As a practicing rheumatologist, I have experienced the increasing payer and government involvement shaping our evolving healthcare system. New payment models, changes in health insurance coverage, the federal mandate for the adoption of electronic health records and the implementation of ICD-10 are recent changes that have rocked our world. Our patients are also paying the…
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES (Reuters)—In recent days, the largest U.S. managers of private prescription drug benefits have cut off at least eight pharmacies that work closely with drugmakers, intensifying scrutiny of a system that helps inflate drug prices, officials at the benefit managers told Reuters. The terminations come from payers who together manage drug benefits for…
(Reuters Health)—Outpatient care may cost more when hospitals own the medical practices or employ the physicians, a U.S. study suggests. Hospital employment of doctors and ownership of physician practices has grown over the past decade as healthcare providers seek to curb expenses with economies of scale and deliver better coordinated treatment to patients. Research reported…
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Medicare Advantage plans might not be meeting the needs of patients requiring the costliest and most complex levels of care, a new study suggests. Between 2010 and 2011, such patients were more likely to switch from Medicare Advantage plans to traditional Medicare, rather than vice versa, researchers found. The results suggest people…
People diagnosed with osteoporosis have almost twice the risk of developing hearing loss as those without the bone-fragile skeletal disease, according to results from a large retrospective study in Taiwan. The study looked at the risk of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL) using data collected from Taiwan’s National Health Insurance claims and is believed to…
Technology is taking medicine and the Cleveland Clinic and Mayo Clinic to unexpected places. The famed institutions are testing a new way to deliver medical care, with walk-in kiosks mobilized to reach patients who may be too far away, too short on time or facing other challenges that keep them from a traditional doctor’s office…