Latest Scorecard

Half of U.S. Doctors Report Insurance Restricts Medications or Treatment Decisions

Fifty-eight percent of primary care doctors in the U.S. report their patients often have difficulty paying for medications and care, and half of U.S. doctors spend substantial time dealing with restrictions insurance companies place on their patients’ care, according to the 2009 Commonwealth Fund International Health Policy Survey.


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12-09-09 by Monica Sanchez

Family Premiums for Employer-Sponsored Coverage Rose About 5%

Families saw their premiums for job-based health insurance rise to an average of $13,375 annually in 2009, with workers paying an average share of $3,515 and employers paying $9,860.


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09-15-09 by Monica Sanchez

Medical Bills Cause More Than Half of Bankruptcies

More than 60 percent of U.S. personal bankruptcies involve medical bills, according to researchers at Harvard Law School, Harvard Medical School and Ohio University.

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06-04-09 by Monica Sanchez

Public Supports Public Health Insurance Plan Option

That is the finding of a Kaiser Family Foundation survey.

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04-24-09 by Monica Sanchez

Universal Coverage Can Ease Racial Disparities in Health Care.

One benefit of everyone having health insurance could be fewer racial, ethnic and socio-economic disparities in care.


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04-22-09 by Monica Sanchez

More People Struggling to Pay Medical Bills

The new Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index found that 21 percent of U.S. residents reported having difficulty paying for needed medical care or medications in December 2008, up from 18 percent in January 2008.


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03-11-09 by Monica Sanchez

AHIP Tries to Pit Older Americans Against Health Care Reform

While feigning support for health care reform, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) is already trying to torpedo President Obama’s “down payment on health care reform.”

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03-06-09 by Monica Sanchez

Report Offers Recommendations for Health Reform

The Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System has released a report offering recommendations for comprehensive health system reforms, including the creation of a new public health insurance plan, that "could guarantee affordable coverage for all by 2012, improve health outcomes, and slow health spending growth by $3 trillion by 2020—if enacted now to start in 2010."


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02-23-09 by Monica Sanchez

14,000 People Losing Health Coverage Every Day

Since the recession began, an estimated 4 million additional Americans have lost their health insurance and 2 million have become uninsured.

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02-23-09 by Monica Sanchez

WellCare Ordered to Halt Enrollment in Medicare Plans

WellCare Health Plans is the second insurance company this year ordered by the government to stop enrolling new customers in its Medicare drug and health plans.


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02-20-09 by Monica Sanchez

What Choice Do People Want in Health Care Reform?

A new poll found there is "intense and widespread voter support" for the choice of a public health insurance plan as part of comprehensive, national health care reform.

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02-04-09 by Monica Sanchez

Can you afford to fill your prescriptions?

One in seven Americans younger than 65 couldn't afford to fill prescriptions in 2007, up from one in ten in 2003.

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01-22-09 by Monica Sanchez

Can you afford to keep your health insurance if you lose your job?

A new report finds that for many people, the answer is “No.”

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01-14-09 by Monica Sanchez

How can we control skyrocketing health care costs?

A new report outlines why a public health insurance plan that competes directly with private insurers is essential to controlling health care costs.

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01-07-09 by Monica Sanchez

The health safety net is fraying across the country

Health insurance coverage for low-income families is at risk due to stretched state budgets and growing need.

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12-24-08 by Monica Sanchez

More Americans report problems paying medical bills and delaying and skipping care due to costs

About one in three Americans now report their family has had problems paying medical bills in the past year, up from about a quarter saying the same two years ago.


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12-17-08 by Monica Sanchez

Why is the number of people covered by employer-sponsored health insurance declining?

A recent report concludes the decline in coverage has been due both to falloffs in the share of employees with access to employer insurance and decreasing take-up rates among workers.

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12-10-08 by Monica Sanchez

What happens as the economy flounders and more people get laid off?

One result is that the number of people without health insurance goes up.


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12-03-08 by Monica Sanchez

Who Wants Health Care Reform Now?

The vast majority of Americans and industry leaders, according to a new survey by NACHRI and PricewaterhouseCoopers.


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11-26-08 by Monica Sanchez

Who is to blame for rising health care costs?

Most people blame the health insurance industry, according to a recent Harris Interactive poll. Read More

11-19-08 by Monica Sanchez

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LATEST SCORECARD

Half of U.S. Doctors Report Insurance Restricts Medications or Treatment Decisions

Fifty-eight percent of primary care doctors in the U.S. report their patients often have difficulty paying for medications and care, and half of U.S. doctors spend substantial time dealing with restrictions insurance companies place on their patients’ care, according to the 2009 Commonwealth Fund International Health Policy Survey.


LEARN MORE
Family Premiums for Employer-Sponsored Coverage Rose About 5%

Families saw their premiums for job-based health insurance rise to an average of $13,375 annually in 2009, with workers paying an average share of $3,515 and employers paying $9,860.


LEARN MORE
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