| From the National Health Council and Wyeth |   |
| Top Story |  |  |
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- Cancer care costs put uninsured couple on cusp of bankruptcy
A Florida couple was forced to cancel their insurance after years of rising premiums and now could face bankruptcy due to costly medical bills for Leslie Elder's kidney cancer. She says that upon hearing of her cancer, "All I could think of was 'Oh, my god, I'm going to go broke. We'll be living in a cardboard house. How am I going to do this?' It was the most honest feeling of powerlessness." She also says she can't afford follow-up exams to determine if her cancer has returned. CNN
(10/13)     
| Out-of-Pocket Cost Impact | | |
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- Survey: Workers to pay more out-of-pocket for insurance in 2010
A Watson Wyatt survey found four in 10 companies plan to raise employee costs for health care coverage in 2010 but will continue to offer the benefits. Employers said they would continue to offer wellness programs as a way to help reduce health care costs, and more indicated they also would offer high-deductible and HSA coverage options. American Medical News (subscription required)
(10/8)
| Health Care Costs and Access | | |
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- Unemployment affects access to care, mental health
A survey of 1,002 adults found unemployed people were about six times more likely to have trouble meeting household expenses than working people and almost 50% of unemployed respondents said they had difficulty obtaining health care. In addition, those who were unemployed were four times more likely to report symptoms of mental illness, such as depression. Yahoo!/HealthDay News
(10/8)
- Medical school enrollment can't keep pace with demand
U.S. medical schools struggle with a lack funding and residency slots in their efforts to increase enrollment enough to help fill a shortage of physicians, especially in primary care. At the same time, the number of osteopathic medical schools has been increasing, with a focus on primary and rural health care. The Denver Post
(10/11)
| Trends in Health Care Design | | |
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| Policy/Legislative Watch | | |
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- Proposals would give up to 50% premium discounts for wellness
Health care reform legislation in Congress includes proposals that would permit insurers and employers to give premium discounts of up to 50% to workers in wellness programs who meet specific targets such as maintaining healthy weight and cholesterol and blood pressure levels. Critics, however, warn that the provision may not benefit those with certain medical conditions, or may be undermined by genetic and environmental factors. NYTimes.com/Prescriptions blog
(10/8)
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| About Better Health Care by Design |
As the incidence of chronic diseases and their associated costs continue to rise, many patients are facing increasing out-of-pocket costs for their care. Research has demonstrated that
high out-of-pocket costs present a barrier to much-needed care for many patients with chronic diseases, leading to poorer health outcomes for patients and increased long-term costs
for patients and payers. Better Health Care by Design is an effort focused on improving health and economic outcomes for patients with chronic diseases by bringing together the
diverse range of interested stakeholders — patients, providers and payers — to collaborate on new, practical benefit design models that lead to better prevention, management and
treatment.
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| | Recent Better Health Care by Design issues:
- Wednesday, October 07, 2009
- Wednesday, September 30, 2009
- Wednesday, September 23, 2009
- Wednesday, September 16, 2009
- Wednesday, September 09, 2009
| | | Lead Editor: Kathryn Doherty
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