Fewer American families are having problems paying medical bills, according to a study released Tuesday by the National Center for Health Statistics. Still, nearly a fifth off families still struggle with that financial responsibility. The report found that 20.3 percent of families headed by someone under the age of 65 — 54.2 million people — had difficulty covering medical expenses in the first half of 2012, compared with 21.7 percent of families — or 57.8 million people – in the same period in 2011. The federal agency didn't offer an explanation for its finding
Government officials, drug companies and medical experts, faced with outbreaks of antibiotic-resistant "superbugs," are pushing to speed up the approval of new antibiotics, a move that is raising safety concerns among some critics. The need for new antibiotics is so urgent, supporters of an overhaul say, that lengthy studies involving hundreds or thousands of patients should be waived in favor of directly testing such drugs in very sick patients. Influential lawmakers have said they are prepared to support legislation that allows for faster testing.
MERRICK, N.Y. — Deirdre Yapalater's recent colonoscopy at a surgical center near her home here on Long Island went smoothly: she was whisked from pre-op to an operating room where a gastroenterologist, assisted by an anesthesiologist and a nurse, performed the routine cancer screening procedure in less than an hour. The test, which found nothing worrisome, racked up what is likely her most expensive medical bill of the year: $6,385. That is fairly typical: in Keene, N.H., Matt Meyer's colonoscopy was billed at $7,563.56. Maggie Christ of Chappaqua, N.Y., received $9,142.84 in bills for the procedure. In Durham, N.C., the charges for Curtiss Devereux came to $19,438, which included a polyp removal.
(Reuters) - Slower growth in U.S. healthcare costs improved the budget outlook for the Medicare program for the elderly from last year, but the fortunes of the Social Security pension program have not changed despite a better economy, trustees of the programs said on Friday. The trustees repeated warnings to Congress to pass reforms that will enable the programs to meet all of their long-term obligations, but their report adds to recent evidence of an easing in U.S. budget pressures, and could help encourage a sense of complacency in Washington.
ST. LOUIS • Trimming medical costs is the latest mantra among hospital executives, government bureaucrats, insurers and benefit managers as they grapple for ways to contain U.S. health care spending. But executive compensation in the health care industry shows few signs of hitting a ceiling. One sure bet: The salaries and benefits for hospital administrators will continue to rise. A recent survey by Equilar, an executive compensation data firm based in Redwood City, Calif., found that — for the fourth time in five years — health care chief executives commanded the highest pay packages last year among publicly traded companies.
Walk into any health care facility these days, and inevitably a nurse practitioner or physician assistant is on hand to provide care. These professionals, who can diagnose and treat conditions and prescribe medications usually under the supervision of a physician, are increasingly being called upon to bridge the gap in a shortage of primary care doctors and will be needed to help care for an additional 30 million Americans with health insurance under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.