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About Me
I am a physician and behavioral scientist. My research and writing explore the quirks in human nature that influence our lives -- the mixture of rational and irrational forces that affect our health, our happiness, and the way our society functions. (more...)- Have a question or just want to get in touch? Email me at peter.ubel@duke.edu
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Tag Archives: Medicare
The Challenge of Predicting Future Medicare Expenses
As I pointed out in a recent post, experts have been debating what has caused the recent slowdown in medical spending in the United States. They are also try to figure out whether that slowdown will continue. And figuring this … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged healthcare costs, Medicare
An Unhealthily Frightening Fiscal Future
A recent article in the New York Times, projects increasing problems with federal budget deficits over the next several decades, problems caused in no small part by the likelihood of increased health expenditures. More evidence of the importance of overcoming … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged healthcare costs, Medicare
Variation in Medicare Costs Is Mainly Due to Post-Acute Care
Health policy wonks have been pointing for a while now to large variations in Medicare spending across different parts of the country. Live in Miami, and the government is probably going to spend a heck of a lot more for you … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged health policy, healthcare costs, Medicare
Hospital Payments That Follow Patients Out of the Hospital
For most Medicare patients in United States right now, Medicare pays for hospital stays on the basis of what are called Diagnostic Related Groups or DRGs. You get diagnosed with pneumonia, and your hospital gets payment to treat a typical … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged health policy, Medicare
Will Obamacare Reduce the Crazy Variation in Hospital Prices?
If you have been paying attention to US healthcare policy debates lately, you know that hospitals have a price problem. Walk across the street from one hospital to a competitor hospital, and you could easily find yourself facing a $30,000 increase … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged health insurance, healthcare costs, Medicaid, Medicare, Obamacare, price transparency
Medicare Versus Inflation: Who’s Winning Now?
There is one thing that politicians on both sides of the aisle agree upon: the biggest threat to the future fiscal solvency of the United States is Medicare, the program that pays medical expenses for elderly and disabled Americans. For … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged aging, healthcare costs, Medicare
How Anti-Alcohol Regulations Promoted…Prostitution?!
John “Eagle-faced” Raines had a simple goal in mind: put a big hurt into the evil saloon industry that was threatening the moral fabric of late 19th century New York State. Low wage workers were spending huge chunks of their … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged health policy, Medicare
Trial and Error in Reducing Medicare Readmissions
Thought I’d pass along a simple picture showing the results of Medicare efforts to reduce hospital readmissions. To their credit, the folks of Medicare are not sure what will work, so they have been pilot testing lots of programs. But … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged health policy, Medicare
Are People from Pennsylvania Sick?
In a 2011 JAMA article, Gil Welch and colleagues looked at how many chronic diseases Medicare enrollees had across different regions of the country. They came up with the following picture: This picture may confirm some of your suspicions. For … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged health policy, Medicare
LBJ and the Initial Cost of Medicare
When Johnson was pushing congress to establish the nation’s first real health care funding, many legislators, especially conservative southern Democrats, balked at the cost. Johnson was well aware that Medicare would be costly. But he thought health insurance was too … Continue reading
Posted in Health Policy
Tagged health policy, healthcare costs, Medicare