Where we’re going

If you did not watch the Academy Awards, you may have missed a new national campaign. It wasn’t about COVID. It wasn’t about the opioid crisis, anti-bullying, or suicide prevention. (https://rpdrlatino.com) It was about medical price transparency – Power to the Patients – “Our Health. Our Money.” The campaign strives to raise awareness that knowing … Continued

Prescription drug prices and spending are hot topics and for good reason. U.S. pharmaceutical prices are 2.56 times higher than prices seen in 32 other nations, according to a report released by the Rand Corporation.[1] For brand-named drugs that number multiple jumps to 3.44.[2] Retail prescription drug spending accounted for 10% of the total health … Continued

On December 12, 1980, the Bayh-Dole Act was enacted to provide incentives to innovate and promote the commercialization of federally funded inventions and amended the existing patent laws. In December 2002, The Economist published an opinion piece calling the Bayh-Dole Act “innovation’s golden goose” and stating that it was “[p]ossibly the most inspired piece of … Continued

On December 27, 2020, the former President signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act – a 5,593-page piece of legislation with 32 divisions addressing a myriad of disparate subjects, including the COVID-19 stimulus. Tucked into it and beginning on page 4,095 is the No Surprises Act. The approximately 750 page No Surprises Act purports to … Continued

After Singing “Happy Birthday”, Sing Another Song, Then Take Action Don’t Let Time Pass[i] Many plan sponsors use “life events” as a trigger to prompt participants to reconsider their benefit elections – marriage, birth, relocation, etc.  Why not birthdays?  Why not a reminder to workers, regardless of their actual age, on their birthday in 2021?  … Continued

Prior to the election, on almost every cable channel and many newspaper opinion pieces had headlines that blared something like: ‘The Trump-infused Supreme Court will overturn the entire Affordable Care Act.’  ‘Tens of millions, no hundreds of millions of currently covered individuals who have pre-existing conditions will be denied coverage and medical bankruptcies will dramatically … Continued

Beyond Health Reform This is the second of a two-part series.  Part 1 provided an update on Health Reform.  Many plan sponsors anticipate significant rate increases in the post-COVID-19 era – due to pent-up demand for medical services.  Here are some strategies adopted by plan sponsors that focus on cost management.  2020 Election Regardless of … Continued

Health Reform 10+ Years Later Health Reform – The Path Ahead Most provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (Health Reform)[i] have either been implemented or eliminated (discussed in more detail later). As coverage costs continued their increase, and as Health Reform added new costs to insured plans, more and more … Continued

The Consumer Credit Protection Act contains numerous and varied provisions to curb consumer abuse, including requirements for debt collection, credit reporting, and credit repair.  One such provision is found in 15 U.S.C.  1679, et seq., commonly referred to as the Credit Repair Organizations Act (CROA). The intent of CROA is to prevent credit repair organizations … Continued