Way back in 2009, when lawmakers were negotiating the Affordable Care Act, it was clear that it would cost a lot of money to pay out advanced tax credits, cost-sharing reductions and Medicaid fees for millions of newly covered people. So much money that the authors of the ACA were concerned enough to try and make the ACA revenue neutral.
Today, we are starting a new, occasional series on Straight Talk. I’m going to introduce you to some remarkable people here at Blue Cross, letting you get to know how they think and how they are leading Blue Cross in solving problems and developing innovations for the health insurance industry. Read more
From our last discussion on why prescription drugs cost so much, you might remember we introduced this graph:
The only thing worse than bad news is bad news you never saw coming. It happens in healthcare with balance, or surprise, billing. Also known as a pain in the rear. In this video (3:59), Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana healthcare economist Mike Bertaut explains what balance billing is and how you can avoid it. Read more
When you research the pharmaceutical business and why drugs make up such a large percentage of our healthcare spending nowadays, you’d better be ready for a few surprises.
These days, we’re used to shopping around and getting price information for just about anything within a few clicks! But, it’s not that easy with healthcare. Unlike shopping for clothes, food and most other professional services, it can be tricky to figure out how much different healthcare services cost, or which part of those costs you’ll have to cover out of pocket.
Read more
