Practice Management
The growing ranks of older U.S. citizens and the Affordable Care Act (APA, or “Obamacare”) add up to a need for more and more physicians as time goes by, but a new study says the number of qualified physicians is not keeping pace. The research from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) points to shortages among specialties, in particular. The portion of the U.S. population over the age of 65 is expected to grow …
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One urgent care center’s competition is another center’s opportunity. In this case, Lexington, SC-based Doctor’s Care is finding that telemedicine is increasing patient satisfaction and reducing wait times, not keeping potential customers away from its clinics. The key is that the company facilitates the virtual visits on both ends: If one center is unusually busy and another has no wait time, the patient who is already on site at location A has the option of …
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An influx of newly insured patients is just one reason emergency room traffic continues to go up in the age of the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or “Obamacare”), according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Lack of access to primary care providers in general is especially problematic among Medicaid patients; often, they find access to be untimely, at a median wait time of 2 weeks for an appointment—if a conveniently …
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Just a week after revealing it will no longer participate in Affordable Care Act plans in Arkansas and Georgia, UnitedHealth Group says it is bowing out of Michigan plans backed by the ACA (or “Obamacare”), as well. The company, which started warning that low profitability associated with ACA exchanges made doing business through them untenable months ago, will cease to carry such plans in the three states at the end of this year. Anyone currently …
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Hybrid health provider SSM Health Medical Group, which does business in the urgent care, hospital, primary care, and retail arenas, has signed an agreement to take over operation of 27 retail clinics housed in Walgreens drugstores in the St. Louis area. When the transition is complete next fall, the locations will be renamed SSM Health Express Clinic at Walgreens. Until then, it will be business as usual for those walk-in locations. Walgreens and SSM Health …
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An outbreak of Guillain-Barré syndrome in Vancouver, WA—in which four times the number of cases reported in a typical year have been reported—appears to be related to an outbreak of Zika virus in the area, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC notes that Brazil, in which the mosquito that carries Zika is found in great numbers, also saw an increase in cases of Guillain-Barre following a spike in Zika infections. …
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UnitedHealth Group has been saying for months that it may opt to not participate in insurance exchange programs set up under the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or “Obamacare”). Apparently it was no idle threat, as the biggest insurer in the country says it will not sell plans in Arkansas or Georgia next year. The company has said the ACA plans are not profitable enough to justify their participation. UnitedHealth and Aetna both saw losses on …
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Apparently, patients don’t see a need to pay Cadillac prices for the “Cadillac” of healthcare services (wherever they may exist). Most participants in a new report published in Health Affairs don’t associate higher cost with higher quality when it comes to making healthcare decisions—a departure from the expected consumer mindset when it comes to buying other goods and services. Among the questions included in the survey: “Would you say higher prices are typically a sign …
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Colorado is considering legislation that would require freestanding emergency rooms to post notices throughout the building alerting patients that they have stepped into an emergency room, where they will be afforded emergency care for emergent medical conditions (and pay emergency-level charges). The bill was inspired by complaints from consumers who have mistakenly sought care in freestanding ERs, thinking they had gone to an urgent care center—where costs are lower and more likely to be covered …
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Military members and their families covered under Tricare Prime, Tricare Prime Remote, or Tricare Young Adult–Prime will be allowed two urgent care visits without a referral per year, thanks to a pilot program starting May 23. Right now, beneficiaries need a referral before going to urgent care. Delays in getting appointments with a primary care provider have been a common complaint among military families for years, putting pressure on the Department of Defense to reconsider …
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