For-profit Medicare not so profitable (boo hoo) and the Great Medicaid Kick-Off

Do Not Resuscitate this week looks at shrinking profits for Medicare (Dis)Advantage programs and how the insurers are going to make up for it (higher premiums, fewer bennies). Also, 22 million people have been kicked off Medicaid in a year--half of them still eligible. I discuss why this crazy punishment of the poor will help re-elect Joe Biden--kidding! This is digest #351 dated June 14, 2024. Get the whole thing at www.nypan.org/single-payer-news or just send me an email tfrasca@yahoo.com

Here are the links for everything mentioned in the podcast: 

Nada Hassanein, “Missed care, fewer patients: Rural families and clinics feel Medicaid cuts,” Stateline, May 17, 2024 https://bit.ly/45B8YKJ

Katheryn Houghton, “Safety-net health clinics cut services and staff amid Medicaid ‘unwinding,’” KFF Health News/U.S. News & World Report, May 30, 2024 https://bit.ly/3VAxbNM

Stephanie Colombini, “Nearly 600,000 Florida kids lost Medicaid/CHIP during 2023 unwinding, report shows,” Health News Florida/WUSF, May 9, 2024 https://bit.ly/4enfMQ6

Natalie Krebs, “One year into Medicaid unwinding, the number of Iowans who have been disenrolled far exceeds initial projections,” Iowa Public Radio, May 3, 2024 https://bit.ly/4ar1pXy

Melodie Edwards, “Of 10 farm states, Wyoming is most reliant on federal government for healthcare,” Wyoming Public Radio, May 30, 2024 https://bit.ly/4aLQNma

Rebecca Pifer, “Move over, Medicare Advantage—UnitedHealth, Centene flag higher Medicaid utilization concerns,” Healthcare Dive, May 30, 2024 https://bit.ly/3Kqx2Ge

Rebecca Pifer, “Medicare Advantage unrest, Change Healthcare fallout and more big takeaways from insurers’ Q1,” Healthcare Dive, May 13, 2024 https://bit.ly/45lKhS5

Rebecca Pifer, “Minnesota’s Medicaid program to block for-profit insurers from participation,” Healthcare Dive, May 30, 2024 https://bit.ly/3VnLSni

Shalina Chatlani, “Montana could be a model as more GOP states weigh Medicaid work requirements,” Stateline, May 7, 2024 https://bit.ly/3yHBduJ

Emily Olsen, “MA health assessments contribute to inflated coding intensity,” Healthcare Dive, May 8, 2024 https://bit.ly/4aLjiRc

Angela Hart, California’s $12 billion Medicaid makeover banks on nonprofits’ buy-in,” KFF Health News/NPR, May 16, 2024 https://bit.ly/3X5cD18

Maya Goldman, “Medicare Advantage to end hospice experiment early amid struggles,” Axios, May 6, 2024 https://bit.ly/3K8rcsN

“Hiking boots, parks fees and other perks were covered by health insurer. That’s now over,” St Louis Post-Dispatch, Annika Merrilees, 5/13 https://bit.ly/4c2sdid

Rebecca Pifer, “Humana and CVS are downsizing their Medicare Advantage plans for 2025. Which insurers could benefit?” Healthcare Dive, Jun 6, 2024 https://bit.ly/3VjzzqO

Kevin Williams, “Why Walmart, Walgreens, CVS retail health clinic experiment is struggling,” CNBC, May 28, 2024 https://cnb.cx/3yVcDGW

Ken Alltucker, “Imagine if the government offered dental care. New federal rule could make that a reality,” USA Today, May 20, 2024 https://bit.ly/455us1P