Author Archives: henrykotula

If Economists Chose the Health Care System

Posted on by • Posted in ACA, Adverse Selection, Economist, Employer-Based Health Insurance, Health Insurance Industry, Health Policy, High Drug Prices, Medicaid, Medicaid Block Grants, Medicaid Work Requirements, Medical Loss Ratio (MLR), Medicare, Medicare Age Eligibility, Medicare Based on Income, Pharmaceutical Industry, Preexisting Conditions, Sin Tax, Social Determinants of Health, Voucher Based Health Insurance System • Leave a comment
If Economists Chose the Health Care System
If Economists Chose the Health Care System - YouTube

Health economists study the economic determinants of health. They also analyze how health care resources are utilized and allocated, and how health care policies and quality of care can be improved. In this episode, we discuss what exactly a healthcare system would look like if these professionals were calling all the shots.

Would Medicare for All Increase Your Wages?

Posted on by • Posted in Employee Benefits, Employee Compensation, Health Policy, Medicare, Medicare for All • Leave a comment
Would Medicare for All Increase Your Wages?
Would Medicare for All Increase Your Wages? - YouTube

Medicare for All, which would extend health coverage to all Americans, has been a hot topic of debate in recent years. Researchers have looked into the many ways that a switch to Medicare for All might change our lives, and one of those areas of change might be wages. Employer provided healthcare is baked into our current system of healthcare, and there are a lot of studies that look at how employer paid premiums can depress wages, and how our paychecks might shift in a M4A-type situation.

Moody’s: Labor shortages weaken hospitals’ financial performance

Posted on by • Posted in Health Insurance Industry, Health Policy, Hospital, Hospital Industry, Labor Shortages, Labor Spend Management, Labor Temporary, Nurse Agency Staffing, Nurse Staffing, Nurses Shortage • Leave a comment
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/finance/moody-s-labor-shortages-weaken-hospitals-financial-performance.html?origin=CFOE&utm_source=CFOE&utm_medium=email&utm_content=newsletter&oly_enc_id=2893H2397267F7G

Labor shortages from the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to worsen the financial performance of nonprofit and for-profit hospitals into 2022, an October Moody’s quarterly report found.

As nurses and other workers deal with burnout and resign from positions, some hospitals are limiting elective procedures, which is reducing revenue. They’re also increasing minimum wage and using contract nurses with much higher hourly wages.

Physician staffing companies like Envision Healthcare Corp. and TeamHealth will also struggle with profitability as it becomes more difficult to fill open positions because of fewer available physicians, the report said. 

An Association of American Medical Colleges study in 2020 found that more than 2 out of 5 physicians will be 65 or older by 2030; COVID-19 is accelerating retirement.

Meanwhile, health insurers are not as affected by labor shortages, wage pressure and inflation, according to the report. Because their product is more short-term and premiums reset every year, they have more flexibility when it comes to inflation.