Sally Pipes

Posts by Sally Pipes

MedCity Influencers

Expanding Medicaid: A foolish way to improve healthcare access

United States Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius recently said “that if you want a healthier population, looking at the opportunity to expand Medicaid has got to be a piece of the puzzle.” Expansion of Medicaid — the jointly run federal-state health plan for low-income Americans — has long been an essential element of […]

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MedCity Influencers

Star power can’t obscure Obamacare’s higher premiums

Obamacare’s state-level health insurance exchanges are set to sign people up in October. But with the federal government on the hook to run 27 of them by itself — and another seven in partnership with states — it’s increasingly likely that they’ll open for enrollment after the official October 1 start date. The exchanges face […]

MedCity Influencers

Data proves Medicaid a failure

State legislators across the country are wrestling with whether to expand Medicaid, with the bulk of the funding to come from the federal government, thanks to Obamacare. Thus far, a substantial number of states have rebuffed the feds’ offer — or are leaning that way. They’re right to do so. The states and the federal […]

MedCity Influencers

Congress should put Medicare out of its misery now

As Republican leaders in Congress prepare to negotiate over the federal budget with their Democratic counterparts in the aftermath of the election, it’s time for everyone to face a hard truth — we must end Medicare as we know it. The entitlement is bleeding to death. Without major changes, it won’t be around for the […]

News

Attack of the acronyms: PCORI and IPAB may doom new treatments

The battle against skin cancer just became a bit more complicated. Researchers found that Zelboraf — a promising new drug that attacks advanced-stage metastatic melanoma — may speed the development of a different but more easily treatable form of cancer. And then, there are the cost considerations. The drug lengthens patients’ lives — but also […]