Insight, analysis & opinion from Joe Paduda
Medicare Advantage subsidies will be cut, while Medicare will gain the ability to negotiate drug prices, albeit on a limited basis. Those are my predictions for legislation that will be passed early in January by Congress. The trick will be to get the Senate and Bush to go along.
But that may actually happen.
Walmart will be introducing their discount program for selected generics to shoppers in California shortly, causing much gnashing of teeth and rending of clothes by pundits, independent pharmacies, and generic manufacturers.
What’s really going on here?
Non-insurance folks, especially those who aren’t happy with their insurance for whatever reason, or those seeking to write best-selling books (John Grisham, for one), use some pretty strong adjectives describing the heartless penny-pinching mean-spirited folk who are “the insurance company”.
While I don’t doubt that a few individuals and insurance companies really are cold-hearted emotionless drones, I’ve met very few that fit that description.
This was brought to mind recently while listening in on a meeting at an insurance company.
Tommy Noe is going to be behind bars till 2026. At least that’s how an Ohio judge sees him spending his time for the next 20 years.
Steve Cavanaugh, former, and highly-respected head of the Louisiana Workers Comp Corp, passed away last week.
While I only know Mr. Cavanaugh by reputation, by all accounts he was an insightful, innovative, and effective leader. After leaving the LWCC, Cavanaugh had begun working to build a new insurance carrier in Texas. He succumbed to pancreatic cancer last week at the age of 55.
Thanks to Workers Comp Executive for the notice.
First Health has a leader for the workers comp business. After a search lasting almost two years, Coventry found the new leader right inside the parent company.
Jim McGarry will be the new President of the Workers Comp division, effectiv 11/17/06. His COO will be Steve Rodriguez, ex-SVP and head claims exec at CNA. McGarry, who is located in Irving Texas, is reporting to CEO and Chairman Dale Wolf.
More details to follow…
CorVel’s stock has hit the stratosphere, giving the company a market cap of over half a billion dollars, and a PE of 37. The stock’s price has more than tripled in the last year, and trading has been particularly heavy over the past few weeks, with volumes up substantially over the last two months.
Wal-mart’s $4 generic program is growing – more stores, more states, and more scripts are now covered. The latest information has the giant retailer’s cheap program operating in over 3000 in-store pharmacies in 32 states. And, the list of drugs has expanded to include 331 prescriptions.
I’ve received some flak from readers who seem to object to my past posts questioning why Wal-mart is doing this.
I just can’t stop myself.
The Ohio Bureau of Workers Comp scandal is so big, so juicy, so full of great stories and bizarre twists and turns and corruption and lying and deceit and, well, we could be talking mini-series here!
The latest news is Tommy Noe, coin dealer, real estate developer, and scam artist extraordinaire, will not be needing either of his waterfront homes, at least not for ten years. Tommy may have thought he would be living in luxury courtesy of the state; while he will be living off the taxpayers, the accomodations will be somewhat more spartan.
It could have been worse; they could have re-opened Alcatraz for him and his co-conspirators…
David Williams is hosting Health Wonk Review in a return engagement. While David is somewhat misty over the old days of HWR, he does an excellent job coping with the growth of the “review”.
