Insight, analysis & opinion from Joe Paduda
Yesterday SwissRe published their analysis of the impact of health reform on workers comp. The full report is available here [opens pdf] It’s good to see an international player in the workers comp market consider the potential direct and indirect … Continue reading What health reform will do to workers comp…not what you think
Read More...We’ve all had a few days to digest the recently announced Humana – Concentra deal, and perhaps think thru what this means for Humana, why they did the deal, and if this gives any insight into what other health plans … Continue reading The Humana – Concentra deal: this isn’t that hard to figure out, people
Read More...In an announcement a few minutes ago, healthplan company Humana announced it intends to buy occ clinic firm Concentra for $790 million. Currently Concentra has about 300 facilities and 240 on-site clinics and revenues of $800 million. The deal does … Continue reading Humana to acquire Concentra for $790 million
Read More...There’s no question the Accountable Care Act needs work – everyone agrees on that. So let’s talk about the specifics – what needs fixing, why, and how can we get those fixes passed. First, let’s understand how bad our current … Continue reading How to ‘fix’ health reform – part one
Read More...Last week WorkCompCentral’s [subscription required] Bill Kidd wrote about the battle in Illinois over reimbursement for surgical implants. The quick-and-dirty is hospitals are resisting a reduction in compensation for the devices themselves from 65% of billed charges to the manufacturer’s … Continue reading Why is it acceptable to shift costs to workers comp?
Read More...Good friends and colleagues Frank Pennachio and Susan Toussaint’s WorkComp Advisory Group is conducting their annual get together at the Blackstone Hotel in Chicago (scene for much of the movie ‘The Untouchables’. (Remember the scene with the baseball bat in … Continue reading Are workers comp claims ‘undercounted’?
Read More...Medical malpractice is one of the cost drivers about which there is much disagreement, some contend it is a major contributor to overall system costs, while others view med mal as a relatively minor factor. A new study [abstract only] … Continue reading Defensive medicine – a non-factor in health care costs
Read More...Yesterday I discussed the ongoing debate about potential changes to California’s work comp fee schedule. In case my position was too subtle, I’ve got grave reservations about using RBRVS (Medicare) as the basis for a work comp physician fee schedule. … Continue reading California Work Comp – Part Two – the hospitals…and what to do about them
Read More...In the course of my consulting practice, I see a lot of work comp medical bill review ‘savings’ reports. Over the last fourteen years (since founding Health Strategy Associates in 1996) I’ve collected, reviewed, and analyzed scores of savings reports … Continue reading Defining work comp medical cost ‘savings’
Read More...Several clients have asked for more detail on how the reform bill will change Medicare reimbursement for physicians and other non-facility providers. Here’s the synopsis. First, note that this pertains only to reimbursement changes contained within the reform bill. There … Continue reading Changes to physician reimbursement under reform – the details
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