tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9181810725696409953.post2923731077345891740..comments2024-03-17T04:20:11.083-04:00Comments on The Population Health Blog: A Kaiser Foundation Misstep on Employer-Based Coverage for Cancer CareJaan Sidorovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05072456803925863874noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9181810725696409953.post-35248031421013987862009-02-17T22:41:00.000-05:002009-02-17T22:41:00.000-05:00Well said, AlanHP! I agree that I need to keep th...Well said, AlanHP! I agree that I need to keep these white papers in perspective. Pass the antacid.<BR/><BR/>My comment is that these select 20 are the uncommon exceptions in a largely market-based system that is arguably offering up a variety of insurance options. I believe that the vast majority of them serve cancer patients very well.<BR/><BR/>That being said, you have a good point about the paper work. As you can tell, I'm no fan of the electronic health record as currently conceived. However, I hope that one day the system will be able to adjudicate the physicians' bill against the benefit the right time everytime.<BR/><BR/>It's not just persons with a history of cancer that are being denied insurance coverage on the basis of pre-existing conditions. In my mind, this may be the biggest reason to have a) an insurance coverage mandate (play or pay) and b) limitations on underwriting (even though it may drive some smaller insurers out of business). Neither require a one size fits all guv'mint program.<BR/><BR/>And finally... good point. Disease management for cancer is one of those success stories that many persons don't know about.Jaan Sidorovhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05072456803925863874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9181810725696409953.post-2702097433665937992009-02-17T14:32:00.000-05:002009-02-17T14:32:00.000-05:00This is a political issue, and the way for advocat...This is a political issue, and the way for advocates to make their point is to make their point, forcefully. Another dry white paper won't do it. Abd dragging victims out and parading them has a long and glorious history in Washington. No health hearing can occur without "victims' panels".<BR/><BR/>I am surprised in your comments. The problems that these are having occur specifically because of the fragmentation of the system, with the almost unlimited, but uncontrolled, unsupervised, and unevaluated experiments run by thousands of employers in combination with hundreds of health plans and carve outs. <BR/><BR/>I am a cancer patient who has nothing but good things to say about the care I received, the options I had, the providers I dealt with, even the health plan I was covered by. However, my satisfaction with the plan is only in retrospect as I had to spend many frustrating hours with the plan and providers trying to unravel payments, deductibles, copayments, etc. And of course, the crackerjack disease management nurse who called to see if I needed help...when I was within one week of finishing chemotherapy (8 months after my surgery).<BR/><BR/>Fortunately I am not dealing with any health or financial problems stemming from my cancer. But, I am dealing with individual coverage issues for my daughter, who is an out-of-work college graduate with pre-existing conditions. She can't get decent coverage because she received care for some serious problems when she did have coverage. Isn't there something wrong with that?AlanHPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05048948638213755939noreply@blogger.com