February 1, 2001 - This paper examines the need for insurance expansions for Americans approaching retirement age and analyzes the likely impact of Medicare buy-in options on program costs and their effectiveness in reducing the numbers of uninsured.
Fund Report
February 1, 2001 - Through case studies of seven states, this report assesses the performance of managed care programs with several years of experience. The authors gauge whether experience helps facilitate the programs and whether Medicaid managed care can deliver on its goals.
In the Literature
February 1, 2001 - Since 1992, through a selective and labor intensive process, the Fund has commissioned independent reviews of 56 projects and 14 larger programs, or approximately one-fourth of the large projects it funds annually.
Other
January 15, 2001 - This report describes one nursing home based initiative—Wellspring Innovative Solutions, an alliance of 11 nonprofit nursing homes in Wisconsin that is striving to improve quality through model clinical practice systems and changes to the prevailing culture of nursing homes.
Fund Report
January 1, 2001 - Medicare beneficiaries will have to pay substantially more out of their own pockets for health care in the future, according to this new report. The authors find that those with low incomes and health problems will be at even greater risk than average beneficiaries for costs such as Medicare premiums, medical services, and prescription drugs.
Fund Report
January 1, 2001 - This report presents a detailed side-by-side look at all the option papers in another Fund publication, Strategies to Expand Health Insurance for Working Americans.
Fund Report
January 1, 2001 - Using the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, this article examines patterns of health insurance within families with children, determining that 3.2 million families are uninsured and another 4.5 million families are only partially insured.
In the Literature
January 1, 2001 - This issue brief provides an early look at trends in Medicare+Choice plans from 1999 to 2001, revealing continued growth in premiums and a simultaneous continued decline in benefit comprehensiveness.
Issue Brief
January 1, 2001 - In this essay, the president's message from the Fund's 2000 Annual Report, Karen Davis looks at health care quality: how to define it, how to measure it, and how to improve it.
Other
December 25, 2000 - The problem of nearly 43 million Americans without health insurance could be virtually eliminated in a single generation through a health plan based on universal, automatic coverage that allows choice of plan and provider. The proposal could be paid for, according to Fund President Davis and coauthors, by using the quarter of the federal budget surplus which results from savings in Medicare and Medicaid.
Other
December 9, 2000 - The federal government could subsidize employee contributions to health coverage through a tax credit. In this way, employers would continue to contribute to insurance for their workers, and more federal dollars could be used to reach a greater number of low-income workers.
Fund Report
December 9, 2000 - A system of federal tax credits to provide incentives to businesses that employ low-wage workers to help pay for insurance would enable more firms to offer group health insurance.
Fund Report
December 9, 2000 - Tax credits would certainly make coverage more affordable for low-income people, but a significant number will remain uninsured if there are no adequate, reasonably priced plans for them to buy.
Fund Report
December 9, 2000 - This report examines the need for a coverage initiative that fosters greater access to affordable benefits through employment, particularly in light of the strong support that employment-based coverage enjoys among the public. Under this proposed program, states would organize a group health insurance market for small firms with low-wage workers.
Fund Report
December 8, 2000 - Helping the uninsured gain coverage should be a public policy priority. With this in mind, The Commonwealth Fund Task Force on the Future of Health Insurance commissioned 10 experts on different aspects of health insurance policy to investigate different proposals for expanding coverage.
Fund Report