Let's replace two current myths about healthcare with facts

 Let's replace two current myths about healthcare with facts:

1. Healthcare is less of an "expense" and much more of a "high ROI investment" than any other commodity or service, because investment in healthcare results in economic growth in practically every other market segment. Let's put this another way. When more people are healthy, they work harder, maintain reliable and full employment and attendance, and spend more money on discretionary goods and services, including job related expenses, housing, cars, entertainment and electronics.

https://www.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/health-care/health-equity-economic-impact.html

2. Medicare and Medicaid are by far the most efficient services compared to any private insurer. Medicare and Medicaid, per procedure, on average, cost half what private insurers must pay. 

"Private insurers paid nearly double Medicare rates for all hospital services (199% of Medicare rates, on average), ranging from 141% to 259% of Medicare rates across the reviewed studies.

"The difference between private and Medicare rates was greater for outpatient than inpatient hospital services, which averaged 264% and 189% of Medicare rates overall, respectively.

"For physician services, private insurance paid 143% of Medicare rates, on average, ranging from 118% to 179% of Medicare rates across studies. Across all studies, payments from private insurers are much higher than Medicare payments for both"

https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/how-much-more-than-medicare-do-private-insurers-pay-a-review-of-the-literature/#:~:text=Key%20Findings,for%20Hospital%20and%20Physician%20Services

And healthcare costs per patient are rising twice as fast among private insurers than Medicare and Medicaid.

https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2022-01/57422-medical-prices.pdf

Understand what this means: More people covered by Medicare and Medicaid reduces overall healthcare expenses while keeping our entire critical access health system afloat. And providing that care on a preventative basis further reduces the long term per-life expense.

#HealthcareEconomics #EmergencyMedicine #NursingExecutive #Nursing #HospitalEconomics