Obamacare Beneficiaries 2.5 Times More Likely to Have HIV/AIDS Than Commercially Insured
One of our themes is that Obamacare causes health plans to attract the healthy and shun the sick. However, they do not succeed, according to a report by Prime Therapeutics, a pharmacy-benefit manager:
During t
he first year public health exchanges existed, Prime Therapeutics’ (Prime) members who enrolled in plans on these exchanges filled an average of 11.7 prescriptions, exceeding fills by commercial members by 13.6 percent. Public exchange members were also 2.5 times more likely to have hepatitis C or HIV, driving an almost 200 percent higher spend on related medicines.
More specifically, nearly $1 out of every $5 spent on drugs for public exchange members was spent to treat hepatitis C or HIV.
The report also states that exchange beneficiaries are significantly older than commercially insured persons: 42.6 years versus 34.7 years old, on average. 28 percent of Obamacare beneficiaries were between 55 and 64 years old, versus only 16 percent of commercially insured persons.
Why does this matter? While Obamacare beneficiaries are older and sicker than people with employer-based benefits, they have less access to health services. Obamacare is not the right way to take care of these peoples’ needs.
Wow! I have written on the potential for fraud in Medicare Part D plans. The IOG found instances where enrollees (some of which were already dead) were filling HIV prescriptions despite not even having HIV. I wonder if some of these people aren’t reselling their drugs for profit.