Portside

The Hospital Trust Fund accounts for only about half of total Medicare spending. Most of the rest goes to cover physician fees, prescription drugs and to provide incentives for health insurance companies to participate in the Medicare Advantage program and administer the Medicare drug program. The Affordable Care Act could have done much more than it does to curb spending in those areas.

Drug company sales representatives, using data from companies that sweep up information from pharmacies, can know before entering a doctor’s office if he or she favors their products or those of a competitor.