Who could have possibly predicted that a
sharp increase in the number of Americans with comprehensive health insurance would result in more paying customers for the medical industry? Outside of anyone in Congress with an "R" after their name and the frothing-mad reality-challenged voter base that inflicted them on the rest of the nation, all it takes to make that simple prediction is the ability to count and
do basic arithmetic:
Spending on prescription medicines by U.S. patients may rise 41 percent to as much as $480 billion by 2018, according to a new study from researcher IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics. The biggest drivers in the rise in spending are the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, an aging American population, and higher drug prices, the report said.
Medicaid prescriptions jumped 25.4 percent in states that expanded Medicaid coverage, compared with 2.8 percent in the states that didn't expand coverage. With the Affordable Care Act going into effect in 2014, that led to a 13 percent jump in spending last year, the highest level since 2001, the report found.
If you're employed or invested in the medical industry, the best news is there's mountains of mo' money waiting unclaimed on the table for companies and their lobbyists who successfully
expands the ACA to its full potential in every state. Your only real obstacles are Republicans at the state and federal level who have sworn an oath to keep it out of your hands using the
three "L's" strategy: legislation, lawsuits, and lies.