Blog
What’s Ahead for 2022: Promising Healthcare Bills Pending in the California Legislature
Enne Mae Guerrero, Graduate Research Fellow December 13, 2021
The California legislature has passed nearly 800 bills in the 2021 session. As part of the two-year term, the legislature still has the opportunity to enact more meaningful healthcare legislation in the second year of the 2021-2022 legislative term. In the last issue of the California Legislative Beat, we recapped the 2021 legislative session and detailed the enacted and vetoed bills that enhance healthcare delivery, ensure healthcare access and coverage, promote price transparency, and reinforce competition and enforcement. In this post, we summarize some of the key pending legislation in …
Continue Reading Download PDF
New Video Explainer Focuses on Primary Driver of High Health Care Prices: Health Care Consolidation
Amy Y. Gu, Managing Editor December 6, 2021
Health care consolidation has been on the rise for decades, leading to higher health care prices, not higher quality. Today, two-thirds of hospitals in the U.S. are part of a larger health system; almost 1 in 3 physicians now works in a hospital-owned practice. Many regions are dominated by a single system, leaving patients and families without access to affordable, high-quality care. Arnold Ventures recently released the second video in a series about high health care prices and the impact they have on health care costs and affordability for …
Continue Reading Download PDF
Spotlight on State: Nebraska
Hannah Park, Student Fellow December 6, 2021
This is part of a series of summaries that highlight notable legislation and initiatives in health policy and reform of all 50 states. Check back on The Source as we roll out additional states each week. See Nebraska page. Nebraska has advanced several healthcare price transparency initiatives in the state. To protect patients from surprise billing, the legislature enacted the Out-of-Network Emergency Medical Care Act that prohibits providers from billing patients for medical care received from out-of-network providers or facilities in emergency situations. In addition, Nebraska patients have the ability …
Continue Reading Download PDF
The Source Roundup: December 2021 Edition
Enne Mae Guerrero, Graduate Research Fellow December 1, 2021
This month’s Roundup focuses on articles highlighting market consolidation and healthcare affordability, which can both have important implications for patient outcomes. First, we examine articles and reports that study 1) the need for a robust administrative review process for all healthcare transactions, 2) post-merger outcomes for hospital system and patients, and 3) consolidation in the dialysis industry. Next, we highlight articles and reports focusing on growing healthcare costs and affordability that specifically examine 4) the impact of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, 5) changes in employer healthcare benefits …
Continue Reading Download PDF
Spotlight on State: Montana
Hannah Park, Student Fellow November 23, 2021
This is part of a series of summaries that highlight notable legislation and initiatives in health policy and reform of all 50 states. Check back on The Source as we roll out additional states each week. See Montana page. Montana promotes the use of telemedicine by providing coverage and cost-sharing parity between telemedicine and in-person services. Coverage for telemedicine services must be equivalent to the coverage for in-person services. To make telemedicine services more affordable to patients, cost-sharing requirements that are not generally applicable to in-person services may not be …
Continue Reading Download PDF
FTC Restores and Implements Prior Approval Rule with Provision in DaVita Divestiture Order
Amy Y. Gu, Managing Editor November 15, 2021
In July 2021, President Biden’s executive order called on federal agencies to strengthen antitrust enforcement in the healthcare industry to promote and revitalize healthcare competition and price transparency in the U.S. In response to the call to action, the agencies, particularly the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), have mobilized and stepped up their efforts by providing additional guidance and oversight of consolidation in the healthcare market. In this issue of Litigation and Enforcement Highlights, we take a look at the FTC’s reinstatement and implementation of the prior approval rule, the latest …
Continue Reading Download PDF
Recapping the 2021 Session: Healthcare Legislation Passed in California
Enne Mae Guerrero, Graduate Research Fellow November 14, 2021
In the 2021 legislative session, California’s democratic-held legislature has passed roughly 800 bills, 770 of which have been enacted after approval by Governor Newsom.[1] A number of bills impacting the healthcare industry passed overwhelmingly in both houses, yet a couple of critical bills were vetoed. Notably, the COVID-19 pandemic, which shifted legislative focus away from healthcare costs in 2020, has amplified the various pitfalls of the healthcare system. This session, the legislature returned to propose several bills to mitigate these shortcomings and address healthcare costs and access. This post summarizes …
Continue Reading Download PDF
New Documentary Exposes the Alarming Trend of Hospital Monopolies and the Impact on Costs
Amy Y. Gu, Managing Editor November 8, 2021
The new film InHospitable is a timely documentary that follows patients and activists as they battle UPMC, a multi-billion dollar nonprofit hospital system that was making vital care unaffordable for hundreds of thousands of vulnerable patients in western Pennsylvania. The film highlights the urgency of holding large health systems accountable for their significant role in our broken healthcare system. Slated to have its world premiere on November 13th at DOC NYC, anyone in the U.S. can watch it online from November 14 – 28. Tickets are available here for in-person …
Continue Reading Download PDF
Spotlight on State: New Mexico
Amy Y. Gu, Managing Editor November 2, 2021
This is part of a series of summaries that highlight notable legislation and initiatives in health policy and reform of all 50 states. Check back on The Source as we roll out additional states each week. See New Mexico page. New Mexico has made strides in healthcare price transparency and cost control. After a legislative mandate was enacted to establish an all-payer claims database, the state began its implementation with budget allotted in the 2019-2020 fiscal year. In recent terms, New Mexico also passed the Surprise Billing Protection Act, which …
Continue Reading Download PDF
The Source Roundup: November 2021 Edition
Hannah Park, Student Fellow November 1, 2021
As hospital consolidation continue to rise amidst the pandemic, there has been contentious debate over the impacts of provider consolidation. This month’s roundup begins with articles that discuss some of these issues, including studies that found both benefits and potential harms of certain hospital mergers, acquisitions, and partnerships. Also highlighted in this month’s roundup are studies on the implications of proposed payment reforms across specialties, increasing health care costs for individuals with employer-sponsored insurance, and the continuing lack of plan comparison among Medicare beneficiaries during open enrollment season. Market …
Continue Reading Download PDF