In connection with the Source’s research and findings on anticompetitive contract terms, Senior Health Policy Researcher Katie Gudiksen co-authored the NASHP model legislation for states to rein in the use of these contract terms, including all-or-nothing, most-favored nation, anti-steering/anti-tiering, and gag clauses. A companion report, A Tool for States to Address Health Care Consolidation: Prohibiting Anticompetitive Health Plan Contracts, further details the contract terms and how the model act can give states essential tools to create a more level playing field and help rein in rising health care costs. For …

As an extension of the Source’s research and work on provider market consolidation, the Milbank Memorial Fund commissioned the Source team to conduct an in-depth policy analysis of health system consolidation in Rhode Island and provide legal and regulatory options for Rhode Island state officials to address the impacts of consolidation. Executive Director Jaime King, Senior Health Policy Researchers Robert Murray and Katie Gudiksen, and Source Advisory Board Member Bob Berenson of the Urban Institute created a detailed presentation that first provides an overview of Rhode Island’s provider markets and …

The Nicholas C. Petris Center on Health Care Markets and Consumer Welfare, in its annual newsletter published this month, highlights many of the research collaborations with The Source in 2020 and 2021. Among the work are two studies on market consolidation and competition, one of which examines the impact of state merger review and the use of anticompetitive contract clauses on healthcare prices, quality and premiums (both research findings are published on The Source). Another ongoing project seeks to determine the size and scope of cross-market hospital and physician organization …

The Source kicked off the New Year with a trio of blog posts in the Health Affairs Blog that highlights the Database of State Laws Impacting Healthcare Cost and Quality (SLIHCQ). The SLIHCQ Database was developed in partnership with the Catalyst for Payment Reform (“CPR”) and is an interactive tool that hosts ongoing state legislative efforts to implement healthcare reform. It is intuitively designed to allow policymakers and other stakeholders to customize and filter their searches by key issue and state. In collaboration with CPR, The Source Executive Editor Jaime …

In a new 60 Minutes episode aired on 12/13/20 (S53 E15), CBS interviews California attorney general Xavier Becerra in its investigation of anticompetitive practices by Sutter Health that led to higher health care costs in California. Watch the story here.

On November 13, The Source on Healthcare Price & Competition and the UC Berkeley Petris Center jointly hosted a virtual convening of some of the leading experts in law and economics in a workshop to review and evaluate current findings of our collaborative research series “The Role of States in Promoting Competition in Healthcare: A Legal and Economic Analysis.” Our research analyzes how state merger review authority and regulation of contracts between providers and insurers affect the price of healthcare services and insurance premiums. The interactive workshop, supported by Arnold …

As unrelenting consolidation in healthcare provider and insurer markets continues, policymakers need additional options to protect the public from escalating healthcare prices and low-quality care. High healthcare prices result from multiple factors, including third-party payers dampening consumers’ price sensitivity, patients and providers demanding expensive healthcare technologies, and healthcare markets consolidating. While these factors are visible, dominant insurers and healthcare providers can also use terms in their insurer-provider contracts in anticompetitive ways that thwart competition and lead to higher prices or lower quality but remain hidden from public view. With support …

The Source is launching a new series of “Spotlight on State” summaries to highlight notable legislation and initiatives in health policy and reform of all 50 states. Utilizing the SLIHCQ Database launched in partnership with Catalyst for Payment Reform, our goal is to update the overview summaries of each of the individual state pages on The Source, along with an exciting new feature of an overview infographic chart that provides an at-a-glance summary of existing and proposed legislation in each of the key issue topics for each state. The key …

Case page: UFCW & Employers Benefit Trust v. Sutter Health Executive Editor Jaime King was quoted in the 6/17/2020 California Healthline article Citing COVID, Sutter Pushes To Revisit Landmark Antitrust Settlement: In its filing, Sutter does not specifically object to the $575 million settlement amount. But Jaime King, an associate dean at UC Hastings College of the Law who has followed the case, said the request for a delay could be a tactical strategy to support such a move. “The longer they can delay, the more they can show they have …

Tune in to the latest podcast with Anna Sinaiko, PhD, Assistant Professor at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, who discusses with Catalyst for Payment Reform (CPR) Executive Director Suzanne Delbanco past price and quality transparency efforts and benefit design programs. CPR, in partnership with The Source, recently released a Report Card on State Transparency Laws that assesses state efforts to help consumers access health care price information to facilitate consumer shopping (see Suzanne Delbanco’s op-ed in Governing). This latest podcast from CPR provides insights on patient preferences in …