The Source Executive Editor Jaime King was recently quoted in the Los Angeles Times article “California seeks more power to fight healthcare mergers,” regarding SB 977, a bill that would grant significantly more merger review power to the Attorney General in California: “The best way to prevent problems from occurring in a merger is just to prevent the merger altogether,” said Jaime King, associate dean at UC Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco. “It’s really hard to unwind a merger after you’ve already done it.” SB 977 incorporated …

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to ravage the nation, it has underscored and brought national attention to many of the issues in the U.S. healthcare system and the pressing needs for policy reform. On the new “COVID-19 Crisis” key issue page, The Source looks at the implications of the pandemic as it pertains to healthcare markets, costs, and delivery, as well as federal and state responses to address them. This new page will compile the latest curated news and academic articles relating to healthcare issues that arise from the COVID-19 …

[Press Release] BERKELEY, CA – May 5, 2020 – Around 40% of Americans could not cover an unexpected $400 expense in 2018, which is less than one-third of the average health insurance deductible for an individual that year. Health care costs and deductibles have since continued to rise, along with the need for American consumers to have access to price information. Catalyst for Payment Reform (CPR) looked for laws in each state that ensure such transparency and today, the grades are in. CPR developed the 2020 Report Card on State …

In a report just published by the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF), The Source’s Sammy Chang, Tim Greaney, Katie Gudiksen, and Jaime King examine the California Attorney General’s merger review authority and compare it to those of other state AGs. As state antitrust enforcement can be used as an alternative to federal enforcement, the team suggests expansion of the AG’s oversight of health care mergers to address the escalating scope and impact of health care industry consolidation. Download the report “Examining the Authority of California’s Attorney General in Health Care …

“The Proposed Vertical Merger Guidelines And Health Care: Little Guidance And Dubious Economics” Authors: Thomas L. Greaney and Richard M. Scheffler

As part of The Source’s ongoing collaborative research series to present evidence-based analyses on strategies to address consolidating healthcare markets, we are excited to unveil a new legal resource table detailing major cases in federal and state antitrust enforcement of healthcare provider and insurer consolidation. This interactive table, now available on the Market Consolidation interactive key issue page, provides a short case summary of each case, and allows searching and sorting by keyword and criteria including year, jurisdiction, enforcement agency, and outcome of the cases. With support from Arnold Ventures and …

Senior Health Policy Researcher Katie Gudiksen was quoted in the 4/1/2020 Pharmacy Today article The skinny on the PBM case before the U.S. Supreme Court: “Many people incorrectly equate the term ‘ERISA plan’ with ‘self-funded plans,’” said Katherine L. Gudiksen, PhD, MS, who is senior health policy researcher for The Source on Healthcare Price and Competition, a program associated with the University of California Hastings College of the Law. “Congress saved any state insurance law from ERISA preemption, so states [are able to] continue to regulate insurance—including health insurance—in the state,” …

Hot off the press: JAMA Health Forum article Promoting Health Care Transparency via State Legislative Efforts highlights state health transparency legislation from The State Laws Impacting Healthcare Cost (SLIHCQ) Database, a public database established by The Source on Healthcare Price and Competition and Catalyst for Payment Reform (CPR). The article looks at specific examples of state transparency legislation catalogued in the database including: All-payer claims database (APCD) – New Hampshire, Colorado Right-to-shop – Maine, Utah Surprise or balance billing – New York Find out details of these state legislation and …

We did it again! The Source on Healthcare Price & Competition is proud to announce that, in partnership with UC Berkeley’s Nicholas C. Petris Center on Health Care Markets and Consumer Welfare, we have launched another brand new interactive key issue page, “Provider Contracts”, which looks at the most effective strategies for states to understand and address the ability of providers with dominant market power to utilize contracting strategies to negotiate high rates. With support from Arnold Ventures, this new installment is part of a collaborative research series that leverages the latest and most comprehensive data on state laws, healthcare markets, and healthcare prices in provider …

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – February 25, 2020 – High commercial health care prices are a main driver of US health care spending, due in large part to consolidation among providers. While employers, other health care purchasers and payers can drive competition in the marketplace through benefit and provider network design, public policies can also strengthen and support those efforts. Catalyst for Payment Reform and The Source on Healthcare Price and Competition at UC Hastings College of the Law have catalogued state measures to enhance market competitiveness and control costs through legislation. The report, State Policies …