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 Alaska page. According to data from the Council for Community and Economic Research, health services in Alaska are 70 – 200 percent more expensive than the national average. Many pressures influence Alaska’s health-care costs. They include expenses related to recruiting providers from out of state, lack of competition, the state’s small population. In […]

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 Alabama page. Alabama is one of the few states that prohibits most non-compete provisions in employment contracts for professionals, which include physicians. Specifically, the courts held that statutory exemptions allowing non-competes in employment contracts do not apply to professionals and that physicians and other medical providers are professionals under state law. While the […]

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 Rhode Island page. Rhode Island is an active state in advancing innovative policy initiatives to promote healthcare competition, price transparency, and cost containment. The state has long operated an all-payer claims database and additionally requires hospitals to provide patients with a cost estimate of anticipated services. The state also provides some limited protections […]

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 Ohio page. Ohio lawmakers have made strides in healthcare price transparency in recent sessions despite previous setbacks. In 2021, the state eliminated surprise medical bills for HMO and PPO enrollees for emergency services provided by out-of-network professionals, facilities, and ground ambulance service providers, and non-emergency services provided by out-of-network professionals at in-network facilities. […]

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 Jersey page. New Jersey is active in state market initiatives with a state-based insurance marketplace, Covered NJ, and a state-based reinsurance program that partially reimburses insurers for certain claims. In recent terms, New Jersey lawmakers are also considering legislation that would create a single-payer health plan by expanding Medicare to cover all of […]

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 Florida page. Florida is an active state in promoting healthcare price transparency. A key effort is the state’s all-payer claims database, which was mandated by the legislature and implemented in 2016. It also has a consumer-facing website, FloridaHealthFinder, which allows consumers to view performance and outcome data, including average costs, for healthcare facilities […]

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 Texas page. For several legislative terms, Texas has enacted legislation to explore the desirability and feasibility of mandating an all-payer claims database (APCD), while the state ran a voluntary claims data collection effort through the University of Texas Center for Healthcare Data. The medical and pharmacy claims collected from the voluntary effort account […]

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 Colorado page. Colorado is a state to watch with aggressive and ahead-of-the-curve efforts to contain healthcare costs and promote health system reform in the state. In 2019, Governor Jared Polis signed an executive order that established the Office of Saving People Money on Health Care, with the goal to study, identify and implement […]

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 Connecticut page. Connecticut is a state to watch on healthcare cost, transparency, and competition. Connecticut’s legislature passed a statute in 2012 establishing an All-Payer Claims Database Program in the state. Connecticut’s APCD, Healthscore CT, contains information about the quality, price and cost of health services in the state to allow healthcare consumers to […]

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 Virginia page. Virginia is an active state in promoting price transparency in health care. Virginia operates an All-Payer Claims Database and provides other datasets online relating to cost and quality, including the average charge data for 25 of the most frequently reported health care services. All medical facilities and health maintenance organizations are required to […]