As the end of the year approaches, there’s no better time to catch up and reflect upon new research and findings from the past year. The articles and reports in this month’s Roundup examine the latest trends in consolidation including (1) the rise of cross-market hospital systems and (2) concentration in the insurance markets. We also highlight articles that explored (3) the current state and future of telehealth regulation and (4) quality impact for hospitals that switch to a value based payment model.   Consolidation and Competition Although 2022 has […]

In the previous issue of the California Legislative Beat, we recapped noteworthy bills from year two of California’s 2021-2022 legislative term, specifically legislation that sought to regulate healthcare competition and ensure affordable access (see Recapping the 2022 California Legislative Session – Part 1). In this second part of the two-part series, we turn to bills that aimed to eliminate surprise out-of-network costs, advance telehealth, and rein in prescription drug prices, including ones that were signed into law and some important ones that didn’t make the cut.   Surprise Out-of-Network Costs […]

This month’s Roundup includes articles on healthcare merger review, specifically new policy recommendations that explain 1) why regressing price on the HHI does not inform merger analysis, and 2) how courts can implement health equity concerns in merger review. Next, we examine articles that evaluate potential strategies to reduce healthcare costs, including 3) state initiatives that build on past improvement efforts, and 4) financial incentives to reward patients for choosing lower-priced providers. Finally, we look at 5) trends in outpatient telehealth use since the start of the pandemic, and 6) […]

Happy New Year! In this inaugural issue of 2022, we roundup articles and reports that you may have missed from the year end that examine various healthcare price and competition issues, including 1) an observational study on states’ merger review powers and their effect and 2) a review of policy options for addressing the extent and impact of consolidation in California. In addition, we cover articles that examine 3) the correlation between prices disclosed under the new hospital price regulation with total costs of care among commercially insured individuals, 4) […]

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 […]

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 […]

California’s new fiscal year began on July 1 after the legislature approved a record state budget of $262.6 billion on June 28. The record budget was made possible by a $76 billion budget surplus and $27 billion in federal aid. This year’s budget process was especially confusing, as the California constitution requires the state legislature to pass a budget by June 15. This year, however, the legislature passed a placeholder budget on June 15 that allowed the state to spend the record sum, but the budget bill did not provide […]

This month, we are proud to announce the publication of an issue brief by our Source colleagues Katherine L. Gudiksen, Alexandra D. Montague, and Jamie S. King on the topic of healthcare market consolidation—and more specifically, on what state and federal leaders are doing to deal with it. This month’s Roundup also discusses new research about a potential link between ACO participation and higher prices, hospitals’ lagging price transparency compliance efforts, surprise ambulance bills, the future of telehealth, enrollee satisfaction with public and private health plans, and state employee health […]

A year ago, Governor Newsom had projected a budget deficit of about $54.3 billion for California, resulting in a scramble to balance the precarious budget by cutting and deferring proposals. In a complete reversal, the May Revision to the Governor’s proposed budget, originally released in January, projected an unprecedented surplus of $75.7 billion this year. The Legislative Analyst’s Office reports that only about half of this surplus, about $38 billion, will be available for discretionary spending.[1] The updated spending plan proposed $267.8 billion in spending, an increase from $227 billion […]

February 19th was the deadline for California legislators to introduce their proposed bills this session.  In a two-part series, we highlight some of the notable healthcare bills on the table in 2021.  In this post, we focus on a few ambitious reform efforts to the healthcare market and delivery system.  Next month, we’ll turn our attention to proposed bills that aim to regulate the prescription drug market and bills that promote price and quality transparency. Healthcare system reform measures are those that change the structure of health care in a […]