Healthcare Prices and Cost In An Era Of Premium And Provider Price Increases, State Employee Health Plans Target Key Cost Drivers (Health Affairs Forefront) Sabrina Corlette, Karen Davenport Employer-sponsored health insurance premiums have outpaced inflation and are poised for significant rate hikes this year. State Employee Health Plans have been in a prime position to address health care costs. Administrators of these plans identified reference pricing, tiered network plans, and multi-payer purchasing initiatives as having promising results in addressing cost drivers. The Joint Distribution Of High Out-Of-Pocket Burdens, Medical Debt, …

In the past month, newly released publications have chronicled how partnerships, alternative payment models, and insurer market power affect competition and consolidation. Separately, researchers examined Affordable Care Act developments in terms of its impact on coverage and costs of health care. Moreover, as more and more price data are made publicly available, researchers studied how that data is presented, utilized, and what is reveals.   Competition and Consolidation Since 2005, over 190 rural hospitals have closed across the US, and today, 600 more (the nearly one third that remain) are …

With the inauguration of a new administration in the White House, discussions ramped up on the future of health care and new legislative and regulatory possibilities. This month’s Roundup begins with three articles that look at ways to strengthen the Affordable Care Act (ACA) as well as the potential for more significant health reform through the implementation of a public option. On the price transparency front, we cover a report that looks at the effect of New Jersey’s final-offer arbitration system for resolving surprise billing disputes and the new price …

In the final monthly roundup of this tumultuous year, we highlight articles and reports that examine 1) rising and varying healthcare costs and their pronounced impact on Americans during the pandemic; 2) antitrust enforcement challenges of private equity partial ownership and joint ventures; 3) continued success of the Affordable Care Act in both marketplace participation and coverage protections for Americans amidst the pandemic; and 4) value-based pricing for COVID-19 treatment and vaccines.   Rising and Varying Healthcare Costs Increase Burden to Americans In the Kaiser Family Foundation report How costly …

This month’s roundup arrives in the wake of the confirmation of a new Supreme Court justice, the final days of the 2020 presidential election, and record-breaking numbers of COVID-19 cases. In light of this historic time, we highlight articles and reports about the implications of the Supreme Court’s new dynamics for healthcare policy, health insurance coverage and affordability as discussed during the 2020 election, and the COVID-19 pandemic’s continuing impact on healthcare costs and coverage. We also look at the continuing effect of increasing consolidation in both the insurer and …

With the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and nomination of Amy Coney Barret to the Supreme Court just weeks before the presidential election, many are turning their attention to health care and the fate of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). With this backdrop, this month’s Source Roundup looks at 1) what is at stake as the ACA faces the Supreme Court again in California v. Texas, 2) new information about rising healthcare prices, 3) anticompetitive contract practices between providers and insurers, and 4) the potential of a public option …

The Source continues to extend wishes of safety and good health to you and your loved ones.  This month, some policy and market considerations reflect on the Affordable Care Act in its tenth year, while others continue to focus on the COVID-19 pandemic and its projected long-lasting effects.  Many experts share how and why the pandemic urgently necessitates healthcare system reform in the United States.   The Affordable Care Act Last month, the Duke University Press Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law published The Affordable Care Act’s Missing Consensus: …

The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the urgent need for healthcare coverage for all Americans, once again putting the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in the national spotlight. The law, however, has long been immersed in various types of litigation, involving both state governments and private insurers, a few of which have reached the Supreme Court after many years in the making. This month, we take a look at the latest Supreme Court action in two recent lawsuits involving the ever-controversial law and its legacy.   Insurers Win $12 Billion Lawsuit for …

As society changes in unexpected ways due to the coronavirus outbreak, litigation and enforcement issues have come into the spotlight and become more important than ever. In this Litigation and Enforcement issue, we take a look at how COVID-19 is impacting healthcare markets and law and enforcement.   Uncertainty From Outbreak Impacts Court Cases and Law Enforcement As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on globally, both essential and nonessential industries have been affected in unprecedented ways. Across the country, legislatures and courthouses have postponed or indefinitely suspended activities due to the …

We hope that you and loved ones are staying well as we together persevere through the unprecedented circumstances brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The current situation has brought to the forefront a number of issues our healthcare system currently faces, including the potential costs associated with treating those affected by COVID-19. In this month’s Source Roundup, we begin by looking at the expected treatment costs for patients affected by COVID-19 and examine how price capping may be a means to reduce healthcare costs. We also highlight articles that discuss …