Health care costs

Millions of Americans possess insurance cards yet hesitate to use them. Escalating premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket expenses now impact not only low-income families but nearly everyone except the wealthiest. Annual out-of-pocket costs for a family of four now exceed $20,000—enough to buy a new car each year. These substantial expenses compel families to skip preventive services and essential medical care. The notion that “some coverage is better than none” falters when cost-sharing deters care and heightens financial risk. More

This study identifies states that have established health care cost commissions (HCCCs), examines state-level political and economic factors associated with their establishment, and reports which of these states have also enacted health care competition-related laws that further equip these commissions. More

The cost of childbirth and postpartum health care results in significant and persistent financial hardship, particularly for families with lower income with commercial insurance. More

A look at recent policy developments that bear on private equity in health care, and their potential impacts on this growing form of commercial activity in health care markets. More

Context: Who pays for health care—and who owns it—determine what care is delivered, who receives it, and who profits from it. We examined trends… More

Context: There is a growing trend of combinations among hospital systems that operate in different geographic markets known as cross-market mergers.… More

As private equity firms have bought up billions of dollars in medical practices, home care agencies, and more over the last two decades, they have become a force in US health care. In a new Opinion, John E. McDonough of the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health chronicles the increasing role of private equity firms in the health care economy and its negative impact on patient mortality, patient costs, jobs, quality of care, and facilities closure. More

For decades, corporate mergers and consolidations in the US health care system were like the weather—complain all you want because you can’t do anything about them.  More

Context: Most-favored-nation (MFN) contract clauses have recently garnered attention from both Congress and state legislatures looking for ways to… More

Mark Pauly of the University of Pennsylvania proposes taxing employment-based health insurance plans for high-income people only in this guest Opinion. More