Recent Articles

The era of annual eye-popping Obamacare rate hikes appears to be over. Premium increases in the law’s marketplaces are on track to be relatively modest for the second straight year, according to the first batch of 2020 rates proposed by insurers. The rate filings are an early indication that this year’s small rate hikes weren’t…

Americans cited health care as the top issue for the federal government to address, ahead of the economy, immigration, national security and other issues, Wall Street Journal/NBC News polling found this month. The financial burden of health care was of particular concern for American families, according to a new Gallup poll released last week.

Last week the Trump Administration rolled out a semiannual summation of all the administration’s regulatory activity. Noteworthy for health policy observers, the administration has pushed back to November finalization of the proposed rule on manufacturer rebates for drugs purchased through the Medicare Part D and Medicaid Managed Care program. Opposition to the proposed rule has…

Widescale drug importation from Canada, is not a practical solution to the problem of high drug costs. It is a distraction from efforts to address the real prescription drug cost drivers. Perhaps conflating its geographic size, importation proponents seem to overlook Canada’s small population, which is less than California’s. There’s no way that our neighbors…

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will take more time to judge the performance of navigator groups tasked with ACA enrollment outreach, the agency said Thursday.  Performance is tied to funding. Starting in the 2020 open-enrollment period, navigator groups will be evaluated on a two-year performance period rather than one year. Federal funding is tied…

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont and fellow Democratic lawmakers reached an agreement Thursday to create a public option that will allow individuals and small businesses to purchase health insurance through the state. The proposal also calls for re-establishing the individual mandate—a centerpiece of the ACA that required people to have health insurance or pay a penalty—that…

There’s a reason any mention of cost is notably absent from the recent CBO report on single-payer health care proposals. That’s because Democrats specifically asked for a report without cost estimates. They’re aware that the American public is unlikely to get behind their plan to outlaw private health insurance and launch a government takeover of…

One approach to resolve surprise billing—sometimes called “network matching” or an “in-network guarantee”—would require these facility-based clinicians to contract with every health plan that the facility at which they practice accepts or, alternatively, choose to secure payment from the hospital rather than insurers.

The Georgia Public Policy Foundation has long advocated for market-oriented solutions to Georgia’s health care challenges. The Foundation has released a report analyzing the cost and potential impact of two Section 1332 State Innovation Waivers the governor could consider: A reinsurance program that would apply to all large insurers in the state and “reimburse accumulated…

Just as choice and competition make products and services less expensive in the rest of the economy, they can do so in health care. We must substantially expand Americans’ freedom to choose their own health insurance—both in public and private programs. We should gradually convert the Medicaid program from its current single-payer form into one…