Insurance Markets in a Post-King World February 25, 2015 Perspective This perspective addresses how insurance markets might respond if the US Supreme Court sides with the plaintiffs in the King v. Burwell case. The case challenges the legality of premium and cost-sharing subsidies for low- and middle-income people buying insurance in states where the federal government rather than the state is operating the marketplace under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Medicare Spending Cuts and Hospital Productivity Gains February 25, 2015 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman and guest co-author Dana Goldman examine hospital productivity gains, and what they may mean for hospitals’ ability to absorb spending reductions.
The Health-Care Enrollment Story Is in the States February 19, 2015 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman examines the variation among states beneath the national Affordable Care Act’s Marketplace enrollment numbers released by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Health Spending Is Rising More Sharply Again February 17, 2015 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman discusses why high health care prices are a problem for consumers but not a cause of renewed growth in health spending.
Medicare Spending Peaks at Age 96 February 10, 2015 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman discusses the implications of a Kaiser finding: per capita Medicare spending peaks at age 96, and the main reason is not end-of-life care.
Medicare’s Role in Health-Care Payment Reform January 29, 2015 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman explores whether Secretary Burwell’s announcement this week about Medicare’s payment reform initiative is another sign that the public sector is becoming the engine driving payment and delivery reform.
Why Data on Health-Care Price Variation Doesn’t Itself Solve the Problem January 27, 2015 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman discusses a new Blue Cross Blue Shield Association report on “extreme price variation” in health care services and the limits of consumer information as a solution to the problem.
Harvard and Growth in Health Care Cost Sharing January 15, 2015 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman explains why recent discussion of Harvard University’s introduction of new health insurance cost sharing measures amounted to “making a mountain out of a mole hill”.
High Health-Care Prices: More Talk Than Action January 12, 2015 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman explores how price is the major factor that distinguishes the cost of our health care system from those in other developed nations, yet most efforts in the U.S. to address health-care costs don’t focus on price much at all.
Medical Debt Among Insured Consumers: The Role of Cost Sharing, Transparency, and Consumer Assistance January 8, 2015 Perspective This policy insight examines medical debt among insured consumers, exploring how high cost sharing in health insurance plans can contribute, and explaining how greater transparency could help consumers avoid some financial pitfalls. It also provides an update on provisions of the Affordable Care Act meant to increase health plan transparency and bolster consumer assistance.
