Prices for COVID-19 Testing May 8, 2023 Issue Brief This analysis examines the potential costs for COVID-19 testing that some consumers may face once the COVID-19 public health emergency ends on May 11, 2023., depending on whether they have insurance and how their insurance covers testing.
Premature Mortality During COVID-19 in the U.S. and Peer Countries April 24, 2023 Issue Brief This analysis finds that the U.S. had the highest rate of premature deaths amid the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-2021 among a group of 12 large, wealthy peer countries. The U.S. on average had more than two times the average years of life lost per 100,000 people as the United Kingdom, the country with the next highest rate.
Racial Disparities in Premature Deaths During the COVID-19 Pandemic April 24, 2023 Issue Brief This analysis examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by race and ethnicity through the lens of premature mortality, using the measures of premature mortality rate and years of life lost among excess deaths that occurred during the pandemic.
How Do Facility Fees Contribute To Rising Emergency Department Costs? March 27, 2023 Issue Brief With the high costs of emergency department visits of significant importance to consumers and policymakers, this analysis examines claims data from privately insured individuals with large employer health plans, to examine the role that facility fees play in rising cost of emergency care.
How Have Costs Associated With Obesity Changed Over Time? March 24, 2023 Issue Brief This analysis finds that, among people with large employer health plans, those with an obesity diagnosis on average have higher total and out-of-pocket spending than those without an obesity diagnosis. It also examines the cost of common surgical and pharmacological treatments for obesity.
Preventive Services Use Among People with Private Insurance Coverage March 20, 2023 Issue Brief This analysis of claims data estimates that six in ten people with private health insurance – or about 100 million people – used at least one preventive service covered without any out-of-pocket costs through a provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in a typical year prior to the COVID-19…
How Much Could COVID-19 Vaccines Cost the U.S. After Commercialization? March 10, 2023 Issue Brief This analysis illustrates the potential total cost of Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines, based on their publicly-announced expected prices, once they enter the U.S. commercial market. It compares the average price paid by the federal government for the COVID-19 bivalent boosters to the estimated average commercial prices across different scenarios.
Outpatient Visits Are Growing More Complex: Implications for Health Costs February 27, 2023 Issue Brief This analysis for the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker uses claims data from private, large employer-based plan to examine trends in complexity coding across outpatient practice settings from 2004 to 2021. It finds a trend toward higher complexity codes that contributes to higher outpatient spending.
Ongoing Challenges with Hospital Price Transparency February 10, 2023 Issue Brief This analysis examines transparency data currently shared by hospitals to comply with federal law and finds that they are messy, inconsistent and confusing, making it challenging if not impossible for patients or researchers to use them to compare prices. Many of these shortcomings stem from a lack of specificity in the requirements for what hospitals must report.
How Has Health Care Utilization Changed Since the Pandemic? January 24, 2023 Issue Brief This chart collection examines the latest available data on how health services utilization has changed over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.
