Health Costs

In this post for The JAMA Forum, Larry Levitt examines both the Democratic candidates’ proposals and the Trump administration’s record on lowering drug prices, which remains a top issue for the public with bi-partisan support. 

This month’s KFF Health Tracking poll examines public opinion and knowledge of Medicare-for-all and a public option, President Trump’s approval on health care programs and issues, the public’s priorities for Congress, and public opinion on the Affordable Care Act and the Texas v. U.S. court case.

A data surprise? Drew Altman, in his latest Axios column, shows there is no difference between large self-insured and fully insured companies when it comes to controlling health care costs, bucking conventional wisdom.

Long term care facility costs are the largest share of annual out of pocket spending by Medicare beneficiaries — representing 32% of their spending on services annually.

Drug price concerns in the U.S., including for antiretrovirals, the mainstay of HIV treatment and, increasingly prevention, have prompted the introduction of several policy proposals. One proposal would require manufacturers to provide a rebate to the federal government if prices increase faster than inflation. We assessed list price changes for ARVs under Part D, which is required to cover all or substantially all ARVs.

In this Axios column, Drew Altman takes a long-term view of the recently released federal data on health spending showing that spending for private insurance is rising much faster than for Medicare and Medicaid, and predicts rising pressure in the health care industry as a result. 

A new issue brief looks at the prevalence of potential surprise medical bills based on patient diagnosis, emergency visits, and type of inpatient admission.