Studies
Health Care
Over Regulation Reduces Choice in Health Insurance: An Update Health Policy Prescription
Key Points: Obamacare, signed in March 2010, has not reduced the rate of growth of health-insurance premiums, which increased by 20 percent in the small group market between 2008 and 2010. Obamacare subsidizes states to increase political control of health-insurance premiums, although there continues to be no evidence that such ...
California
Short-Circuited: The Challenges Facing the Online Learning Revolution in California
This PRI video documentary examines the online learning movement in education in California.
Health Care
The Medicare Auction Design and Incentives for Research and Development
Key Points: Government has incentives to focus far more heavily upon budget outlays than patient wellbeing in the operation of its health programs. So as to obtain medical devices and equipment for the beneficiaries of Medicare and Medicaid, the federal government uses auctions that are poorly designed, resulting in prices ...
Government Spending
Rick Perry’s Texas: It’s Better to Create More Jobs Than More Medicaid Dependents
Key Points: Texas has a significantly higher rate of uninsured residents, and a somewhat less expensive Medicaid program, than the national average. These conditions have not resulted in poor outcomes: In both health-system outputs and causes of mortality, Texas generally performs as well as other states. Therefore, throwing more money ...
Health Care
Why Health Exchanges Don’t Work
Key Points: The Utah Health Exchange is failing to meet its goals. It is almost certainly true that the administrative costs of operating an exchange are greater than the administrative costs of the traditional small-group market. Any exchange that offers unsubsidized, voluntary coverage will likely have the same poor results ...
Health Care
Why the Utah Health Exchange is No Model for Health Reform
The Utah Health Exchange is the model some conservatives believe can be used to push back against Obamacare. Witness the Wall Street Journal (July 16) soundly rejecting regulatory guidance on what the Administration is now calling Affordable Insurance Exchanges, but encouraging governors to get on the exchange bandwagon, in the ...
Health Care
Health Insurance Exchanges: What If They Issued 347 Pages of Regulations and Nobody Cared?
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has issued regulations governing Health Benefits Exchanges and Small-Business Health Options Exchanges under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). These regulations are poorly defined, confirming that the exchanges will empower state functionaries to reduce choice and competition in health ...
California
It’s Time to Neuter California’s Legislature
In June, several California legislators complained about having their pay cut by state Controller John Chiang because the budget they submitted by the June 15 constitutional deadline — the only deadline they seem to care about — was unbalanced. This latest budget drama shows why California needs a part-time legislature. ...
Health Care
Comparative Effectiveness Reviews: Quantitative Analysis of Research and Development Investment Effects
A based free-market think tank, examines an expanded quasi-federal comparative effectiveness review (CER) process and the negative effects on private-sector investment in research and development of new and improved medical technologies. Download the PDF San Francisco (July 15, 2011) — A new research study released by the Pacific Research Institute ...
Business & Economics
Educated Legislators, Bad Economy
California has the most educated legislators, according to a recent Chronicle of Higher Education study. Those stellar academic credentials, unfortunately, have not lifted the state from its economic malaise. California’s unemployment rate, as of May, is nearly 12 percent, higher than every state in the bottom five of the study. ...
Over Regulation Reduces Choice in Health Insurance: An Update Health Policy Prescription
Key Points: Obamacare, signed in March 2010, has not reduced the rate of growth of health-insurance premiums, which increased by 20 percent in the small group market between 2008 and 2010. Obamacare subsidizes states to increase political control of health-insurance premiums, although there continues to be no evidence that such ...
Short-Circuited: The Challenges Facing the Online Learning Revolution in California
This PRI video documentary examines the online learning movement in education in California.
The Medicare Auction Design and Incentives for Research and Development
Key Points: Government has incentives to focus far more heavily upon budget outlays than patient wellbeing in the operation of its health programs. So as to obtain medical devices and equipment for the beneficiaries of Medicare and Medicaid, the federal government uses auctions that are poorly designed, resulting in prices ...
Rick Perry’s Texas: It’s Better to Create More Jobs Than More Medicaid Dependents
Key Points: Texas has a significantly higher rate of uninsured residents, and a somewhat less expensive Medicaid program, than the national average. These conditions have not resulted in poor outcomes: In both health-system outputs and causes of mortality, Texas generally performs as well as other states. Therefore, throwing more money ...
Why Health Exchanges Don’t Work
Key Points: The Utah Health Exchange is failing to meet its goals. It is almost certainly true that the administrative costs of operating an exchange are greater than the administrative costs of the traditional small-group market. Any exchange that offers unsubsidized, voluntary coverage will likely have the same poor results ...
Why the Utah Health Exchange is No Model for Health Reform
The Utah Health Exchange is the model some conservatives believe can be used to push back against Obamacare. Witness the Wall Street Journal (July 16) soundly rejecting regulatory guidance on what the Administration is now calling Affordable Insurance Exchanges, but encouraging governors to get on the exchange bandwagon, in the ...
Health Insurance Exchanges: What If They Issued 347 Pages of Regulations and Nobody Cared?
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has issued regulations governing Health Benefits Exchanges and Small-Business Health Options Exchanges under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). These regulations are poorly defined, confirming that the exchanges will empower state functionaries to reduce choice and competition in health ...
It’s Time to Neuter California’s Legislature
In June, several California legislators complained about having their pay cut by state Controller John Chiang because the budget they submitted by the June 15 constitutional deadline — the only deadline they seem to care about — was unbalanced. This latest budget drama shows why California needs a part-time legislature. ...
Comparative Effectiveness Reviews: Quantitative Analysis of Research and Development Investment Effects
A based free-market think tank, examines an expanded quasi-federal comparative effectiveness review (CER) process and the negative effects on private-sector investment in research and development of new and improved medical technologies. Download the PDF San Francisco (July 15, 2011) — A new research study released by the Pacific Research Institute ...
Educated Legislators, Bad Economy
California has the most educated legislators, according to a recent Chronicle of Higher Education study. Those stellar academic credentials, unfortunately, have not lifted the state from its economic malaise. California’s unemployment rate, as of May, is nearly 12 percent, higher than every state in the bottom five of the study. ...
