Health Care Reform
Commentary
Lawmakers Divided on Affordable Healthcare, Patients Aren’t
Rising healthcare costs continue to squeeze household finances. Washington is divided over how to respond. But new public opinion data suggest that patients agree on an answer. More than eight in 10 voters say they would react positively to an elected official who believed that “[t]o improve health care, we ...
Commentary
Insurance red tape is delaying care for millions of Americans
Few things frustrate patients more than the insurance paperwork that stands between them and the care they need. A new poll from KFF shows just how serious the problem has become. Nearly seven in ten Americans say insurer prior authorization requirements are a “burden.” Beyond costs, more than one-third call ...
Commentary
America doesn’t need more medical students. It needs more residents
Earlier this month, fourth-year medical students around the country learned news that will shape the rest of their careers. Match Day, as it’s known, is when aspiring physicians learn where they will complete their training in residency. For too many, the answer is nowhere. Read the op-ed here.
Commentary
America’s Healthcare System Has Never Been Better At Keeping Patients Alive
American life expectancy has hit an all-time high. According to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, life expectancy at birth in 2024 was 79 years. Americans are living longer thanks to significant declines in death from things like cancer, heart disease and stroke. This progress is ...
Commentary
GOP Can Deliver Affordable Healthcare Americans Demand
Two-thirds of Americans worry about being able to afford healthcare, according to a recent KFF poll. And they’re looking to Washington to do something about it. Republicans have an opportunity to meet that demand — and turn healthcare from a political liability to a policy success. Read the op-ed here.
Commentary
Republicans already have a plan for making health care affordable in 2026
Affordability is on the lips of lawmakers these days — and with good reason. Nearly half of Americans say they’re struggling to pay for basic necessities like rent, groceries and health care. The good news is that Congress is weighing several reforms that could help make health care in particular ...
commentar
Hospitals Turn a Safety-Net Program Into an ATM
Washington, D.C. is finally taking a hard look at one of the most abuse-ridden federal health programs — the 340B Drug Pricing Program. Last week, the Trump administration released a request for information exploring ways to bring more transparency and accountability to the program. It’s about time.
Commentary
How Trump’s ‘Prior Authorization’ Deal Puts Patients Ahead of Paperwork
Americans increasingly need a permission slip from their insurance company before they can get medical care. And it’s driving them crazy. According to one recent survey, nearly three-quarters of patients find delays and denials of treatment by insurers to be a major problem with our health-care system. Fortunately, a new ...
Commentary
Stop Catastrophizing Catastrophic Plans
Earlier this month, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed a rule to expand access to catastrophic health insurance plans on the exchanges established by the Affordable Care Act. The move may appear modest. In reality, it addresses one of the central design features that has made exchange coverage ...
Health Care
ISSUE BRIEF: Government Policy Is Consolidating the Practice of Medicine
Read the Brief A new issue brief released today by the Pacific Research Institute—the California-based, nonpartisan, free market think tank—finds that certain states’ efforts to tighten corporate practice of medicine laws hurt independent physicians, empower hospitals to consolidate local provider markets, and raise healthcare costs. “Competition is a prerequisite for ...
Lawmakers Divided on Affordable Healthcare, Patients Aren’t
Rising healthcare costs continue to squeeze household finances. Washington is divided over how to respond. But new public opinion data suggest that patients agree on an answer. More than eight in 10 voters say they would react positively to an elected official who believed that “[t]o improve health care, we ...
Insurance red tape is delaying care for millions of Americans
Few things frustrate patients more than the insurance paperwork that stands between them and the care they need. A new poll from KFF shows just how serious the problem has become. Nearly seven in ten Americans say insurer prior authorization requirements are a “burden.” Beyond costs, more than one-third call ...
America doesn’t need more medical students. It needs more residents
Earlier this month, fourth-year medical students around the country learned news that will shape the rest of their careers. Match Day, as it’s known, is when aspiring physicians learn where they will complete their training in residency. For too many, the answer is nowhere. Read the op-ed here.
America’s Healthcare System Has Never Been Better At Keeping Patients Alive
American life expectancy has hit an all-time high. According to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, life expectancy at birth in 2024 was 79 years. Americans are living longer thanks to significant declines in death from things like cancer, heart disease and stroke. This progress is ...
GOP Can Deliver Affordable Healthcare Americans Demand
Two-thirds of Americans worry about being able to afford healthcare, according to a recent KFF poll. And they’re looking to Washington to do something about it. Republicans have an opportunity to meet that demand — and turn healthcare from a political liability to a policy success. Read the op-ed here.
Republicans already have a plan for making health care affordable in 2026
Affordability is on the lips of lawmakers these days — and with good reason. Nearly half of Americans say they’re struggling to pay for basic necessities like rent, groceries and health care. The good news is that Congress is weighing several reforms that could help make health care in particular ...
Hospitals Turn a Safety-Net Program Into an ATM
Washington, D.C. is finally taking a hard look at one of the most abuse-ridden federal health programs — the 340B Drug Pricing Program. Last week, the Trump administration released a request for information exploring ways to bring more transparency and accountability to the program. It’s about time.
How Trump’s ‘Prior Authorization’ Deal Puts Patients Ahead of Paperwork
Americans increasingly need a permission slip from their insurance company before they can get medical care. And it’s driving them crazy. According to one recent survey, nearly three-quarters of patients find delays and denials of treatment by insurers to be a major problem with our health-care system. Fortunately, a new ...
Stop Catastrophizing Catastrophic Plans
Earlier this month, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed a rule to expand access to catastrophic health insurance plans on the exchanges established by the Affordable Care Act. The move may appear modest. In reality, it addresses one of the central design features that has made exchange coverage ...
ISSUE BRIEF: Government Policy Is Consolidating the Practice of Medicine
Read the Brief A new issue brief released today by the Pacific Research Institute—the California-based, nonpartisan, free market think tank—finds that certain states’ efforts to tighten corporate practice of medicine laws hurt independent physicians, empower hospitals to consolidate local provider markets, and raise healthcare costs. “Competition is a prerequisite for ...