How 13 Million Americans Could Lose Insurance Subsidies November 19, 2014 Perspective This was published as a Wall Street Journal Think Tank column on November 19, 2014. The Supreme Court is expected to rule next year on King v. Burwell, the lawsuit in which the federal government’s authority to provide financial assistance to people who buy insurance in federally operated insurance exchanges is being challenged…
Make American Health Care Affordable Again June 5, 2025 Perspective In this JAMA Health Forum column, Larry Levitt highlights how the Make America Healthy Again agenda aimed at chronic disease does little to address the affordability of health care and that efforts to lower federal spending on health care may worsen the problem, raising out-of-pocket costs for many people with…
Peering Into the Black Box of Insurance Rating June 7, 2011 Perspective Recently, the New York Times reported that private health insurers continue to seek large premium increases despite seeing lower than expected use of medical care and booking record profits. The story highlights a significant problem for health policy: the lack of good, public information about how health insurers manage health…
Who Will be the H&R Block and TurboTax for Health Insurance? June 3, 2011 Perspective There’s been quite a bit of focus lately insofar as these issues go, anyway on health insurance agents and brokers (sometimes known in the industry as “producers”). They are pushing legislation that has been introduced in Congress and is now being studied by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners that…
July Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: Public Still Divided on ACA, Few Believe the Law Will Improve Consumer Protections July 28, 2011 Perspective Overall public opinion on the health reform law remains unchanged this month, with 42 percent of Americans holding a favorable view and 43 percent an unfavorable view. Even though previous Health Tracking polls have consistently shown that consumer protections were one of the least controversial and most widely supported provisions…
Transparency and Complexity August 13, 2012 Perspective This fall a new rule takes effect requiring all private health plans to offer a uniform, simple to read, summary of benefits and coverage (SBC). The SBC will provide consumers with standardized information about how plans cover essential health benefits and what coverage limits and cost sharing applies. The SBC…
In N.Y. Policy on Out-of-Network Medical Bills, a Model for Other States? January 11, 2016 Perspective In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman discusses surprise bills for out-of-network care, and New York state’s solution to the problem.
JAMA Forum: Surprise, Surprise February 3, 2016 Perspective Larry Levitt’s February 2016 post explains how “surprise medical bills” — unanticipated charges for out-of-network care – can happen. It describes some government approaches to the issue and outlines the challenges to protecting consumers. The post is now available at The JAMA Forum.
JAMA Forum: What Does it Mean to Protect People with Preexisting Conditions? October 17, 2018 Perspective In this June 2018 post for The JAMA Forum, Larry Levitt examines the potential impact of the Trump Administration’s legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act’s protections for people with pre-existing conditions.
Surprise Bills Often Hit in Emergencies December 9, 2019 Perspective In an Axios column, Drew Altman previews new data highlighting that people with critical health issues are especially vulnerable to these bills.
