For all of the quality care it delivers, the U.S. health care system is one of the most dysfunctional sectors of the U.S. economy. The government spends nearly 50 cents of every dollar spent on health care, most consumers are almost entirely insulated from the cost of their decisions, and employers decide what kind of health insurance their employees get.
But while the U.S. health care system begs for reform, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act only exacerbates all of the current problems, promising to devolve into a price-controlled system rationed and micromanaged by bureaucrats.
IPI believes there are much better options: reform the tax treatment of health insurance; remove the state and federal mandates and regulations that make coverage more expensive; pass medical liability reform; and promote policies that create value-conscious shoppers in the health care marketplace.
Does Obama Want To Kill Obamacare?
As strange as it may sound, President Obama’s recent statements give the impression that he’s willing to let his health care law go on life support—if he can claim Republicans pulled the plug.
Obamacare's Problems Are Making Nurses and PAs The Big Winners In Health Care Reform
There are winners and losers in President Obama’s effort to remake the U.S. health care system, and two of the big winners are nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs). Both will get to do more and make more in the new health care landscape.
Almost Half of State Health Insurance Exchanges Are Fighting For Survival
Several mostly blue states jumped on the health insurance exchange bandwagon as a way of showing support for Obamacare, says IPI's Merrill Matthews, and something similar happened in 1993 and 1994 with Clintoncare, Matthews says. “Those universal-coverage dreams turned into financial nightmares, and every one of those states eventually dramatically modified, scaled down, or eliminated their plans,” Matthews said.
Government-Subsidized Third-Party Payer Great Recipe To Make A Sector Of The Economy More Expensive, Less Efficient
Writing for the Institute for Policy Innovation, Merrill Matthews has a must-read article about an unintended consequences of Obamacare. He starts with a very sensible point about the effect of third-party payer.
Assurant Health Falls Victim to Obamacare's Sweeping Regulations
Merrill Matthews says AH’s struggles are unfortunate but were predicted by nearly everyone—except the company’s CEO.
Insurer Expands Global Payment System in Massachusetts
“The whole goal of Blue Cross is to go to a global budget with fixed prices,” Matthews said, adding that there is nothing wrong with a global budget as long as the prices are being set by the provider, but in this case the prices are being set by Blue Cross and the hospitals.
Millennials' Health Insurance Premiums Skyrocket Under Obamacare
The cost of health insurance premiums for young, healthy Americans have increased significantly under Obamacare. Dr. Merrill Matthews explains why premiums are going up for younger people, and that much of the cost is hidden by federal subsidies, and it will likely only get worse as the [nation’s] population ages.
There's 'No Sugarcoating' Health Insurance Exchange Failures
There's no sugarcoating how badly many of the state Obamacare exchanges have failed, and the problems are only just beginning.
Health Care Costs Are Declining Because You Are Paying More
The growth in health care spending has slowed down and President Obama wants you to know his health care law gets the credit. Or maybe the blame, because one reason for that slowdown is that you are spending more out of your own pocket.
Drug R&D Costs: $1.7 Billion and Rising
The significant costs of developing new, life-saving drugs and treatments has reached over $1.7 billion per drug over a span of 10-12 years, due to the growing complexity of drugs, bureaucratic red tape and the short length of a drug’s patent life.
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