Narrowing Racial and Ethnic Gaps in Access to Care
Historically, blacks and Hispanics have been far less likely than whites to get and afford the health care they need. In a new report, Commonwealth Fund researchers discuss the impact the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has had on these persistent inequities, including the differences between states that have expanded eligibility for Medicaid coverage under the law and states that have not. Oprima aquí para leer el informe en español.
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| | There is reason for optimism that Congress and the administration can pass drug-pricing legislation before national elections in November.
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Sara Collins on the Supreme Court’s Decision to Hold Off Review of ACA Case
The Supreme Court rejected a request to quickly take up a review of an appeals court decision that struck down the ACA’s individual mandate. On To the Point, the Commonwealth Fund’s Sara Collins breaks down what it would mean to the health and financial security of millions of Americans if the ACA — an integral part of health care in the U.S. since 2010 — were to disappear.
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How States Are Trying to Make Health Coverage More Affordable
Recent regulatory changes by the Trump administration and uncertainty about the ACA’s future have put the onus on states to explore policy options for safeguarding and improving their residents’ coverage. Georgetown University’s Justin Giovannelli and colleagues examined a variety of state policies designed to strengthen individual market coverage and increase affordability in a recent Commonwealth Fund brief.
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International Health Policy and Practice Innovations | |
“Not on Banker’s Hours”: Primary Care in the Netherlands
In the latest episode of The Dose podcast, we hear from Los Angeles Times reporter Noam Levey, who recently wrote about the differences between the primary care systems in the United States and the Netherlands through the eyes of two doctors, one working in each country.
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How Germany Keeps Drug Prices Reasonable
How does Germany keep medication costs low — with only modest government involvement? Through centralized drug assessment, price negotiations, and price ceilings for noninnovative therapies, report UC Berkeley’s James Robinson and colleagues in a Commonwealth Fund brief. Learn how the U.S. might take a page from Germany’s approach.
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Drug-Pricing Reform Forecast for 2020
There is some reason for optimism that drug-pricing legislation could pass in 2020, Waxman Strategies’ Jeremy Sharp and Ruth McDonald write on To the Point. Over the past year, Congress enacted two long-debated, if modest, reforms: the CREATES Act and the closing of a loophole in the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program. But the authors say Congress and the administration still have differences to iron out.
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Getting to the Tipping Point
While some health systems have shown they can institute reforms that save money while simultaneously improving patient care, change in health care delivery is often too slow in coming and the incentives too weak. To reach the tipping point, UC Berkeley professor Stephen M. Shortell, M.D., proposes five actions, ranging from capitated global budgeting to providing care in less expensive settings.
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Reflections on a Decade of Talking to Patients
What kind of health care system do we would want for ourselves and our loved ones? On To the Point, journalist Noam Levey describes what high-quality, patient-centered primary care looks like from the perspective of patients he has met with over the years. At the same time, he shows how the “powerful corporations and institutions that dominate our health care system” have helped lower our expectations of what good care can be.
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Employers’ Efforts to Promote Wellness
Kaiser Health News reported earlier this month on the latest front in employers’ efforts to promote wellness: helping those who don’t sleep well. Many such wellness programs have failed to produce returns for employers. In a recent issue of Transforming Care,
we reported on how unions and their employers are working to promote health and curb the costs of care.
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