Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Working Americans Are Using Less Health Care And Yet Paying Significantly More, Report Finds
The Wall Street Journal: Health-Care Costs Rose For Americans With Employer-Sponsored Insurance
Spending on health care accelerated in 2016 for Americans who get insurance through work, even as use of most health-care services declined or remained flat. The reason, according to a new report: price increases. Rising prices for prescription drugs, surgery, emergency-room visits and other services drove a 4.6% increase in total spending per person, versus 4.1% in 2015 and less than 3% in the two previous years, according to the research nonprofit Health Care Cost Institute, which analyzed data for nearly 40 million people up to age 65 with employer-sponsored insurance. (Whalen, 1/23)
Modern Healthcare: Price Spikes Drove Employer-Based Healthcare Spending In 2016
Spending per person in 2016 grew 4.6% to $5,407 over 2015. In 2015, spending grew 4.1% over the prior year. Healthcare spending per person has grown cumulatively by 15% over the entire study period of 2012 to 2016, according to the report released Tuesday. In 2016, increased spending was driven mostly by the cost of outpatient services, such as emergency room visits and surgeries, as well as prescription drug prices. Per person spending on outpatient services reached $1,507 in 2016, an increase of 6.2% over 2015, while spending on prescription drugs totaled $1,030, up 5.1%. Spending on drugs did moderate a bit from the 10.4% growth seen in 2015. (Livingston, 1/23)
The Hill: Study: Americans Using Less Health Care, But Paying More For It
“It is time to have a national conversation on the role of price increases in the growth of health care spending,” said Niall Brennan, president of the HCCI. “Despite the progress made in recent years on value-based care, the reality is that working Americans are using less care but paying more for it every year. Rising prices, especially for prescription drugs, surgery, and emergency department visits, have been primary drivers of faster growth in recent years.” (Hellmann, 1/23)
In other news about health care costs —
Stat: Paying More And Getting Less: As Hospital Chains Grow, Local Services Shrink
When most hospitals close, it’s plain to see. Equipment and fixtures are hauled out and carted away. Doctors and nurses leave and buildings are shuttered, maybe demolished. But another fate befalling U.S. hospitals is almost invisible. Across the country, conglomerates that control an increasing share of the market are changing their business models, consolidating services in one regional “hub” hospital and cutting them from others. (Ross, 1/24)
The Washington Post: Bernie Sanders Talks Universal Medicare, And 1.1 Million People Click To Watch Him
With more than one million people watching at home, and hundreds watching from the studio audience, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) leaned across his desk with a crucial health-care question. “What’s the quality of the Norwegian system?” Sanders asked Meetali Kakadi, an Oslo-based health researcher. “Is it good?” In her view, it was: “Far better than Canada.” (Weigel, 1/24)
