Insights Column

Alleviating Poverty Doesn’t Come from Slashing Medicaid

Having Medicaid is better than being uninsured—a lot better. But House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s recently released report, War on Poverty: 50 Years Late, claims otherwise. The repo...

The State of Enrollment: Health Coverage Options after March 31

Tonight (by midnight) marks the end of the first open enrollment period to get health insurance in the marketplaces. And although this first open enrollment period was a success—more than 6 million ...

If the Remaining States Expand Medicaid, Who Would Benefit?

Twenty-two states have chosen not to extend Medicaid coverage, leaving hundreds of thousands of their residents in the health coverage gap. These people—who do not qualify for Medicaid in their stat...

Four Reasons the Senate Should Reject the American Health Care Act

In early May, Republicans in the House of Representatives rushed through their repeal bill, called the American Health Care Act (AHCA), without taking the usual step of waiting for the CBO report to...

Three Reasons to Follow Up with Consumers about Their Health Insurance

As we near the end of the third open enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act, navigators and assisters are rightly focused on signing up as many people as they can for marketplace coverage bef...

New Rule Banning Discrimination Will Promote Health Equity

No one should ever have to worry that they will be discriminated against when seeking the medical care they need. To paraphrase Dr. Martin Luther King, it is one of the “most shocking and inhumane�...

Fourth Open Enrollment Numbers Reveal High Demand for Affordable Care Act Coverage

Despite the Trump administration’s attempts to undermine the Affordable Care Act (ACA), millions of consumers signed up for a health insurance plan during open enrollment period that ended January 3...

Transparency in Health Care Prices and Quality: A Tool for Health System Reform

For today’s health care consumers, the lack of side-by-side information on the price and quality of health care services can be exasperating. Without this information, making an informed decision ab...

Trending: Boston Hospital Acquisition Shines New Light on the Pitfalls of Mergers and Consolidation

A recent, high-profile hospital acquisition in Massachusetts has sparked new debate about the continued trend toward consolidation among U.S. hospitals. Boston-based Partners HealthCare, already the...

Recent Hospital Earnings Data Show Stark Contrast in Numbers of Uninsured Patients in Medicaid Expansion States Compared to Non-Expansion States

There is now more proof that hospitals have an enormous financial stake in state decisions about expanding health coverage to low-income families. Since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, abo...