Insights Column

Now Is the Time for Oral Health Coverage: A Call to Action for All Health Advocates

We are in an extraordinary moment in our country’s history. The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a harsh light on existing disparities, and flat-out gaps, in health and health care in the United States �...

Trump Administration’s Rollback of Nondiscrimination Protections Exacerbates Health Disparities in the Midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic

In the middle of a pandemic that has already claimed more than 115,000 American lives, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a final regulation of the Affordable Care Act that ...

Setting the Record Straight on Surprise Medical Bills

Claudia Knafo, a Families USA storyteller from New York City, submitted this letter to the editor of the New York Post in response to a May 9 article, “Lawmaker Wants to Limit Insurance Reimburseme...

Calling for a True National Testing Strategy for COVID-19

On May 24, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released its next iteration of a national testing strategy for COVID-19, the COVID-19 Strategic Testing Plan. Unfortunately, what this plan...

A Call to Action to Address Structural Racism and Health Inequities: Insights on Recent Acts of Police Violence

Families USA stands in solidarity with our fellow advocates and activists fighting for racial justice on the frontlines. The recent killings of Black individuals in America, including Breonna Taylor, ...

Options for designing a public option

NOTE: This blog was originally published in The RAND Blog on May 28, 2020. State and federal policymakers are considering adding state-backed public options to the individual market in an effort to...

Learnings in Leadership: Amber Hewitt, Washington, DC

Amber Hewitt is the Director of Health Equity at Families USA, where she leads efforts to advance health equity and reduce disparities in health outcomes, health care access, and quality. In her role,...

Responding To COVID-19: Using The CARES Act’s Hospital Fund To Help The Uninsured, Achieve Other Goals

NOTE: This blog was originally published in Health Affairs on April 11, 2020. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed by the President on March 27, 2020, includes ...

We’re Focusing on the Wrong Things to Reduce Health Care Costs

In early January, there were two major stories regarding unsuccessful efforts to control health care costs that came out the same day. One involved a disappointing, narrow evaluation of a small progra...

Learnings in Leadership: Allison Neswood, Denver, Colorado

Allison Neswood, Esq., is a Health Care Attorney with the Colorado Center on Law and Policy. The Colorado Center is a major social justice organization in the state, and Neswood is a health care lead....