This Tiny Agency Carries Big Sway on Medicare Policy. Meet the Man Who Led It.
Harvard economist Michael Chernew reflects on his recent stint steering MedPAC, the highly influential nonpartisan agency that advises Congress on all things Medicare.
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How Democrats’ Big Win Could Reshape Health Care
Democrats scored huge margins in Congress and made big gains at the state level. What does it mean for health policy in the final two years of the Trump administration and beyond?
States Race to Get the Word Out About New Medicaid Work Requirements
City and state officials, health insurers and advocates are ramping up efforts to reach millions of low-income people at risk of losing their health insurance.
Experts Weigh In on Emerging Tool To Prevent Medical Debt
Watch our conversation about the promise and challenges of presumptive eligibility and read answers to audience questions.
Newsletter
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Hidden Help: A New Push for Hospitals to Prevent Medical Debt
What Texas Reveals About the Obstacles to Getting Hospital Financial Aid
A Tradeoffs investigation found that nearly half of nonprofit facilities in Texas say they will bill patients before screening them for aid. And most will not offer refunds to patients who pay and are later…
7 Takeaways From an Investigation Into Financial Aid at Texas Hospitals
Hospitals can prevent medical debt by preemptively wiping out a patient’s bill. But a Tradeoffs analysis finds that few nonprofit facilities in Texas use this tool to the maximum benefit of patients.
States Are Forcing Hospitals To Offer More People Financial Aid. In Oregon, It’s Working.
Oregon passed a law to require hospitals to proactively screen patients to see if they qualify for financial aid. Patients got immediate relief. Hospitals pushed to roll back the law following federal cuts to Medicaid…
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Health Care Affordability
Beyond Finger Pointing: The Fight to Lower Health Care Costs
In a live conversation recorded at Aspen Ideas: Health, executives from a hospital, insurer and pharmacy join a top Trump administration official and leading health economist to discuss how to collectively bring down health care…
‘It Sucks’: Spiking Health Insurance Costs Hit Small Businesses
An employer in Chicago describes how another year of rising premiums forced her to consider dropping her workers’ insurance.
What Would Actually Lower Drug Prices in America? Experts Weigh In
Some of America’s top scholars on prescription drug pricing outline steps the Trump administration could take to make medicines more affordable.
Public Health
As SNAP Shrinks, What’s the Future of Food Aid in America?
Cash-strapped states and struggling families are wrestling with the consequences of major reforms to the SNAP program passed as part of President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill.
Immigration Enforcement’s Twin Threats to Health Care
Patients are afraid to show up to medical appointments, while workers are being detained, deported or losing their visa statuses.
As States and CDC Split on Vaccines, What’s Next?
Half of states have rejected federal vaccine guidance on childhood vaccines after controversial changes by the CDC. Public health experts say the split is sowing confusion and increasing the risk of outbreaks.
Podcast
Make sense of health care through powerful stories.
Tradeoffs tells clear, compelling stories about the forces shaping health care costs, coverage, and policy decisions. Each episode helps you cut through complexity and see what’s really going on.
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More From Tradeoffs
Medicare Plans Keep Disappearing
Our friends at An Arm and a Leg dig into why Medicare Advantage plans that cover millions of seniors are disappearing from the market.
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