Health Care Costs

Throughout the health care reform debate one constant refrain heard from all perspectives was the need to address out of control increases in health care costs.  While reaching consensus on the problem was easy, agreement on solutions and focusing on the root causes of cost increases has been much more elusive.

The need for the country to address this mounting trend is still at hand. It’s important that elected officials, the media, academics, the general public and all of the players in the health care industry continue the dialogue about what factors are contributing to this phenomenon. Collectively, we must continue to work towards solutions.

This page is intended to share information about health care costs - what’s contributing to them and what can be done to put them back on a sustainable path.

Where Does a Premium Dollar Go?

• AHIP Dollar Based on PricewaterhouseCoopers' Analysis
  
  
• The FACTS About Health Plan Administrative Costs
  
  
• The Hay Group: How Health Insurance Premiums Are Determined

Health Plan Profits

• FACT CHECK: Putting Profits into Perspective
  
  
• What They Are Saying About Health Plan Profits

Federal Rate Review

• What They Are Saying About Federal Rate Review

Underlying Medical Costs

• What They Are Saying About Costs
  • Editorials and News Outlets
  • Policy Experts and Opinion Leaders
    
    
• Case Studies: Examples of Underlying Medical Costs
  
  
• Highlights from the 2010 Milliman Medical Index Report
  
  
• Articles Highlighting Medical Costs
  
  
• CNN: "Paging Dr. Gupta: Surgical Equipment Price a Shocker"
• New York Times: "Tackling the Mystery of How Much It Costs"
• New York Times Editorial: "Reform and Massachusetts"
• Associated Press: "Overtreated: More Medical Care Isn’t Always Better"
• Associated Press: "Americans Are Treated, and Overtreated, to Death"
• Health Affairs: "Health Spending Projections Through 2019: The Recession's Impact Continues"

Case Studies on Cost Drivers

• The Sacramento Bee: "California's Higher Hospital Costs Add to Health Insurance Hikes"
  
  
• Health Affairs: "Unchecked Provider Clout in California Foreshadows Challenges to Health Reform"
  
  
• Massachusetts Attorney General's Statement and Report on Health Care Cost Drivers
  
  
• Thompson Reuters White Paper: "A Path to Eliminating $3.6 Trillion in Wasteful Healthcare Spending"
  
  
• PricewaterhouseCoopers:"Behind the Numbers: Medical Cost Trends for 2011"
  
  
• How to Discuss Rising Costs: Presentation on Rising Health Care Costs
  
  
• Mass. D.O.I.: Analysis of Individual Health Coverage in MA Before and After 2006 Reform Law