Latest News

The Peterson Center on Healthcare is dedicated to making the vision of better healthcare for lower cost a reality. Browse the latest news from the Center and its grantees.

News

Statement on 50th Anniversary of ERISA

Caroline Pearson, Executive Director of the Peterson Center on Healthcare, stated the following ahead of the 50th anniversary of ERISA, which falls on September 2, 2024.

Aug 27, 2024 Read More

Center Staff Testifies Before Congress on Data Access to Strengthen ERISA and Employer-Sponsored Health Benefits

Mairin Mancino—the Center’s Senior Advisor, Policy—testified before Congress regarding the importance of data access to strengthen ERISA and employer-sponsored health benefits.

Apr 16, 2024 Read More
Source: Health Affairs

Empowering Employer Purchasers: Recommendations To Support Market Transparency And Health System Performance

Caroline Pearson, Mairin Mancino, Frederica Stahl, and Kalyani Thampi discuss how employers and purchasers must be equipped with usable health care market data and provided with guidance, coverage, and policies that enable them to use such information effectively.

Mar 25, 2024 Read More

New Report Finds That Digital Diabetes Management Tools Fail to Deliver Meaningful Health Benefits to Patients While Increasing Spending

Independent evaluation from Peterson Health Technology Institute recommends new directions for digital diabetes solutions.

Mar 21, 2024 Read More
Source: Route Fifty

Ending health care’s affordability crisis begins with actions to fix state markets

Peterson Center on Healthcare Executive Director Caroline Pearson states that because states can more easily engage with local employers, healthcare providers and payers, they are addressing the challenge by analyzing spending, overseeing mergers and reducing the costs of medication.

Feb 28, 2024 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Co-Signs Open Letter to Advance Site-Neutral Payment and Billing Transparency Reforms

The Peterson Center on Healthcare joined 28 other national organizations representing patients, consumers, providers, employers, and thought leaders in signing an open letter urging Congress to advance site-neutral payment and billing transparency reforms.

Jan 10, 2024 Read More

Digital Health Tools for Diabetes Management and Virtual Musculoskeletal Care to Undergo Independent Evaluation

PHTI announced today that its initial assessments will focus on remote patient monitoring for diabetes management and virtual musculoskeletal care.

Oct 8, 2023 Read More

Peterson Health Technology Institute Releases New Digital Health Assessment Framework

The ICER-PHTI Assessment Framework for Digital Health Technologies was developed in partnership with ICER, a leader in health technology assessment.

Sep 12, 2023 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Launches New $50 Million Institute to Evaluate Digital Health Technologies

The Peterson Center on Healthcare today launched the Peterson Health Technology Institute (PHTI), a nonprofit organization that provides independent evaluations of innovative healthcare technologies to improve health and lower costs.

Jul 18, 2023 Read More
Source: Health Affairs Forefront

States Setting Health Care Spending Growth Targets Experienced Accelerated Growth in 2021

January Angeles of Bailit Health discusses several recently-released reports on state health care spending for 2020–21, revealing that most of those states exceeded their targets.

Jun 29, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs

Minnesota Takes Steps to Open the “Black Box” of Health Care Spending Amid Industry Opposition

Minnesota just took an important step toward improving residents’ financial security and health by establishing a center for health care affordability as part of a landmark health care bill.

Jun 28, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Privately Insured People With Depression and Anxiety Face High Out-Of-Pocket Costs

In this analysis, we find that privately insured adults who were treated for depression and/or anxiety in 2021 spent almost twice as much on annual out-of-pocket costs compared to enrollees who were not treated for a mental health diagnosis ($1,501 versus $863).

Jun 23, 2023 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Announces a $1.7 Million Grant to Washington State Health Care Authority to Identify and Address Drivers of Healthcare Cost Growth

The Peterson Center on Healthcare today announced a two-year, $1.7 million grant to the Washington State Health Care Authority to support a new partnership with the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, an independent health research center at the University of Washington.

May 31, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Use of ACA Preventive Services Potentially Affected by Braidwood v. Becerra

In this analysis, we find that nearly 10 million people who use ACA preventive care could face higher out-of-pocket costs by a now-stayed U.S. District Court ruling in Braidwood Management v. Becerra, which found the Affordable Care Act’s preventive services mandate partially unconstitutional.

May 25, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Prices for COVID-19 Testing

In this analysis, we use various data sources to look at prices for COVID-19 tests performed in an outpatient clinical setting and at home.

May 8, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Premature Mortality During COVID-19 in the U.S. And Peer Countries

In this brief, we examine changes in excess mortality and prematurity of those deaths in the U.S. and peer countries for 2020 and 2021.

Apr 24, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Racial Disparities in Premature Deaths During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In this brief, we examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by race and ethnicity through the lens of premature mortality, using the measures of premature mortality rate and years of life lost among excess deaths that occurred during the pandemic.

Apr 24, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Do Facility Fees Contribute to Rising Emergency Department Costs?

Our analysis uses data from the Merative MarketScan Commercial Database, which captures claims from privately insured individuals with large employer health plans, to examine trends in emergency department facility fees.

Mar 27, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Have Costs Associated With Obesity Changed Over Time?

In this analysis, we explore the costs associated with obesity for people with large employer private insurance, using data from Merative MarketScan’s commercial claims and encounters database from 2011 through 2021.

Mar 24, 2023 Read More

Groundbreaking California-Civica Rx Partnership Will Increase Access to Low-Cost Insulin

A first-of-its-kind partnership between the state of California and Civica Rx will help increase access to low-cost insulin for Californians. The Peterson Center on Healthcare, a founding partner, funder and governing member of Civica Rx, is pleased to support this significant step, which will reduce out-of-pocket costs for this life-saving drug.

Mar 23, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Preventive Services Use Among People With Private Insurance Coverage

In this analysis, we look at the share of privately insured people who received ACA preventive care (service or medication).

Mar 20, 2023 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

California Selects Civica Rx as Its Insulin Manufacturing Partner

Civica Inc. (Civica, Civica Rx) today announced it will manufacture insulins for the State of California’s CalRx Biosimilar Insulin Initiative as part of its insulin manufacturing work.

Mar 18, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Outpatient Visits Billed at Increasingly Higher Levels: Implications for Health Costs

In this analysis, we review the literature on coding practices and using claims data we examine trends in complexity coding across outpatient practice settings from 2004 to 2021.

Feb 27, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Explainer: Federal Independent Dispute Resolution Process for Surprise Medical Bills

In this brief, we cover the independent dispute resolution process for settling surprise medical bills and discuss implications for providers, payers, and patients.

Feb 21, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Ongoing Challenges With Hospital Price Transparency

In this analysis, we examine transparency data currently shared by hospitals to comply with federal law and find that they are messy, inconsistent and confusing, making it challenging for patients or researchers to use them to compare prices.

Feb 10, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Does Health Spending in the U.S. Compare to Other Countries?

In this chart collection, we examine how U.S. health spending compares to health spending in other OECD countries that are similarly large and wealthy, based on median GDP and median GDP per capita.

Feb 9, 2023 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare and Milbank Memorial Fund Expand Partnership to Improve Healthcare Affordability

The Milbank Memorial Fund has received a new $2.7 million grant from the Peterson Center on Healthcare to drive innovative healthcare affordability research at the state level, building on existing work through the Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs.

Feb 9, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Has U.S. Spending on Healthcare Changed Over Time?

In this chart collection, we explore recently released National Health Expenditure data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. These data offer insights into changes in health spending over time as well as the driving forces behind spending growth.

Feb 7, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Does Cost Affect Access to Healthcare?

In this chart collection, we explore trends in how costs affect access to healthcare in the U.S. based on National Health Interview Survey data through 2021.

Jan 30, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Has Healthcare Utilization Changed Since the Pandemic?

In this chart collection, using a variety of data sources, we look at the latest available data on how health services utilization has changed over the course of the pandemic.

Jan 24, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Has Health Sector Employment Recovered Since the Pandemic?

In this chart collection, we analyze how jobs and wages in the health sector shrank and recovered during the pandemic.

Jan 20, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Early in the Pandemic, Private Insurer Payments for Telehealth and In-Person Claims Were Similar

In this analysis, we compare payments for professional medical service claims delivered via telehealth and in-person in 2020 using data from the Health Care Cost Institute.

Jan 18, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs

Making Health Care More Affordable: A Playbook for Implementing a State Cost Growth Target

This playbook provides a program design and implementation roadmap for states that are interested in, or in the process of, establishing a cost growth target. It offers concrete steps, practical tools, best practice strategies and insights to guide states through the work.

Jan 10, 2023 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Emergency Department Visits Exceed Affordability Threshold for Many Consumers With Private Insurance

In this analysis, we use 2019 insurance claims data from the Merative MarketScan Commercial Database, which captures privately insured individuals with large employer health plans.

Dec 16, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Does U.S. Life Expectancy Compare to Other Countries?

This chart collection examines how life expectancy in the U.S. compares to that of other similarly large and wealthy countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Dec 6, 2022 Read More
Source: Health Affairs Forefront

Standardizing State Health Spending

It’s well known that health care spending per person in the United States is higher, and in some cases much higher, than many peer countries. While this is true for the U.S. as a whole, it is not true everywhere in the country.

Dec 6, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Tracking Medical Inflation Growth

In this brief, KFF explores how medical inflation compares to inflation in the rest of the economy.

Nov 30, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Cost of COVID-19 Hospital Admissions Among People With Private Health Coverage

In addition to its devastating health toll, COVID-19 can also lead to significant financial costs for people needing treatment and for public and private payers.

Nov 14, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Leading Cause of Death Ranking

This brief examines how deaths from COVID-19 rank among other leading causes of death in the U.S. At the time of this brief, COVID-19 is on track to be the third leading cause of death in the U.S. for the third year in a row.

Nov 10, 2022 Read More
Source: Health Affairs Forefront

How States Are Holding Payers and Providers Accountable for Health Cost Growth

State policy makers have long searched for effective strategies to control health care costs. Since the 1970s, health spending growth has consistently exceeded growth in the gross domestic product.

Oct 31, 2022 Read More
Source: Mathematica

The Massachusetts Health Care Cost Growth Benchmark and Accountability Mechanisms: Stakeholder Perspectives

To contain health care cost increases, Massachusetts enacted Chapter 224 in 2012, which established a first‐in‐the‐nation target, called a benchmark, for annual growth in total statewide health care spending.

Oct 28, 2022 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Names Caroline Pearson as New Executive Director

The Peterson Center on Healthcare has named Caroline Pearson as its new Executive Director. Ms. Pearson, a nationally-recognized expert in healthcare innovation and systems change, will lead the Center’s portfolio of initiatives and grants aimed at working to transform U.S. healthcare into a high-performance system by finding innovative solutions that improve quality and lower costs.

Oct 25, 2022 Read More
Source: Bipartisan Policy Center

The Future of Telehealth After COVID-19: New Opportunities and Challenges

During the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth became a necessary and welcome mode for patients to interact with their doctors. But what should telehealth look like post-pandemic?

Oct 11, 2022 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

Civica Inc. to Expand in Greater Richmond-Petersburg Region, Investing $27.8 Million for a New Testing Facility

Governor Glenn Youngkin today announced that non-profit Civica Inc. will invest $27.8 million to establish a new laboratory testing facility at Meadowville Technology Park in Chesterfield County.

Sep 8, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Overall Inflation Has Not Yet Flowed Through to the Health Sector

This analysis finds that, in July, overall prices as measured by the Consumer Price Index were up 8.5% from the previous year, while prices for medical care increased by only 4.8%.

Aug 24, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

What Impact Has the Coronavirus Pandemic Had on Health Employment?

This chart collection takes a deep dive into employment data to analyze how jobs and wages in the health sector shrank and recovered during the coronavirus pandemic.

Aug 24, 2022 Read More
Source: Health Affairs Forefront

What Is Driving Health Care Spending Upward in States With Cost Growth Targets?

In 2021, the Peterson Center on Health Care and the Milbank Memorial Fund partnered to support state efforts to slow health care spending growth.

Aug 9, 2022 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

CivicaScript Announces Launch of its First Product, Creating Significant Patient Savings

CivicaScript, a public benefit company dedicated to bringing lower-cost generic medicines to U.S. consumers, today announced the availability of its first product: abiraterone acetate 250 mg tablets.

Aug 3, 2022 Read More
Source: Health Affairs

Varied Health Spending Growth Across U.S. States Was Associated With Incomes, Price Levels, and Medicaid Expansion, 2000–19

Little is known about health care spending variation across the U.S. for recent years. To estimate health spending by state and payer, we combined data from the government’s State Health Expenditure Accounts, which have estimates through 2014, with other primary data on spending.

Aug 1, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

ACA’s Maximum Out-Of-Pocket Limit Is Growing Faster Than Wages

This analysis uses economic projections to look at how the maximum allowable OOP limits may change for different types of private health insurance plans over the next decade.

Jul 20, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

An Early Look at What Is Driving Health Costs in 2023 ACA Markets

In this analysis, we reviewed rate filings from plans participating in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplaces to track what insurers say will be driving premium growth in the coming year.

Jul 18, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Health Costs Associated With Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Postpartum Care

To examine the health costs associated with pregnancy, childbirth, and post-partum care, we examined a subset of claims from the IBM MarketScan Encounter Database from 2018 through 2020 for enrollees in large employer private health plans.

Jul 13, 2022 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

Navitus Health Solutions Joins CivicaScript to Further Availability of Lower-Cost Generic Medications

Navitus Health Solutions, an industry-disrupting pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) committed to bringing humanity to pharmacy benefits management through greater transparency and affordability, and CivicaScript, a statutory public benefit company dedicated to bringing lower-cost generic medicines to U.

Jul 13, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs

California Joins Growing Number of States Committing to Improve Health Care Affordability

On June 30, California passed a law creating an Office of Health Care Affordability responsible for collecting data, analyzing drivers of health costs, developing policies to address rising costs, and establishing and enforcing annual statewide cost growth targets.

Jul 11, 2022 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

Civica Joins the End Drug Shortages Alliance

Civica, Inc. (Civica Rx) announced today it has joined a new coalition of diverse stakeholders to address drug shortages in the United States.

Jun 30, 2022 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

EmsanaRx Joins CivicaScript to Make Lower-Cost Generic Medicines Available to its Pharmacy Benefit Members

CivicaScript, which is dedicated to bringing lower-cost generic medicines to U.S. consumers, and EmsanaRx, PBC, the only pharmacy benefit manager built by employers, for employers, announced today that EmsanaRx is joining CivicaScript as a partnering member.

Jun 14, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Overall Inflation Has Not Yet Flowed Through to the Health Sector

In this brief, we use Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data, including the consumer price index (CPI) and producer price index (PPI) to analyze prices for medical care compared to other common goods and services.

Jun 3, 2022 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

Civica Selects Profil as Clinical Trial Partner for Affordable Insulin Initiative

Civica, Inc. announces the selection of Profil, Neuss, Germany, as its clinical trial partner to support the development of its affordable insulins.

Jun 2, 2022 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

Civica Announces Leadership Transition

Civica, Inc. announces that Ned McCoy, currently Civica’s Chief Operating Officer, will succeed Martin VanTrieste as Civica’s President and Chief Executive Officer, effective June 1. VanTrieste will remain an advisor to the Company and continue serving on Civica’s Board of Directors.

May 23, 2022 Read More
Source: C-TAC

C-TAC Policy Initiatives Supported by a Newly Awarded Grant

The Coalition to Transform Advanced Care (C-TAC) was recently awarded a grant from the Peterson Center on Healthcare focusing on developing and disseminating recommendations to operationalize Core Principles for Care Models for those experiencing serious illness and their unpaid caregivers across CM

May 10, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Mortality Preventable by Vaccines

In this analysis, we estimate the number of adult COVID-19 deaths that could have been prevented by timely vaccination. We find that approximately 234,000 deaths since June 2021 could have been prevented with vaccinations.

Apr 21, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Out-of-Pocket Spending on Insulin Among People With Private Insurance

In this analysis, we look at claims data from private health plans to assess how many insulin users might save money with a $35 monthly cap on out-of-pocket costs in the individual, small group and large group markets.

Mar 24, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Many Households Do Not Have Enough Money to Pay Cost-Sharing in Typical Private Health Plans

This analysis finds that many households do not have enough money available to cover the cost of a typical deductible in a private health plan. About a third of single-person households with private insurance in 2019 could not pay a $2,000 bill, and half could not pay a $6,000 bill.

Mar 10, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Affordability of Employer Coverage Varies by Family Income

This analysis finds that lower-income families who have employer health coverage spend a tenth of their income on health care on average, including both their share of the premium and their out-of-pocket costs.

Mar 10, 2022 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Announces $5M Support for New Effort to Manufacture and Distribute Low-Cost Insulin

The Peterson Center on Healthcare, a founding partner and governing member of Civica Rx, announced today $5 million of new funding to support an innovative effort to create low-cost insulin, aimed at ensuring that millions of Americans can afford and access the life-saving drug.

Mar 3, 2022 Read More
Source: NBC News

Are Americans Ready to Ditch COVID Restrictions? It’s Complicated

People want to get back to normal but worry about the consequences of doing so, a new survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds.

Mar 1, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Outpatient Telehealth Use Soared Early in the COVID-19 Pandemic but Has Since Receded

This brief assesses telehealth use from March 2019 through August 2021 using data from Cosmos, a HIPAA-defined Limited Data Set of more than 126 million patients from over 156 Epic organizations, including 889 hospitals and 19,420 clinics across all 50 states.

Feb 10, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Do Prescription Drug Costs in the United States Compare to Other Countries?

This chart collection examines what we know about prescription drug spending and use in the U.S. and comparably large and wealthy countries, using data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Feb 8, 2022 Read More
Source: Health Affairs Forefront

Tracking the Pandemic’s Effects on Health Outcomes, Costs and Access to Care

In this article, we examine the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on health outcomes, spending and access to care, through 2021.

Feb 3, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Has U.S. Spending on Healthcare Changed Over Time?

In this chart collection, we take a look at how U.S. health spending compares to health spending in other countries that are similarly large and wealthy.

Jan 21, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Does Cost Affect Access to Care?

In this chart collection, we explore trends in how costs affect access to care in the U.S. based on the National Health Interview Survey data through 2020.

Jan 14, 2022 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Unvaccinated COVID-19 Hospitalizations Cost Billions of Dollars

In this analysis, we seek to quantify the number of hospitalizations that could have been prevented by vaccination and the total cost of these hospitalizations.

Dec 22, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Breakthrough Hospitalizations

In this brief, we describe the characteristics of fully vaccinated hospitalized patients who have COVID-19 breakthrough infections, in comparison to people who are not fully vaccinated and hospitalized with COVID-19.

Dec 15, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

What Impact Has the Coronavirus Pandemic Had on Health Employment?

This chart collection analyzes how jobs and wages in the healthcare industry have recovered from the pandemic compared to non-healthcare sectors, and how this recovery is distributed across healthcare industries.

Dec 10, 2021 Read More
Source: The Hill

Our Past Pandemic Investments Are Roadmaps to Defeating COVID Globally

When the G-20’s health and finance ministers announced the creation of a global panel to fight pandemics last week, it was immediately met with criticism for failing to pledge any new funding to combat COVID in the world’s poorest countries.

Nov 4, 2021 Read More
Source: The New York Times

An Unsolved Mystery: Why Do More Men Die of COVID-19?

Men are much more likely than women to die of COVID-19 and are more likely to be intubated and have long hospitalizations. This disparity has existed since early in the pandemic, but the reasons remain unclear.

Nov 2, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Insurer Filings Suggest COVID-19 Will Not Drive Health Spending in 2022

In this brief, we reviewed final 2022 premium rate filings for Marketplace-participating individual market insurers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Oct 18, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Does the Quality of the U.S. Health System Compare to Other Countries?

The U.S. has lagged behind comparable countries in key measures of health outcomes, quality of care and access to services. The pandemic could enlarge those gaps.

Sep 30, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Does U.S. Life Expectancy Compare to Other Countries?

This chart collection examines how life expectancy in the U.S. compares to other similarly large and wealthy countries. Using provisional 2020 estimates, we also assess how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected life expectancy in the U.S. compared to peer countries.

Sep 28, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Unvaccinated COVID-19 Hospitalizations Cost Billions of Dollars

Our analysis of HHS and CDC data indicates there were 32,000 preventable COVID-19 hospitalizations in June, 68,000 preventable COVID-19 hospitalizations in July and another 187,000 preventable COVID-19 hospitalizations among unvaccinated adults in the U.S.

Sep 14, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Continues to Be a Leading Cause of Death in the U.S. in August 2021

Looking at the most recent data available on deaths from COVID-19 and other causes, we estimate that COVID-19 is currently the number three leading cause of death in the U.S. in August 2021.

Aug 27, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Most Private Insurers Are No Longer Waiving Cost-Sharing for COVID-19 Treatment

In this brief, we once again review how many private insurers are continuing to waive patient cost-sharing for COVID-19 treatment.

Aug 19, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Continues to Be a Leading Cause of Death in the U.S. in June 2021

Though no longer the number one leading cause of death, COVID-19 remains in the top ten leading causes of death, even in June 2021. Looking at the most recent data on deaths from COVID-19 and other causes, we estimate that COVID-19 is currently the number 7 leading cause of death in the U.S.

Jul 1, 2021 Read More
Source: Axios

Why Drug Price Negotiation Has Staying Power

Prescription drugs—which represent just 10% of national health spending—have remained a persistent issue on Capitol Hill for a reason. Retail drug spending represents 18% of health benefit costs for large employers, even after taking rebates from drug manufacturers into account.

Jun 25, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Ground Ambulance Rides and Potential for Surprise Billing

This brief describes ambulance use, ownership type, the share of ground ambulance rides with a potential for surprise bills, and state or local policies aimed at reducing surprise bills for ground ambulances.

Jun 24, 2021 Read More
Source: The Hill

Shrinking Number of Unvaccinated People Eager to Get Coronavirus Jab: Poll

A shrinking population of unvaccinated people say they're eager to get the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Friday.

May 28, 2021 Read More
Source: Health Affairs Forefront

Supporting States in Setting Health Care Cost Growth Targets to Improve Affordability

With a two-year, $2.7 million grant from the Peterson Center on Healthcare, which was established by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, the Milbank Memorial Fund is supporting statewide health care cost growth target initiatives in five states: Connecticut, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, and Washington.

May 27, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Lowering the Medicare Eligibility Age Might Affect Employer-Sponsored Insurance Costs

In this brief, we explore the effect that moving older adults onto Medicare might have on employer-sponsored insurance costs. To do so, we evaluate spending by age in large employer plans using IBM MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters Database.

Apr 27, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Early Results from Federal Price Transparency Rule Show Difficulty in Estimating the Cost of Care

In this brief, we focus on the recently effective hospital price transparency rule to assess hospital compliance and examine how payer-negotiated rates vary.

Apr 9, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Pandemic-Related Excess Mortality and Potential Years of Life Lost in the U.S. and Peer Countries

In this brief, we review excess death rates in the U.S. and peer countries by age groups to examine how the pandemic has affected excess mortality rate among younger people.

Apr 7, 2021 Read More
Source: Milbank Memorial Fund

Seeking Affordability and Transparency, Five States Join the Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs

Today we are pleased to announce that Connecticut, Oregon, Nevada, New Jersey, and Washington have been selected for participation in the Peterson-Milbank Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs.

Mar 9, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Is the Number One Cause of Death in the U.S. in Early 2021

As of January 26, an average of more than 3,000 people per day died of COVID-19 in the U.S. during the first month of 2021. It’s now the leading cause of death, ahead of heart disease and cancer.

Feb 22, 2021 Read More
Source: Axios

Knowing Someone Who's Been Vaccinated Helps Reduce Hesitancy

Knowing someone who has been vaccinated, and seeing that the vaccine does not produce any significant adverse effects, is emerging as the leading reason people are willing to get vaccinated themselves. This means vaccine hesitancy should diminish naturally as more people are vaccinated.

Feb 10, 2021 Read More
Source: The Wall Street Journal

What to Do When There’s a COVID-19 Vaccine Glut

The Food and Drug Administration announced new steps last week to help ensure that COVID-19 tests, treatments and vaccines stay ahead of new, potentially more transmissible and virulent, variants, whose emergence makes widespread vaccination even more urgent.

Feb 7, 2021 Read More
Source: Patient Engagement HIT

Key Considerations for COVID-19 Vaccine Public Health Messaging

COVID-19 vaccine public health messaging should focus more on the shot’s effectiveness at preventing the illness and promise to bring back normal life and less so on the rare allergic reactions it might elicit, according to a new report from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Jan 28, 2021 Read More
Source: Milbank Memorial Fund

Rhode Island’s Cost Trends Project: A Case Study on State Cost Growth Targets

This Peterson-Milbank Memorial Fund Program for Sustainable Health Care Costs case study explores how Rhode Island set and implemented its healthcare cost growth target.

Jan 26, 2021 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Have Health Spending and Utilization Changed During the Coronavirus Pandemic?

In this chart collection, we summarize what we know so far about how health costs and utilization have changed during the pandemic.

Dec 1, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Costly Are Common Health Services in the United States?

This chart collection explores the average cost of several common healthcare services in the U.S., showing the average allowed amounts large employer health plans agree to pay for in-network and out-of-network care.

Nov 4, 2020 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Announces New Initiative to Support States to Monitor and Control Healthcare Spending

The Peterson Center on Healthcare announced a new $2.7 million grant to the Milbank Memorial Fund to support efforts to set and track healthcare spending targets at the state level.

Sep 15, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Does the Quality of the U.S. Healthcare System Compare to Other Countries?

This chart collection provides a baseline of how the U.S. already compared to similarly large and wealthy countries prior to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic—exploring a number of different metrics used to look at health outcomes, quality of care and access to services.

Aug 20, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Private Insurers Are Using Telehealth to Respond to the Pandemic

In this brief, we discuss how private insurance plans have taken a variety of steps to expand telemedicine uptake and access during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aug 6, 2020 Read More
Source: STAT

Science Alone Cannot Beat the Pandemic. We Also Need Outreach About a COVID-19 Vaccine

Americans anxiously await two key benefits that a Covid-19 vaccine will deliver: freedom from fear and a return to normal.

Jul 27, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Repercussions May Outweigh Recent Gains in U.S. Health System Performance

In this brief, we look at the bigger picture of what the latest data convey about how well the U.S. health system is performing, and how the coronavirus pandemic may affect key indicators.

Jul 23, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

COVID-19 Test Prices and Payment Policy

Our analysis of what large hospitals nationwide charge for out-of-network COVID-19 tests show a wide range of publicly posted prices—from $20 to $850 for a single test.

Jul 15, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

What Impact Has the Coronavirus Pandemic Had on Healthcare Employment?

This chart collection examines where changes in healthcare employment have been concentrated and what these changes might tell us about short-term health spending.

Jun 16, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Have Healthcare Utilization and Spending Changed So Far During the Coronavirus Pandemic?

In this chart collection, we summarize what we know so far about how health costs and utilization have changed during the pandemic.

May 19, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

Urban and Rural Differences in Coronavirus Pandemic Preparedness

The novel coronavirus was slower to spread to rural areas in the U.S., but that appears to be changing, with new outbreaks becoming evident in less densely populated parts of the country. In this brief, we analyze variation in hospital bed capacity by region in the U.S.

Apr 22, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Health Costs Might Change With COVID-19

As the coronavirus spreads rapidly across the United States, private health insurers and government health programs could potentially face higher healthcare costs.

Apr 15, 2020 Read More
Source: The New England Journal of Medicine

Ten Weeks to Crush the Curve

If we take these six steps to mobilize and organize the nation, we can defeat Covid-19 by early June.

Apr 1, 2020 Read More
Source: American Enterprise Institute

National Coronavirus Response: A Road Map to Reopening

This report provides a road map for navigating through the current COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.

Mar 29, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

How Prepared Is the U.S. to Respond to COVID-19 Relative to Other Countries?

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has already overwhelmed the health systems of several countries and is projected to overburden the U.S. health system.

Mar 27, 2020 Read More
Source: The Hamilton Project

A Proposal to Cap Provider Prices and Price Growth in the Commercial Health-Care Market

In this proposal, Michael Chernew of Harvard Medical School, Leemore Dafny of Harvard Business School and Maximilian Pany of Harvard University discuss how price regulations could be used to constrain commercial provider prices in an efficient manner.

Mar 10, 2020 Read More
Source: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

New Study: Low Back and Neck Pain Tops U.S. Health Spending

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that Americans in 2016 spent an estimated $380 billion on low back and neck pain, as well as on joint and limb pain, and other musculoskeletal disorders—the highest expenditure of any health condition.

Mar 3, 2020 Read More
Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker

An Examination of Surprise Medical Bills and Proposals to Protect Consumers from Them

This analysis uses claims data from large employer plans to estimate the incidence of out-of-network charges associated with hospital stays and emergency visits that could result in a surprise bill.

Feb 10, 2020 Read More
Source: Civica Rx

Blue Cross and Blue Shield Companies Join Forces with Civica Rx to Lower Costs of Select High-Cost Generic Medications

18 BCBS companies to provide $55 million to help create a Civica subsidiary with the goal of bringing lower-cost, generic medications to individuals and families.

Jan 23, 2020 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Supports More Effective and Efficient Implementation of Health Innovations

The Peterson Center on Healthcare has announced a new initiative with Ariadne Labs to research factors that drive adoption of healthcare innovations.

Nov 18, 2019 Read More
Source: Catalyst for Payment Reform

How Can Data Analytics Support High-Value Care?

A new report from Catalyst for Payment Reform highlights key considerations for using data and analytics to support high-value healthcare purchasing strategies.

Nov 5, 2019 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Expands Partnership with Rhode Island and Brown University on Data-Driven Healthcare Transparency

The innovative project builds on the success of state-level collaboration aimed at curbing rising healthcare costs and improving delivery.

Oct 21, 2019 Read More
Source: Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker

Employer Strategies to Reduce Health Costs and Improve Quality Through Network Configuration

This analysis includes an overview of strategies employers are implementing and offers a deeper understanding of the successes, barriers and trade-offs firms have experienced in their network decision-making.

Sep 25, 2019 Read More
Source: Health Quality Partners

Health Quality Partners Accelerates Adoption of High-Performance Preventive Care

Long-term randomized controlled studies show Health Quality Partners’ model of preventive care improves outcomes at lower costs for high-risk Medicare patients.

Sep 5, 2019 Read More
Source: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society

Differentiating Among High‐Need Patients Helps Clarify Needs and Outcomes

A study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society identifies five types of high-need patients—a first step to better understanding differences in how Medicare patients use healthcare and their outcomes.

Aug 27, 2019 Read More
Source: Journal of General Internal Medicine

Accountable Care Organizations Increasingly Emphasize Preventive Care

Research in the Journal of General Internal Medicine explores the connection between high-performing Medicare ACOs and comprehensive preventive care.

Aug 20, 2019 Read More
Source: Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker

How Does Prescription Drug Spending and Use Compare Across Large Employer Plans, Medicare Part D, and Medicaid?

Rising drug prices affect patients’ out-of-pocket costs as well as the budgets of private and public payers. This analysis compares prescription drug spending and use in large private employer plans, Medicare Part D, and Medicaid.

May 20, 2019 Read More
Source: Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker

U.S. Health System Is Performing Better, Though Still Lagging Behind Other Countries

To monitor the performance of the U.S. health system over time and in relation to other countries, our newly expanded Health System Dashboard includes a number of indicators across four domains: health spending, quality of care, access and affordability, and health and wellbeing.

Mar 29, 2019 Read More

Rhode Island Healthcare Cost Trends Project Unites Providers, Payers, Policymakers, and Consumers Around Shared Vision for Improving Healthcare Performance

Funded by the Peterson Center on Healthcare, this unique collaboration serves as a model for data-driven healthcare cost trend analysis.

Feb 6, 2019 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Announces New Initiative to Better Align Treatment with Patient Goals

The partnership with Northwestern University will foster more effective, transparent, and informed decision-making by patients, families, and care teams.

Jan 30, 2019 Read More

How ACOs Are Caring for People with Complex Needs

Dartmouth researchers analyzed survey results to better understand the evidence-based approaches ACOs use to manage care for people with complex needs.

Jan 14, 2019 Read More
Source: Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker

A Generation of Healthcare in the United States: Has Value Improved in the Last 25 Years?

New analysis from the Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker shows that while many U.S. health outcomes have improved over the last 25 years, the share of GDP devoted to health increased by 40 percent, and the U.S. still lags behind other countries in many key measures.

Dec 6, 2018 Read More
Source: Better Care Playbook

Implementing the ‘How’ That Is Right for You

In honor of the second anniversary of the Better Care Playbook’s launch, Jay Want, MD, reflects on the philosophy behind the Playbook and shares his vision for its use.

Dec 4, 2018 Read More

Three National Foundations Commit $30 Million to Civica Rx, a Groundbreaking Effort to Address Shortages and High Prices of Life-Saving Medications

The Laura and John Arnold Foundation, Peterson Center on Healthcare and Gary and Mary West Foundation each commit $10 million to a new, not-for-profit generic drug company.

Sep 6, 2018 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Partners with Rhode Island and Brown University on Innovative Healthcare Data Transparency Initiative

The State of Rhode Island and Brown University will study healthcare cost trends in order to improve how care is delivered throughout the state.

Aug 23, 2018 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Announces New Partnership to Accelerate Adoption of Proven Care Model for High-Need Patients

Camden Coalition of Healthcare Providers and Health Quality Partners will work to accelerate adoption of a model that has been shown to improve care and lower costs among chronically ill, older adults.

Aug 20, 2018 Read More
Source: Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker

An Analysis of Out-of-Network Claims in Large Employer Health Plans

This analysis assesses the extent to which patients receive services from an out-of-network provider, putting them at risk for potentially high out-of-pocket costs.

Aug 13, 2018 Read More
Source: Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker

Increases in Cost-Sharing Payments Continue to Outpace Wage Growth

While overall healthcare spending has been growing at modest rates in recent years, growth in out-of-pocket costs comes at a time when wages have been largely stagnant.

Jun 15, 2018 Read More
Source: Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker

How Have Healthcare Prices Changed in the U.S., and How Do They Compare with Other Countries?

These two chart collections examine trends in prices for health services over time and by comparison to comparable countries.

May 8, 2018 Read More
Source: Minnesota Physician

Improving One Practice at a Time

The Peterson Center on Healthcare’s Director of Dissemination co-authors an article describing an effort to replicate a model of high-performance primary care at the Essentia Health-Moorhead Clinic in Minnesota.

Apr 19, 2018 Read More
Source: JAMA Internal Medicine

Approach for Achieving Effective Care for High-Need Patients

This article from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health summarizes practical steps physicians can take to improve care for high-need patients. It was supported in part by a grant from the Peterson Center on Healthcare.

Apr 9, 2018 Read More

Diffusion of Innovation

The February 2018 edition of Health Affairs focuses on the critical issue of diffusion of innovation within healthcare.

Feb 6, 2018 Read More

Learning Update: Improving Healthcare for High-Need Patients

In this report, we share what we've learned, the questions we are now asking ourselves and our partners, and why we are optimistic about improving care for high-need patients.

Nov 15, 2017 Read More

Price and Intensity Identified as the Major Drivers of Rising Healthcare Spending

A new study published in JAMA reveals that healthcare spending rose by nearly $1 trillion between 1996 and 2013.

Nov 8, 2017 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Names Jay Want, MD as New Executive Director

Dr. Want brings decades of experience in healthcare delivery, improvement science, data transparency and executive leadership.

Jun 27, 2017 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Teams with Brown University to Study Exemplary Care for High-Need Medicare Patients

Brown University-based initiative will identify hospital systems providing high-quality, cost-effective care, with the aim of replication and broader adoption.

May 31, 2017 Read More
Source: Health Affairs Forefront

Accelerating Adoption and Diffusion of Innovations in Care Delivery

The Peterson Center on Healthcare is testing how to replicate the features of 11 exemplary practices to improve health care practice across the country on four dimensions: clinical and functional outcomes, the experience of care, clinician engagement, and total cost of care.

May 16, 2017 Read More

New Initiative to Help Employers Become More Effective Purchasers of Healthcare

Catalyst for Payment Reform and the Peterson Center on Healthcare team up to help employers develop, test and share strategies to purchase high-quality, lower-cost healthcare.

May 2, 2017 Read More
Source: Modern Healthcare

High-Need Patients Are Being Under-Served, and It Needs to Change

For the most vulnerable, chronically ill among us—many of whom cope with behavioral health challenges and struggle to secure housing, food or transportation—the journey to receive the care they need can be daunting.

Apr 29, 2017 Read More

Five National Health Care Foundations Identify Promising Approaches for Treating Patients With Complex Needs

A new nationwide survey of patients with complex medical needs shows that the health care system is failing them.

Dec 9, 2016 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Unveils New Initiative to Transform Primary Care

The Center announced a new initiative to transform how primary care practices deliver care by installing a proven, high-performance, lower-cost model.

Sep 22, 2016 Read More
Source: New England Journal of Medicine

Caring for High-Need, High-Cost Patients — An Urgent Priority

Leaders from The Commonwealth Fund, The John A. Hartford Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Peterson Center on Healthcare, and The SCAN Foundation will launch resources later this year that are intended to help meet the urgent goals of high-need patients.

Sep 8, 2016 Read More

Five Foundations Combine Forces to Improve Health and Reduce Costs for Chronically Ill Patients With Complex Care Needs

Five national health care foundations today announced a new collaboration to transform care delivery for chronically ill patients who have the greatest need for health care services.

Jul 27, 2016 Read More

New Online Resource Provides Best Practices, Tools for States to Improve Healthcare Quality, Lower Costs

National Governors Association and National Academy of Medicine identify key priority areas and proven solutions for states to improve the value of healthcare.

Jul 19, 2016 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Supports New Initiative to Forecast Trends in U.S. Healthcare Spending

The Peterson Center on Healthcare announced an innovative new initiative designed to identify past drivers of U.S. healthcare spending in order to better forecast future spending trends.

Mar 30, 2016 Read More

Foundations Unite to Support Access to Clinical Notes for 50 Million Patients Nationwide

Cambia Health Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Peterson Center on Healthcare, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation today jointly announced $10 million in new funding to spread access to clinical notes to 50 million patients nationwide.

Dec 15, 2015 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Announces Innovative Three-Stage Grant to Identify Healthcare Solutions for High-Need Patients

The research project is an innovative collaboration among healthcare experts at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the Institute of Medicine, and the Bipartisan Policy Center.

Jun 3, 2015 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Announces Three Major Initiatives

Today, the Peterson Center on Healthcare, a new organization established by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, announced three major initiatives to advance the Center’s mission to transform U.S. healthcare into a high-performance system that delivers high-quality care at a lower cost.

Dec 3, 2014 Read More

Peterson Center on Healthcare Launches With $200M Commitment to Improve U.S. Healthcare

The Peter G. Peterson Foundation is launching the Peterson Center on Healthcare on Thursday, December 4, 2014, at the Jack Morton Auditorium in Washington, DC.

Dec 2, 2014 Read More