healthcare markets
Connecticut healthcare employment COVID recovery stalls out
Download the report Like other Connecticut workers, healthcare employment was hit hard by the pandemic in March 2020, according to data from the CT Department of Labor. While the pandemic sharply increased demand in a few healthcare sectors to care for COVID patients, other sectors declined as people and providers delayed non-COVID care. That began…
Read MoreConnecticut individual plans are profitable
Download the report here Individual coverage in Connecticut, , has been more profitable than most states. From 2011 through 2018, each month $55 of premiums went to profit in Connecticut, the 15th highest profitability among states and above the US average of $47. Individual plans in Massachusetts and New York were far less profitable, while…
Read MoreOP-ED | Making the Public Option Better
Commercial health insurance premiums in Connecticut are the sixth highest in the nation and they continue to grow faster than inflation. While we’re making progress, it’s too slow. A public health insurance option to compete with private plans is getting a lot of attention from legislators and it makes sense conceptually. But Connecticut consumers deserve…
Read MoreState Partnership Plan losing money but still more expensive than average CT plan options
Download the report Connecticut’s most recent public health insurance option, the Partnership Plan 2.0, offers healthcare coverage to municipal employees. According to a new analysis by Brown & Brown Insurance, Partnership Plan premium increases have not kept up with costs. The very impressive analysis is based on Freedom of Information requests; very little information on…
Read MoreCTNJ: If The COVID Vaccine Is Free For Patients, Who Is Paying For It?
Federal law ensures the COVID vaccine will be provided to every American at no cost. So who is paying for it? Because it’s healthcare, the answer is complicated and we are all paying for it – mostly through taxes and a bit through our insurance premiums. Read more
Read MoreBook Club — Counting: How We Use Numbers to Decide What Matters
I’ve never dog-eared as many pages in a book as Counting: How We Use Numbers to Decide What Matters by Deborah Stone. It’s very trendy to be “data-driven” and assert that “science matters” but what gets counted and how it’s defined make all the difference. Numbers and statistics are nice, but only if they represent…
Read MoreGovernor’s budget includes drug cost control and exchange subsidies, but misses other health priorities
Released today, the Governor’s budget proposal for the next two fiscal years acknowledges the importance of addressing critical health priorities, especially during a pandemic. The document highlights the state’s public health challenges of funding and implementing COVID testing, treatment, and vaccination all while facing a severe economic slowdown, high unemployment, and increased demand for social…
Read MoreWhat does the public really think about a public option? Two polls, and we still don’t know
Dueling polls released this week find Connecticut residents either love the idea of a public health insurance option or they are not big fans. Not surprisingly, the polls are sponsored by groups with dueling agendas and they don’t give details or survey question wording. According to a poll released Monday by Comptroller Kevin Lembo, 71%…
Read MoreHalf of CT hospitals not compliant with new requirement to post negotiated prices for care
Download the report As of January 1st, all US hospitals are required to prominently display on a publicly available website prices privately negotiated with payers for 300 services, under CMS’s Hospital Price Transparency Rule. Hospital “charges” have been available to patients but not the actual prices paid by insurers. CMS requires both a “display of…
Read MoreUnjustified price increases for seven drugs in 2019 cost US healthcare $1.2 billion, CT can remedy this
According to a report released today, in 2019 the US health system spent an extra $1.2 billion on price increases for seven drugs that were not supported by clinical evidence. Enbrel led this year’s list costing Americans $403 million extra for an 8.9% net price increase, after accounting for rebates. The Unsupported Price Increase report…
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