Response to Senate Finance RFI on Lower Health Costs

The Health Care Affordability Lab at Yale submitted a response to the Senate Finance Committee's request for information, Health Coverage That Works for Everyone, from Ranking Member Ron Wyden. 

Drawing on rigorous, nonpartisan health economics research, our comments start from a central finding: growing health care spending explains over 90% of the growth in private insurance premiums, so in order to make coverage more affordable for the more than 200 million Americans with private insurance, policymakers must address the underlying cost of care. 

To lower costs for patients and employers, we point to solutions including integrating the individual and small-group markets through CHOICE Arrangements, standardizing plan designs and curating plan menus so consumers can choose coverage that fits their needs, and encouraging commercial insurers to adopt smart networks and preferred pharmacy networks. Additionally, we highlight the evidence for eliminating cost-sharing for insulin and reevaluating medical loss ratio rules for vertically integrated insurers, PBMs, pharmacies, and providers.

Read our full response.

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