A confusing quagmire of opaque financial relationships between insurers, providers and a new breed of middlemen has transformed how the health care system operates, driving higher prices, less competition, and more administrative complexity.
Recently, the Center on Health Insurance Reforms (CHIR) launched a new microsite dedicated to shedding light on the complex web of health care financial relationships. Policymakers have taken notice of CHIR’s recent paper, and CHIR is expanding the work in this area to bring greater transparency to this problem and present viable solutions.
The site highlights research and analyses on the widespread cost-increasing incentives and practices that now connect insurers, providers, and a new breed of corporate middlemen. In addition, the site presents policy proposals that could work together to create a health care system that prioritizes consumers over profit.
Coinciding with this launch, CHIR has also released a new analysis: “Actionable Policy Steps to End Health Care Conflicts of Interest and Soaring Costs.” Because the problems are systemic, so must be the solutions. The authors propose three sets of policy strategies that are necessary for a comprehensive solution:
- Rational pricing for providers treating patients with private insurance and the uninsured.
- Elimination of conflicts of interest and cost-increasing behavior among stakeholders.
- Prohibition of extractive practices that increase costs, compromise quality, and threaten provider financial viability.
Browse our new microsite here.
