Source Themes

Medicaid Managed Care: Access To Primary Care Providers Who Prescribe Buprenorphine

Medicaid managed care insurers play a crucial role in facilitating access to buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder. We describe provider networks for prescribers in this context.

Most Large Self-insured Employers Lack Sufficient Market Power to Effectively Negotiate Hospital Prices

Objectives - Self-insured employers cover more people than Medicare, Medicaid, or direct purchasers of private insurance.This study examined the ability of self-insured employers to negotiate hospital prices and the relationship between hospital …

Labor Market Concentration and Worker Contributions to Health Insurance Premiums

This study finds evidence that labor market concentration was associated with higher worker contributions to health plan premiums.

Frequency and Costs of Out-of-Network Bills for Outpatient Laboratory Services Among Privately Insured Patients

In this cohort study, out-of-network laboratory services were 5 times more common than out-of-network emergency department visits and 34 times more common than out-of-network anesthesiology services. It is important for patients that consumer protections against out-of-network bills apply to laboratory services.

Charges of COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing and Antibody Testing Across Facility Types and States

We examine the charges for the most commonly performed COVID-19 diagnostic test (CPT code 87635) and antibody test (CPT code 86769) across facility types and states. We find that a small proportion of COVID-19 diagnostic testing and antibody testing services, provided in selected states, had charges that far exceeded the Medicare rate.

Distributional Effects of Recent Health Insurance Expansions on Weight-Related Outcomes

We provide new evidence that weight-related outcomes improved for the severely obese following three recent health insurance expansions.