Democrats unite against Big Health Care
Why it matters: Democrats may not be anywhere close to agreement on Medicare for All, but they're relatively united around confronting Big Health Care after campaigning hard on the populist theme.
Key points
- Newly elected Democrats from ruby red states are leading a charge to take on corporate health care and some business practices that they say drive up health care costs.
- The big picture: Voters have made clear that they want lower health care costs.
- Driving the news: While expanding Medicare, reversing GOP Medicaid cuts and reviving enhanced Obamacare subsidies are getting most of the attention, there's a subtle shift in rhetoric and policy positions toward blaming big health companies for the affordability crisis.
It reflects the reality that a substantial expansion of the federal government's role in health care isn't in the cards while President Trump is in office, but populist themes could unite the rank-and-file and even draw in some Republicans.
Additional details
- The House's health care working group, made up of both progressives and moderates, pitched capping "excessive" hospital prices and enacting site-neutral payments.
- Powerful health industry groups are poised to push back, arguing that the populist policies would threaten patient care and access in some communities.
- So while a broad overhaul of the health system may not immediately be on the table, Democrats are looking for ways to deliver.
- Adam Hamilton supports expanding Medicare drug price negotiations and extending the negotiated prices to private health plans, as well as addressing Medicare Advantage overpayments from the federal government.
- Morgan Griffith — the top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce's Health Subcommittee — said, "I've only heard the case for breaking them up." "There's just something in your gut that bothers you when your pharmacy, your PBM and your insurance company are all owned by the same people," he added.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
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