House subcommittee holds hearing on ways to reduce health care costs

Apr 26, 2023 - 02:56 PM
U.S. Capitol building with United States flags flying in front of it.

AHA on April 26 submitted a statement to the House Education and Workforce Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions for a hearing on ways to reduce health care costs. As part of the hearing, the committee discussed several pieces of legislation, including bills to treat telehealth services as excepted benefits, expand the use of association health plans, and allow small businesses to access stop-loss insurance.
  
To increase access to quality care at reduced costs, AHA recommended Congress encourage the Administration to streamline price transparency policies, comply with a recent federal court ruling on the No Surprises Act’s independent dispute resolution process and consider other reforms to ensure it operates as Congress intended. AHA also recommended Congress permanently adopt waivers that have improved access to care, establish a sustainable framework for the future of telehealth and care delivery as a whole, and called mergers “a vital tool” to help keep some financially struggling hospitals open.

Related News Articles

Headline
New report highlights gaps in NASHP’s Hospital Cost Tool 
The National Academy for State Health Policy’s Hospital Cost Tool “misses the mark in many ways, and its use by payers, purchasers and policymakers could have…
Perspective
Increasing Administrative Costs, Burdensome Commercial Insurer Practices Create Patient Care Challenges
There will always be administrative costs associated with operating a hospital. But the lion’s share of a hospital’s resources should be devoted to doing what…
Blog
Setting the Record Straight: Latest Arnold Ventures-funded Study Draws Many Faulty Conclusions, Including Incomprehensibly Linking Hospital Prices to Increased Suicides
Last week, several academics released a working paper saying hospital prices lead to employment losses outside the health sector, among other faulty…
Perspective
Hospitals Face Financial Pressures as Costs of Caring Continue to Surge
Hospitals hold an extraordinary place in our society by offering comfort and caring to all who walk through their doors, regardless of ability to pay.While the…
Headline
New AHA report highlights mounting financial challenges for hospitals
The AHA May 2 released a new report highlighting how hospitals and health systems continue to experience significant financial pressures that challenge their…
Headline
Fitch and S&P maintain gloomy outlook for not-for-profit hospital sector in 2024
In separate calls Jan. 4 with subscribers, Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings both maintained a gloomy outlook for the not-for-profit hospital sector in…