Every American deserves access to affordable, comprehensive, high-quality coverage and care. But health care prices continue to escalate year after year, making coverage and care less accessible for everyone. This challenge can be tied directly to less competitive health care markets, and powerful health care providers and drug manufacturers gaming the rules to their advantage. But don鈥檛 just take our word for it 鈥� see what the experts have to say:
News
Anti-Competitive Practices Hurt American Patients
Article
Published Oct 18, 2022 鈥� by AHIP
鈥�...While the issuance of robust and reliable patents to incentivize pharmaceutical innovations is critical, our patent system must not be used to unjustifiably delay generic drugs and biosimilar competition beyond that reasonably contemplated by law.鈥�
鈥淭he bigger the hospital market share, the more market power, the higher the prices.鈥�
鈥淭oo many hospital mergers lead to jacked up prices and diminished care for patients most in need... The Court has hit pause on this merger, which the FTC alleges is unlawful. Hospital executives hatching merger plans should take note.鈥�
Health systems with a lot of market power are likely to have the highest prices and thus the most incentive to keep those prices secret,鈥� Desai said. 鈥淭here is this tension between the push for price transparency and just the fact that there are fewer and fewer actual choices for patients.鈥�
鈥淚mproving the competitive landscape for biologic drugs is far from impossible,鈥� according to Avik Roy and Gregg Girvan of the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity (FREOPP). 鈥淎 responsible agenda to rein in excessively lengthy biotechnology monopolies would increase innovation, because it would motivate companies to develop new medicines, instead of relying on price increases on older medicines to generate returns for shareholders.鈥�
鈥淧eople generally do not have the ability to choose when, where, or what health care services they 鈥榩urchase,鈥� and this can create perverse incentives for entities like [private equity] firms and their investors who are primarily driven by profits. Given the significant impact of [private equity]鈥檚 increasing involvement in the health care industry, policymakers will need to take further steps to protect patients and control rising health care costs.鈥�
鈥淭he problem with less competition in markets today means that consumers have fewer choices and they鈥檙e paying more for health care. Think about a hospital system that is just one in an area. If you had two, three, four that were competing for the business of treating patients, it would force hospitals to compete not just on price, but on quality, and make sure that at the end of the day costs were lower. We know that that would benefit patients and other people that are paying for health care.鈥�
When competition exists in the health care system, patients have more choices, health coverage is more affordable with better benefits, and treatment programs are more accessible and affordable for patients. Visit AHIP鈥檚 Healthier People Through Healthier Markets Roadmap to learn more about solutions to improve health care affordability and access for every American.
熊猫视频 AHIP
熊猫视频is the national association whose members provide health care coverage, services, and solutions to hundreds of millions of Americans every day. We are committed to market-based solutions and public-private partnerships that make health care better and coverage more affordable and accessible for everyone.