During a recent Senate HELP Committee hearing, expert witnesses argued that a lack of transparency, vertical integration, and misaligned incentives are the true drivers of the healthcare affordability crisis.
Payer-led consolidation and lack of transparency around claims data are some of the leading drivers behind rising healthcare costs, according to witnesses who testified to the Senate Health, Labor, Education, and Pensions (HELP) Committee during a recent hearing on healthcare affordability.
See the infographic below for key insights from their testimony, or read the full coverage here.
Luke Gale is the revenue cycle editor for HealthLeaders.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Expert testimony shared during a July 31 Senate HELP Committee hearing identified vertical integration, administrative complexity, and lack of transparent claims data as primary drivers of healthcare costs.
Consolidation of payers, pharmacy benefit managers, and provider groups under single corporate entitites has created significant conflicts of interest that remove incentives to control overall healthcare costs.
Because providers need to interact with dozens or hundreds of payers, there is a immense administrative burden that requires significant resources.