In 2020, Alaska Policy Forum published a report titled “Controlling Health Care Costs in Alaska,” authored by Dr. Benedic Ippolito. The extensive report examined factors impacting Alaska’s high health care costs and suggested options for reform.
These options, which APF has written more about, include:
- Reconsider the 80th Percentile Rule
- Eliminate surprise medical billing
- Improve transparency through an all-payer claims database
- Certificate of need reforms
As APF’s CEO explained eloquently in the report’s foreword: “Health care costs affect so much that matters. These costs influence the actual health of people, as individuals forgo essential and preventative care simply because they cannot afford it. These costs shape our labor market, as employers try to balance providing quality coverage to attract superior employees with rapidly increasing health care costs. These costs affect our state economy, as the health care industry provides much-needed and high-paying jobs. And of particular interest to policymakers, health care costs make up significant portions of our government budgets: the state of Alaska pays out hundreds of millions of dollars each year for Medicaid claims, and hundreds more for state employee health care coverage.”
Several years after this report was published, the importance of decreasing health care costs in Alaska has grown even more imperative, and the recommendations given should be considered by policymakers.
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