The Politics of Health at Midyear

As health costs rise and insurance coverage falls, Democrats appear to be doubling down on the healthcare issue as they press their case to take control of Congress in November’s midterm elections.

Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, Republicans — and some Democrats — are taking aim at nonprofit hospitals and whether they are delivering enough “community benefit” to justify not having to pay taxes.

This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Victoria Knight of Bloomberg Government, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post.

Among the takeaways from this week’s episode:

Insurers say they’re expecting to hike premiums even more next year as Affordable Care Act plan enrollment continues to drop. The current decline comes after Congress allowed enhanced ACA subsidies to expire, with many Americans publicly saying they can no longer afford coverage — even as the Trump administration attributes the enrollment drop to a crackdown on fraud.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has seized on the idea that medical providers should have end-of-life conversations with patients, even suggesting penalizing hospitals for not doing so. In 2009, a similar proposal in the ACA debate prompted the GOP to coin the term “death panels.”

As the midterms approach, a top Senate Democrat has teed up a proposal to cap out-of-pocket costs in traditional Medicare, an idea that could gain even more traction should Democrats reclaim the Senate. Plus, lawmakers are proposing closer scrutiny of nonprofit hospitals, with a new bill proposing the collection of more information on their finances.

Also, the GOP’s one-year ban on Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood ended over the weekend, with little appetite in Congress for renewal. And separate pilot programs in Utah and traditional Medicare are testing the use of artificial intelligence in meting out healthcare.

Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Samantha Liss, who wrote the latest “Bill of the Month” report, about a Medicare Advantage patient who changed plans and got a lot of trouble in return. If you have a medical bill that’s confusing, infuriating, or inscrutable, you can share it with us here.

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Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too: 

Julie Rovner: Axios’ “Chinese Fentanyl Makers Find New U.S. Market in Peptides,” by Tina Reed.  

Shefali Luthra: Stat’s “Online GLP-1 Prescriptions Are Often Fast, Easy — And Low on Clinical Oversight,” by Katie Palmer.  

Rachel Roubein: The New York Times’ “Efforts To Help Smokers Quit Stall Under Trump,” by Chistina Jewett.  

Victoria Knight: Stat’s “Booze Schmooze: The Alcohol Industry, Frazzled by Headwinds, Wields Its Power Behind the Scenes,” by Isabella Cueto and Lev Facher.  

Also mentioned in this week’s podcast:

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