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Experts at JEC hearing split on whether competition, public option or structural reforms will rein in U.S. health costs
Summary
Panelists debated competition, public options, antitrust, hospital consolidation, PBM concentration, biosimilar barriers and anti-fraud design; Brookings' Dr. Fiedler emphasized price and utilization levers, FreeOp urged Swiss-style reforms and changes to employer tax treatment, and witnesses suggested statutory fixes for biosimilars and verification.
Dr. Matthew Fiedler of the Brookings Institution told the Joint Economic Committee that lowering private insurance premiums hinges on either paying lower prices for care or using less of it. He recommended actions to boost competition—stronger antitrust scrutiny of mergers and site‑neutral payments—and described a public‑option approach that would set prices administratively (for example, based on Medicare or a multiple of Medicare rates) to lower provider payments in the private market.
Ovik Roy of the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity argued the historic tax…
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