Breaking News in Healthcare Reform
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“The true cost drivers of premiums such as negotiated rates or drug rebates or hospital costs, they’re largely invisible — even to employers who are paying the bill for that.”
The Health Insurance Black Box: Why Employer Healthcare Costs Keep Rising
Featuring Chuck Melendi
Code WACK! | Podcast Episode 324 | April 6, 2026
“Buttressing many of the request’s reductions and eliminations were references to ideological policies from which the administration has taken a sharp turn — namely, health equity, gender identity, reproductive and sexual health support and international health or research programs.”
White House Floats 12.5% Budget Cut for HHS in FY2027, Reiterates Reorganization Plan
Fierce Healthcare | Dave Muoio | April 3, 2026
“…the rule is also expected to increase star ratings for insurers, inflating the cost burden of [Medicare Advantage] at a time when regulators and legislators are increasingly alarmed about overpayments in the privatized Medicare program — including bonus payments based on stars.”
CMS Finalizes Medicare Advantage Star Ratings Overhaul, Sending Billions of Dollars More to Insurers
Healthcare Dive | Rebecca Pifer Parduhn | April 3, 2026
“Despite campaign promises to protect Americans’ health, this budget seeks to dismantle the research, services and agencies that have driven decades of progress to prevent disease and keep Americans healthy.”
President Trump’s 2027 Budget Proposes Even More Steep Cuts to Health Care and Public Health
Families USA | April 3, 2026
“…more financial responsibility is being pushed onto individuals at the exact moment many families are less equipped to absorb it.”
The Uninsured Rate Is Soaring — What Can Providers Do About It?
MedCity News | Katie Adams | April 2, 2026
“An analysis of pricing at half the nation’s hospitals — a total of 3,236 facilities — shows that the costs of the same procedures are literally all over the map. And it’s the people without health insurance, whose ranks are expected to grow by the millions in the next 10 years, who are charged the highest amounts.”
Hospital Costs Are Rising Far Faster Than Inflation and Drowning Americans in Debt
NBC News | Gretchen Morgenson | April 2, 2026
“Big Pharma is pushing to undermine Medicare drug price negotiation and let corporations price gouge for longer periods, potentially costing taxpayers and patients tens of billions of dollars.”
EPIC Act Would Be a Multi-Billion Dollar Pharma Windfall at the Expense of Seniors
Public Citizen | Sarah Karlin-Smith | April 1, 2026
“Attrition could be particularly high this year, given individuals that automatically reenrolled in coverage might choose not to pay their premium or disenroll themselves after seeing steep bills from their insurance carriers.”
ACA Premium Spike Funnels More Consumers into High-Deductible Plans: CMS
Healthcare Dive | Rebecca Pifer Parduhn | March 30, 2026
“446 hospitals are at heightened risk of closing or reducing services due to Medicaid cuts.”
The Big Ugly Threat to Safety Net Hospitals
Public Citizen | Eileen O’Grady | March 30, 2026
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Shining a light on ongoing inequities in health care
and the impact they have on vulnerable individuals and communities.
Our podcast Code WACK! brings to life the failures of America’s healthcare system with stories, commentary and analysis.
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