Health Care
Commentary
Deflating the controversy over Medicaid work requirements
Earlier this month, Nebraska became the first state to implement the Medicaid work requirements established by last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act — now renamed by Republicans as the working families tax cuts. Dozens of others are scrambling to follow suit before the January deadline. Democrats and much of ...
Commentary
U.S. life expectancy gap doesn’t mean health system is failing
America spends more in total and per capita on health care than any other country. So why do we tend to have shorter lifespans than our peers? New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that U.S. life expectancy hit a record 79 years in 2024. But ...
Commentary
Trump Puts Drug Pricing Program Fraudsters on Notice
The Trump administration is ramping up its fight against waste, fraud, and abuse in healthcare. And that effort could help make care more affordable for millions of Americans. One of its latest targets is the 340B Drug Pricing Program, a little-known federal initiative that has warped the prescription drug market. ...
Commentary
Germany Wants Cheaper Drugs—And Americans To Pay The Difference
What does a new healthcare reform effort in Germany have to do with American patients? Quite a lot, actually. The German government is looking to cut healthcare spending by tens of billions of euros. To that end, it is pushing pharmaceutical companies to accept significantly lower prices for new medicines. ...
Commentary
Just take the shot: A simple way to protect freedom and prevent lockdowns
The mixed messages on vaccines are backfiring. Measles is surging across the South, and Georgians will pay the price. Disease outbreaks restrict personal freedom more than any government policy: schools close, families quarantine, and communities isolate. Even as the Trump administration now urges vaccination, confusion lingers. Georgia leaders must provide ...
Commentary
A lawsuit that may kill tomorrow’s cures
On Wednesday, May 6, the California Supreme Court will hear a case that could upend the economics of medical innovation. Roughly 24,000 plaintiffs are suing pharmaceutical company Gilead over one of its HIV drugs. They do not claim that the drug failed to work, nor that it was defectively manufactured, ...
Commentary
Can You Sue A Drug Company For Not Inventing Faster?
This week, the California Supreme Court is set to hear a case that could have far-reaching consequences for medical science. At issue is Gilead Sciences’ HIV treatment tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, or TDF. Tens of thousands of plaintiffs allege they suffered side effects while taking the drug. They are not arguing ...
Commentary
Price Controls Could Prevent the Next ‘Miracle Drug’
The death rate from cancer in the United States has fallen by more than one-third since 1991. HIV-related mortality has dropped ninefold since 1995. Death rates for Alzheimer’s, chronic respiratory diseases, and stroke have all declined in recent years, too. These gains didn’t happen by accident. They’re the result of ...
Commentary
Breaking Up ‘Big Medicine’ Won’t Fix What Washington Broke
Washington is gearing up to crack down on “Big Medicine,” with populist Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Josh Hawley, R-Mo., leading the charge. Over the past decade, America’s healthcare system has become increasingly consolidated, leaving patients with higher prices, fewer choices, and more bureaucratic frustration. But before lawmakers swing a ...
Commentary
Don’t penalize patients for shopping smart on drugs — reward them
Patients shouldn’t be penalized for finding a better deal on their prescriptions. Too often, they are. Those who pay out of pocket for medications — often at lower prices through direct-to-consumer platforms — typically receive no credit toward their health plan’s annual deductible. Higher-priced drugs purchased through an insurer’s preferred ...
Deflating the controversy over Medicaid work requirements
Earlier this month, Nebraska became the first state to implement the Medicaid work requirements established by last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act — now renamed by Republicans as the working families tax cuts. Dozens of others are scrambling to follow suit before the January deadline. Democrats and much of ...
U.S. life expectancy gap doesn’t mean health system is failing
America spends more in total and per capita on health care than any other country. So why do we tend to have shorter lifespans than our peers? New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that U.S. life expectancy hit a record 79 years in 2024. But ...
Trump Puts Drug Pricing Program Fraudsters on Notice
The Trump administration is ramping up its fight against waste, fraud, and abuse in healthcare. And that effort could help make care more affordable for millions of Americans. One of its latest targets is the 340B Drug Pricing Program, a little-known federal initiative that has warped the prescription drug market. ...
Germany Wants Cheaper Drugs—And Americans To Pay The Difference
What does a new healthcare reform effort in Germany have to do with American patients? Quite a lot, actually. The German government is looking to cut healthcare spending by tens of billions of euros. To that end, it is pushing pharmaceutical companies to accept significantly lower prices for new medicines. ...
Just take the shot: A simple way to protect freedom and prevent lockdowns
The mixed messages on vaccines are backfiring. Measles is surging across the South, and Georgians will pay the price. Disease outbreaks restrict personal freedom more than any government policy: schools close, families quarantine, and communities isolate. Even as the Trump administration now urges vaccination, confusion lingers. Georgia leaders must provide ...
A lawsuit that may kill tomorrow’s cures
On Wednesday, May 6, the California Supreme Court will hear a case that could upend the economics of medical innovation. Roughly 24,000 plaintiffs are suing pharmaceutical company Gilead over one of its HIV drugs. They do not claim that the drug failed to work, nor that it was defectively manufactured, ...
Can You Sue A Drug Company For Not Inventing Faster?
This week, the California Supreme Court is set to hear a case that could have far-reaching consequences for medical science. At issue is Gilead Sciences’ HIV treatment tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, or TDF. Tens of thousands of plaintiffs allege they suffered side effects while taking the drug. They are not arguing ...
Price Controls Could Prevent the Next ‘Miracle Drug’
The death rate from cancer in the United States has fallen by more than one-third since 1991. HIV-related mortality has dropped ninefold since 1995. Death rates for Alzheimer’s, chronic respiratory diseases, and stroke have all declined in recent years, too. These gains didn’t happen by accident. They’re the result of ...
Breaking Up ‘Big Medicine’ Won’t Fix What Washington Broke
Washington is gearing up to crack down on “Big Medicine,” with populist Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Josh Hawley, R-Mo., leading the charge. Over the past decade, America’s healthcare system has become increasingly consolidated, leaving patients with higher prices, fewer choices, and more bureaucratic frustration. But before lawmakers swing a ...
Don’t penalize patients for shopping smart on drugs — reward them
Patients shouldn’t be penalized for finding a better deal on their prescriptions. Too often, they are. Those who pay out of pocket for medications — often at lower prices through direct-to-consumer platforms — typically receive no credit toward their health plan’s annual deductible. Higher-priced drugs purchased through an insurer’s preferred ...