Six in ten voters say they’re worried about being able to afford their healthcare costs. Over the past two years, Republicans have taken action to address those concerns. They’ve enacted reforms designed to rein in wasteful spending, put more healthcare dollars under patients’ control, and tackle practices that drive up prices.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the requirements will reduce federal Medicaid spending by more than $325 billion over 10 years.
Those are real savings for current and future taxpayers.
Another provision in the 2025 law cracks down on the use of “provider taxes” to obtain additional federal funding.
Medicaid’s funding formula rewards states with at least one federal dollar for each dollar they spend on the program. Some states exploit that arrangement by taxing hospitals, returning the revenue through higher Medicaid payments, and claiming additional federal matching funds.
Hospitals can receive more than they paid in taxes, while states shift much of the cost of their programs onto federal taxpayers.
Provider taxes also drive up health insurance premiums. An October 20 study from the Department of Health and Human Services, coauthored by economist Casey Mulligan, estimates that hospital provider taxes have increased premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance by 1.5 percent to 1.7 percent.
The 2025 law restricts new or increased provider taxes and gradually lowers permitted rates in Medicaid expansion states.
Mulligan and his colleagues project that these changes could reduce employer-sponsored premiums by 2.2 percent to 2.5 percent by 2032, compared with what they otherwise would have been. They further estimate that lower employer insurance costs could translate into an additional $640 to $730 in annual wages for the average household with employer-sponsored coverage.
Republicans have expanded access to health savings accounts, too.
Nothing contained in this blog is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of the Pacific Research Institute or as an attempt to thwart or aid the passage of any legislation.
Republicans Can Tout a Record of Healthcare Reform This November
Sally C. Pipes
Six in ten voters say they’re worried about being able to afford their healthcare costs. Over the past two years, Republicans have taken action to address those concerns. They’ve enacted reforms designed to rein in wasteful spending, put more healthcare dollars under patients’ control, and tackle practices that drive up prices.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the requirements will reduce federal Medicaid spending by more than $325 billion over 10 years.
Those are real savings for current and future taxpayers.
Another provision in the 2025 law cracks down on the use of “provider taxes” to obtain additional federal funding.
Medicaid’s funding formula rewards states with at least one federal dollar for each dollar they spend on the program. Some states exploit that arrangement by taxing hospitals, returning the revenue through higher Medicaid payments, and claiming additional federal matching funds.
Hospitals can receive more than they paid in taxes, while states shift much of the cost of their programs onto federal taxpayers.
Provider taxes also drive up health insurance premiums. An October 20 study from the Department of Health and Human Services, coauthored by economist Casey Mulligan, estimates that hospital provider taxes have increased premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance by 1.5 percent to 1.7 percent.
The 2025 law restricts new or increased provider taxes and gradually lowers permitted rates in Medicaid expansion states.
Mulligan and his colleagues project that these changes could reduce employer-sponsored premiums by 2.2 percent to 2.5 percent by 2032, compared with what they otherwise would have been. They further estimate that lower employer insurance costs could translate into an additional $640 to $730 in annual wages for the average household with employer-sponsored coverage.
Republicans have expanded access to health savings accounts, too.
Read the entire op-ed here.
Nothing contained in this blog is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of the Pacific Research Institute or as an attempt to thwart or aid the passage of any legislation.