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As the new Congress and administration settle in and begin working on legislative priorities, leading health care advocacy groups are weighing in with their recommendations on how to improve affordability and access to high-quality care.
“The current system does not work for employers, families or most health care providers, and the industry has demonstrated it will not reform itself to deliver high-quality care at lower costs,” said Elizabeth Mitchell, president and CEO of the Purchaser Business Group on Health. “Legislative action is needed to curb anticompetitive practices and enable accountability.”
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The nonprofit coalition representing 40 private employers and public entities across the United States shared its recommendations to improve both affordability and access.
Affordability. Commercial premium increased in 2024 were well above general inflation and are expected to be high once again in 2025. The high cost of health benefits has crowded out wages, dampened job growth and reduced business investment. However, paying more is not resulting in better or more accessible care.
”High costs are driven primarily by high prices, which are largely the result of the market power that hospitals, health systems and health plans have gained through consolidation,“ according to the group.
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Quality. More than 30% of the $5 trillion annual spend on health care is on low-value care that does not improve health. Research has shown that advanced primary care is one of the few strategies with quantitative evidence of improving health outcomes while reducing total cost. Despite its efficacy, primary care in the United States is severely underfunded, receiving less than 10% of total health care spending. The results achieved by advanced primary care underscore the urgent need for the health care system to invest and primary and preventive care.
“With a renewed focus on preventive care, nutrition and a healthy environment in the administration, we have the opportunity to redirect spending from low-value services to optimal health,” the group said.
In addition, the organization advocates for improvements in maternal and child health, as well as mental health services.
“These commonsense reforms will go a long way toward establishing fair competition and greater transparency, which will allow the marketplace to work to better control costs and improve access to high-quality care,” Mitchell said.
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Alan Goforth
Alan Goforth is a freelance writer in suburban Kansas City. In addition to freelancing for several publications, he has written a dozen books about sports and other topics.
