Why Ambulance Services Create Financial Catastrophe
Emergency calls shouldn't trigger financial emergencies—but America's ambulance billing system guarantees they often do
Why Prescription Drug Prices Vary Wildly Across Countries
The same pill, wildly different prices—how national policies create pharmaceutical price gaps of 1000% or more
How Health Insurance Became Tied to Employment
A wartime workaround became an entrenched system that no one would design today
The Policy Architecture of Medicaid Managed Care
How fixed payments to private insurers reshape healthcare for 90 million Americans
The Hidden Economics of Emergency Room Overcrowding
Emergency rooms stay crowded because they absorb failures from the rest of healthcare—primary care gaps, unfunded mandates, and hospital capacity limits.
The Economics of Rural Hospital Closures
Why small-town hospitals keep closing and what policy choices determine which communities lose emergency care
Why Surprise Medical Bills Persist Despite Reform Efforts
Understanding the economic incentives and regulatory gaps that keep unexpected healthcare charges alive despite landmark federal legislation
The Policy Mechanics Behind Generic Drug Shortages
How market pressures, regulatory actions, and supply chain decisions combine to make essential medications disappear from hospital shelves
The Unintended Consequences of Hospital Merger Waves
Why hospital consolidation consistently raises prices without delivering the quality improvements that merger advocates promise
How Prior Authorization Became Healthcare's Biggest Bottleneck
Inside the bureaucratic maze delaying your medical care—and the reforms that could finally fix it
How Single-Payer Systems Actually Control Costs
Beyond the political debate: understanding the three operational mechanisms that actually drive cost differences between single-payer and multi-payer healthcare systems
Why Mental Health Parity Laws Haven't Achieved Parity
Mental health parity became law in 2008, yet ghost networks, payment gaps, and toothless enforcement ensure that equal coverage rarely means equal access.
How All-Payer Rate Setting Transformed Maryland Healthcare
Maryland's unique hospital payment system offers a blueprint for controlling costs while improving care quality.
How Certificate-of-Need Laws Shape Hospital Competition
State regulations meant to control healthcare costs may actually protect hospital monopolies while limiting patient access to care