Vermont for Single Payer

08/24/2026

https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/us/news/benefits/americans-split-on-who-should-fix-healthcare-costs-but-not-on-what-the-problem-is-586495.aspx
“Three in four Americans name insurance premiums or out-of-pocket costs as the most important problem in US health care. The finding holds regardless of political affiliation, insurance type, or age, according to a new Commonwealth Fund survey.
“The survey, conducted by SSRS from May 4 through May 26, drew on responses from 25,858 US adults aged 19 and older. It carries a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 0.8 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
“Forty-two percent of respondents identified high insurance premium costs as the top problem. Another 36 percent named high out-of-pocket costs as the most pressing issue. The combined figure of 78 percent represents the largest cluster of concern across all categories tested, ahead of provider access, care quality, and coverage gaps.”

A 25,000-person Commonwealth Fund survey finds three in four US adults name premiums or costs as the top issue - across all parties

08/24/2026

08/23/2026

https://qz.com/health-insurance-costs-affordable-care-act-obama-care-death-spiral
“The Affordable Care Act is facing what policy experts call its most serious affordability crisis since it began widely offering coverage more than a decade ago.
…
“The numbers can boggle the mind. And they paint a stark picture of how the Affordable Care Act, often known as Obamacare, is now facing what policy experts call its most serious affordability crisis since it began widely offering coverage 12 years ago. Some are even calling it a “death spiral” for a law that was passed to make coverage more affordable, with the explicit aim of helping millions of uninsured Americans to finally obtain health insurance.
“But the dynamic is still more intricate — and alarming. When premiums jump, the people most likely to drop coverage are younger, healthier enrollees who feel safe (or at least safe-ish) going without insurance. They’re the ones who can most easily decide that, say, $200 a month isn't worth it. Of the 1.2 million people who dropped in enrollment from 2025 to 2026, almost half were people 18 to 34.
“On the other hand, older and sicker people tend to stay enrolled no matter the cost. This skews who’s left in the risk pool toward higher-cost enrollees. Analysts say a meaningful portion of the increase in 2026 premiums can be attributed to this shift in the risk pool.
“In other words, the cheaper customers to insure, the ones most likely to pay for coverage but not use it, drop out.The more expensive customers, those likeliest to use the coverage, stick around. And the customer base gets more expensive overall for insurers.”

The Affordable Care Act is facing what policy experts call its most serious affordability crisis since it began widely offering coverage more than a decade ago

08/22/2026

https://www.statnews.com/2026/08/18/public-sector-employees-health-care-costs-out-of-pocket-series-part-4/
“Residents of Pennsylvania’s Dauphin County — home of the state capital, Harrisburg, and the chocolaty oasis of Hersheypark — were shocked with unwelcome news in December 2024. For the first time in two decades, the county’s leaders had not only voted to raise their property taxes, but did so by a whopping 22%.
“What they may not have realized: That higher tax bill was needed to help offset the soaring health care costs of the county’s employees.
“Over the past 20 years, even as Dauphin County cut its workforce by 19%, its health care spending more than doubled. Per-employee costs tripled. If the county didn’t raise property taxes, officials would have had to consider slashing health benefits for a dwindling staff who rely on them.”

Politicians are contemplating raising taxes and cutting benefits as the cost of health care for government workers surges.

08/21/2026

https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/as-health-insurance-costs-rise-nevada-hospitals-see-more-uninsured-patients-3865519/?utm_campaign=widget&utm_medium=section_row&utm_source=homepage&utm_term=As%20health%20insurance%20costs%20rise%2C%20Nevada%20hospitals%20see%20more%20uninsured%20patients
“Nevada ACA plan enrollees are now paying an average monthly premium of $234, an $82 increase from last year, according to Nevada Health Link, the state’s ACA health insurance marketplace.
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“The number of Nevadans with ACA coverage has fallen, too. Recently released data from federal health officials shows that 99,663 people had active coverage in February, down 8,086, or about 7.5 percent, from a year earlier.
“The changes to ACA are beginning to show up at Southern Nevada hospitals, where some providers are seeing more uninsured patients and others struggling to pay their medical bills. At the same time, hospital executives are planning for potentially greater financial pressure in 2027, when major changes to Medicaid are scheduled to take effect.”

Nevada ACA plan enrollees are now paying an average monthly premium of $234, an $82 increase from last year, according to Nevada Health Link, the state’s ACA health insurance marketplace.

08/20/2026

McHealth from McDonald's Next??
https://www.wsj.com/health/healthcare/costco-sells-vacations-gas-and-soon-medicare-plans-c0e1470e
“Costco sells its dedicated members everything from travel packages to gasoline. Now the retail giant is gearing up to enter a huge new market: Medicare.
“The warehouse chain plans a limited rollout of Costco-branded Medicare plans, working with SCAN Group, a nonprofit insurer. Nationally, Medicare is a more than $600 billion business for insurers, but the two companies said they would start by selling their jointly named Medicare Advantage products in two states, and a Medicare supplement in a third.”

In some markets, the retailer’s insurance products will integrate pharmacy, vision and hearing benefits.