Prices set by fee-for-service Medicare have a direct effect on prices paid by private insurers throughout the health care system. While this link is widely recognized, there is disagreement about whether higher Medicare prices lead to lower or higher prices for private health insurance. We...

During the 1990s US healthcare markets underwent a significant transformation. Managed care rose to become the dominant form of insurance in the private sector. Also, a wave of hospital consolidation occurred. In 1990, the mean population-weighted hospital Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) in a...

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) will dramatically alter health insurance markets and the sources through which individuals obtain coverage. As the ACA is implemented, it is essential to monitor the intended and the unintended consequences of these regulations. To evaluate the changes in health...