They say that it’s impossible to tackle the high cost of health care, but Washington Health Care Authority Director Sue Birch and Washington Health Alliance Executive Director Drew Oliveira disagree and chart a path for public and private organizations, employers, health plans and providers to help us achieve improved access, better quality, and more affordable care.

Dr. Bob Crittenden acknowledges that reducing the cost of insulin, hearing aids, and cancer screenings is a step in the right direction, but “we need more real changes if we’re going to have affordable health care for all of us.”

Dr. Debra Glasser, a retired internal medicine physician in Olympia, offers her perspective as on how our healthcare system got here and how our healthcare can be responsive, accessible, available, and affordable for all.

Health care costs have become consistently unaffordable for many Washingtonians, according to two new reports that identify consolidation as a primary cause. Read Patient Coalition of Washington Executive Director Jim Freeburg’s recommendations to lawmakers for how they can address it.

Patients and consumers aren’t the only ones hurting. This presentation describes how small businesses are also deeply affected by high health care costs.

Over the past decade, health insurance premiums for Washington workers covered through their employers rose 49% while the costs of individual plans more than doubled. Those were among the key findings in a preliminary report prepared by the state Insurance Commissioner’s Office delivered to the legislature this month.

This brief answers the question, “Why are health care prices so high in Washington?”

Based on reports from the Insurance Commissioner’s office and the state Attorney General, the Economic Opportunity Institute is asking state lawmakers to do more to address consolidation and sharply rising costs.

Consumers and businesses say reports issued by the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner and the Attorney General provide the legislature with tools to take the action needed in the next legislative session.

The Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner presentation to the Senate Health and Long-Term Care Committee on ground ambulance balance billing practices.